The Space Show Presents Dale Skran with John Jossy as co-host. Friday, August 7, 2026, #4572
Quick Summary:
This was a Space Show program featured Dale Skran, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the National Space Society, discussing the NSS Orbital Space Settlement Design Project. John Jossy acted as the co-host for this program. Dale explained how the project uses the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) standardization methodology to design the first orbital space settlement, with a focus on a rotating 1G settlement accommodating approximately 1,000 people in the Earth-Moon system. The project has a five-year timeline and involves creating recommendations that would allow someone skilled in the art to build the settlement, with plans for a workshop in October 2026 in Florida. The discussion covered key technical questions including population size, mental health considerations, agricultural systems, and the need for pets, as well as economic models, location options, and regulatory aspects under the Outer Space Treaty. Participants raised questions about collaboration with commercial LEO destinations, building methods, and the project’s potential impact on space industry development.
Detailed Summary:
Dale Skran, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the National Space Society, discussed the new Orbital Space Settlement Design Project. The project stems from a 2021 workshop that reviewed the status of space settlement and resulted in a book called “The Dream Renewed, O’Neill’s Vision in the 21st Century.” Dale explained that the initiative aims to establish a comprehensive set of peer-reviewed papers demonstrating the feasibility of space settlement, inspired by the standardization methodology used by the International Telecommunications Union. Jossy did the introduction and led the program discussion with the first questions pertaining to the NSS new Orbital Space Settlement Design Project.
Dale explained the project to design the first orbital space settlement, which is governed by a Terms of Reference document approved in March 2026 and follows the ITU process. He outlined the methodology, emphasizing the importance of thoroughly examining questions before beginning design work, and described how rapporteurs will chair groups to determine consensus. Dale announced an upcoming Space Settlement Summit in Florida in October where participants will examine questions and divide them into high-level, biological, and physical categories, with plans to select 4-5 initial topics for further workshops after the event.
Our guest went over the requirements for participating in space settlement meetings, explaining that participants must submit relevant papers and have appropriate qualifications to meaningfully contribute. He addressed questions about minimum population size for space settlements, noting that 1,000 people would be necessary for permanent settlements rather than the smaller crews typically discussed. Dale also covered the importance of addressing pets in space settlements and the need to maintain appropriate levels of cleanliness and microbiome conditions to support human health.
Our Wisdom Team discussed planning for a space settlement workshop in October, with Dale likely leading the high-level section, Bryce potentially leading the biological section, and Rick likely leading the physical aspects. Marshall shared insights from reading Meyer’s book about minimum farm sizes and health considerations for space settlements. John Hunt raised important questions about the economic function and use case of the settlement, to which Dale responded that these questions would be addressed at the first workshop, emphasizing that location, economic model, and use case are interdependent factors that need to be considered together.
Dale confirmed that the space settlement design project is a 5-year initiative, based on feedback from John Mankins who suggested this timeframe would be more effective than 10 years. The project will focus on Earth-based research and development work before considering space implementation, with Dale emphasizing that the research would be relevant to Earth-based agricultural systems and medical practices. Dale clarified that the settlement design would not need to be fully autonomous, as medical evacuations and other services would be handled similarly to how small communities on Earth manage such needs.
Another project discussed by Dale was the Board of Scientific and Technical Advisors (BSTA) with a core of 7-9 members and 25-50 subject matter experts to provide scientific oversight. He addressed concerns about attracting diverse participants beyond the NSS space community, noting that the previous meeting included experts like George Dyson who were not traditional NSS leaders. Dallas mentioned his master’s thesis on a rotating business center in Earth orbit for 400 people, which Dale encouraged him to submit for consideration, along with the British Interplanetary Society’s Avalon design. The project will be conducted virtually, rotating between continents.
Dale talked about the location options for an orbiting facility, mentioning two preferred locations: an equatorial location and an Earth-Moon cycler orbit. He explained that space agencies are not driving the project due to their conservative nature, and noted that while NSS has some relationship with SpaceX, they have a more friendly relationship with Blue Origin. Dale emphasized that SpaceX’s focus on transportation and data centers means they are not duplicating efforts in those areas, and suggested working with SpaceX as a customer would work with any service provider.
Dale and Marshall discussed the potential for in-space reuse and salvage of satellites, with Dale emphasizing the need to consider economic, physical, and biological challenges when designing a rotating space element. Dale clarified that the project’s scope would focus on the design of the rotating space element rather than detailed engineering specifications, involving modeling and analysis to demonstrate buildability. Phil inquired about the project’s approach, to which Dale explained it would not be a detailed bolt-and-screw design but would include sufficient modeling to demonstrate feasibility. Dale also mentioned the possibility of using lunar resources for construction, highlighting recent technological advances in mass drivers.
Dale explained that after the five-year project concludes, the recommendations will be published in the NASA Journal of Space Settlement and potentially as a book or peer-reviewed papers, making the information freely available to collaborators. He outlined plans to collaborate with commercial LEO destination focused organizations like Blue Origin, Axiom, and Vast, as well as organizations like Paragon and the British Interplanetary Society, to help bring the rotating space settlement concept to fruition. The discussion also covered regulatory aspects, with Dale noting that the Outer Space Treaty is generally favorable to rotating space elements but requires establishing the legal right to mine the moon for construction materials.
Special thanks to our sponsors:
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Helix Space in Luxembourg, Celestis Memorial Spaceflights, Astrox Corporation, Dr. Haym Benaroya of Rutgers University, The Space Settlement Progress Blog by John Jossy, The Atlantis Project, and Artless Entertainment
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Broadcast 4596: Zoom: Dr. Rainer Zitelmann | Sunday 04 Oct 2026 1200PM PT
Guests: Dr. Rainer Zitelmann
Zoom: Dr. Zitelmann will discuss his book, “New Space Capitalism: The Entrepreneurial Path to the Stars”
