{"425791":{"#nid":"425791","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Space Leadership Summit sees opportunities","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe expansion of Georgia\u0027s $51 billion aerospace industry was the main focus July 29 when representatives from government, industry, academia and the investment community gathered at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) for the Georgia Space Leadership Summit.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECurrently, the Georgia aerospace industry generates $51 billion in annual economic impact.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat number is encouraging, says AE Prof.\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/braun.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ERobert Braun\u003C\/a\u003E, but it should not be considered the end point. The director of the Georgia Tech Center for Space Technology and Research (\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/cstar.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EC-STAR\u003C\/a\u003E), Braun believes that drastic changes on the federal level can create new opportunities for Georgia to contribute to the nation\u0027s space economy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022When I look at what\u2019s going on in space, it\u2019s a pivotal time for our nation,\u0022 said Braun.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Big changes are taking place in the space sector, which is shifting more to a commercial market. Private companies are already transporting cargo to and from space. Someday soon, they will take people into orbit. The federal government wants to create additional commercial opportunities and build our nation\u0027s technological capability.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022This is an excellent time for Georgia entrepreneurs and technologists who have great ideas. From providing data about the Earth, developing new materials, biological, or pharmaceutical endeavors, if you can do it efficiently, your idea can take off on its own merits. The federal government would have crushed these ideas 10 years ago. Officials would have said, \u0027We do that. NASA does that.\u0027\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Now the federal government is reaching out to companies, trying to build the nation\u0027s space economy and technological foundation. Universities, small businesses and state agencies committed to aerospace research and development have a wealth of ideas. Now is the time to turn some of those ideas into reality, into real businesses with significant economic impact.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EFind out more about the\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/aerospace.georgiainnovation.org\/news-events\/is-georgia-the-next-great-place-for-space\/207\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EGeorgia Space Leadership Summit\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The expansion of Georgia\u0027s $51 billion aerospace industry was the main focus July 29 when representatives gathered at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) for the Georgia Space Leadership Summit."}],"uid":"27456","created_gmt":"2015-07-16 13:53:13","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:19:08","author":"Britanny Grace","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2014-08-04T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2014-08-04T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1239","name":"School of Aerospace Engineering"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"2082","name":"aerospace engineering"},{"id":"135531","name":"Georgia Space Leadership Summit"},{"id":"2575","name":"Robert Braun"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":["communications@ae.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}