Spritely does it

If you heard that private individuals were about to put a satellite into space you'd probably think they would be the likes of Richard Branson, Alan Sugar, Clive Sinclair or any other entrepreneurial type with a big wad of dosh in their back pocket.

How about instead a Cornell University graduate engaged in a research project and a bunch of people he's found through a crowd-funding drive?

Zac Manchester with his sprite 'nanosatellite'

That's the background to KickSat - a triumph of our age.  Such a project simply wouldn't have been possible before now.  It's a shining example of technology, community and ambition to try something new.

First of all there's the funding.  Satellites are expensive things to develop and even more to deploy.  So we have the determination and talents and graduate, Zac Manchester, to thank for finding a way to reduce this to  next to nothing.  The KickSat project is non-commercial and has gained NASA sponsorship under it's Educational Launch of Nanosatellites programme.   That basically means that NASA is footing the bill.

Even though the launch cost is being picked up by Uncle Sam, the units themselves don't come for free.  Zac has raised the necessary cash through Kickstarter.  He needed $30,000 and he got $74,586 with each punter paying around $300.

No bigger than two postage stamps - the Sprite spacecraft 

This is satellite on a minature scale.  The main unit is only 30cm and packed within it are 200 tiny satellites (or sprites).  They're not exactly much to look at.  Although they comprise just $25 of electronics they are packed with all the goodies that a satellite needs to function and to stay in orbit - a micro-controller (the computer brain), a magnetometer, a gyroscope, a radio transceiver and a solar array to provide the power.

There any number of technical and logistical issues to overcome - packing the sprites so that they spring out as expected and are orientated to point at the sun to allow the solar cells to generate power.  They've practiced it many times and they reckon they've got it down pat but the real test will be when they deploy for real.

The sprites are being launched in a low-orbit so they'll only last a few months before the fall out and burn up in the earth's atmosphere.  Still, that's not the point.  This is an ambitious project to demonstrate that real satellites can be built and deployed not with the vast resources of governments but by community efforts (plus a little help from the state).  No doubt they will learn heaps and this will hopefully lead to a pile of ever more ambitious projects.

The very best of luck to the KickSat project and all of those follow-ups that it may spawn.  

Kicksat.org

Check out the video on Kickstarter

Gig starter

As a music fan this story immediately caught my eye.  A simple idea made possible through the power of web and a loyal but untapped fan base.  London-based Songkick has just beta-launched Detour - described as a 'Kickstarter for gigs'.

Do you perhaps live away from the bright lights of the big city?  No-one half decent played in your neck of the woods in living memory?  Do you reckon that there's maybe enough fans of your favourite band to make it worthwhile them coming up your way?  In days gone by, you'd be out of luck.  Chances are that you would have to travel hundreds of miles to see them.  Detour puts the fans in charge and hopefully will help bands to reach more of their base.  Get enough people to pledge on Detour and they'll get in touch with the band to see if it can become a reality.

I don't suppose this is going to appeal to the really big bands but for all those up-and-coming or yesteryear's artists, this could really help.  It could be a godsend for an overseas artist on their first foray into new territory where they know little about their fan base locally. Think about how an idea like this could work in a geographically large area but sparsely populated country like New Zealand.  Through Detour or perhaps a similar service, you may well find that an artist has a previously untapped fan base scattered around the Manawatu.  Get enough people to pledge and you could see that band booking a gig in Palmerston North.

Maybe Thea will visit NZ?

It's a great idea that puts power back in the people's hands.  Managed well you could fill town halls up and down the country with all manner of acts. Expect to see a whole bunch of copycat services springing up all around the world.

'Kickstarter for gigs' (BBC)

Songkick's London site

Songkick Detour (Wired)

Crowdfunding your way to success

Veronica Mars is headed for the silver screen thanks to the fanbase

Not so much a technology as a trend that I'm sure is here to stay, crowdfunding is all about raising venture capital from your end consumers.  Crowdfunding start-ups like Kickstarter are already big players themselves and there seems no shortage of people lining up to support good ideas.

Pebble is a Kickstarter success

For a small outlay you can help get a good idea out of the garden shed and into the retail store or onto the silver screen.    Whether it's a net-connected watch or the movie version of a favourite TV show, creators will know early on whether they're headed in the right direction because fans can now vote with their wallets.

In 2012 Pebble reckoned that they needed $100,000 initial funding and they achieved that in just 2 hours on Kickstarter.  Such was the level of interest that Pebble closed the pre-order list 30 days early having being pledged $10,266,844 from 68,928 people.       The tech of Pebble (Mashable)


Cult TV show Veronica Mars made an international star out of actress Kristen Bell and ran for 64 episodes over 3 full seasons. Fans were devastated when the show was cancelled.  There has been talk ever since of a movie but it's never managed to get the funds together - until now.  The Veronica Mars project on Kickstarter is breaking all sorts of records.  In just 4 hours they had smashed through the $US1 million mark.  Astounding.  Kickstarting Veronica

Crowdfunding projects bring hope to big dreamers all around the world.  For me, this is a game changer that  will see the public actually getting what they want, not just what big business wants them to have.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/8468665/Veronica-Mars-rattles-movie-industry