COLORADO SPRINGS — There is no recession in orbit, organizers of the 25th annual National Space Symposium have found.
While other trade shows have withered amid the faltering economy, the symposium that starts next week at The Broadmoor is as big as ever, with aerospace firms plying their wares to customers including NASA and the Defense Department.
“It’s actually looking great,” said Janet Stevens, spokeswoman for the Colorado Springs-based Space Foundation, which sponsors the four-day event.
The healthy symposium is good news for the local economy, because it is expected to draw 7,500 people who will pack area hotels and drop cash in restaurants.
The real money at the symposium changes hands in hotel rooms at The Broadmoor where industry giants like Boeing and Lockheed Martin along with smaller players including local technology firms cut deals for satellites, services and computing gear.
This year’s symposium focuses on the future of the space industry.
“The industry is mature and global; more space-faring nations are on the rise; the age of space access for everyone is rapidly approaching; and the U.S. will have a new administration and Congress,” the foundation said in a news release.
Stevens said discussions will focus on the opportunities and challenges that come with nations and private firms becoming increasingly reliant on satellites for everything from navigation to the flow of international trade.
“There’s a lot going on in other places that is interesting and in some cases concerning,” Stevens said.
Speakers at the symposium include industry bigwigs and military brass. Air Force Space Command boss Gen. Bob Kehler is expected to discuss changes at his Colorado Springs headquarters including its new mission to protect the military from computer hackers.
Another hot topic will be defending what’s in orbit from anti-satellite threats and accidental collisions like one earlier this year when a Russian satellite slammed into a low-orbiting commercial communications satellite.
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