HUNTSVILLE, AL- November 2019-Article By AL.com- Huntsville has more aerospace engineers than any other city in the United States, yet it’s only the fourth largest city in Alabama. These engineers and other STEM professionals work for, among others, nearly 300 companies in the second largest research park in the United States; Cummings Research Park is a key part of the Huntsville economy, fulfilling military contracts valued at around $5 billion per year. It wasn’t destiny that got us here, and the future is not a given, but Huntsville is poised to be even more important to defense contracting and space exploration. For this reason, public and private entities continue to extol the virtues of working and living in the city. Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation (INTUITIVE) has committed to a yearlong campaign of STEM implementation and outreach in the region. What sort of opportunities for the city do they have in mind?
Becoming Smart
Just like the past was not given to Huntsville, the future is not guaranteed. Technology opportunities gravitate toward places that demonstrate the right traits. Just before WWII, Huntsville was a farming town, the watercress capital of the world, with 13,000 residents. The first kernel of an opportunity for the city to craft a lucrative identity came with the passing of the war and vacancy of three munitions facilities. Back to watercress? No, not for Huntsville. Instead, Alabama Senator John Sparkman persuaded the Army to use the 35,000 acres as a site for rocket and missile development; in this moment, Huntsville became a smart place; and in 1950 the Army transferred a group of 200 German rocket scientists, including Wernher von Braun to the new Ordnance Guided Missile Center.
Von Braun became a thought leader regarding the future of space exploration. Because of his expertise and publicized enthusiasm, Huntsville became a natural choice for the Marshall Space Flight Center when NASA was created, and the United States formalized its space ambitions. It was the propulsion center that created the rockets that put the first satellite into orbit, the first person in orbit, and sent humans to the moon with the Apollo Program. In 1975, as the Apollo Program ended, Huntsville could have lost momentum, but again the Space Shuttle and International Space Station presented options to utilize the talent in Research Park. The workforce continued to adapt to become dominant in missile defense engineering and new areas such as biotechnology.
“Celebrating the culture is important for continued success,” said Arlee Holmes, Corporate Communications Manager at INTUITIVE, the Huntsville company that recently sponsored the 50th Anniversary Apollo 11 Moon Landing Celebration as well as the new STEM initiative. “We want the decision makers of tomorrow to think about Huntsville as a hotbed for the best and brightest talent in the country, and to know it’s a sure bet for relocating or expanding operations.” She continued, “If you look at what is going on with Space Force and accelerated private space travel capabilities, we could be part of history again.”
STEM Opportunities
The moon and Mars are imminent for exploration. NASA has reinvigorated interest in human deep space travel as it prepares to fulfill Space Policy Directive 1. Signed in late 2017 by President Trump, Space Policy Directive 1 provides for a U.S.-led, integrated program with private sector partners for a human return to the Moon, followed by missions to Mars. It tasks NASA with “bringing back to earth new knowledge and opportunities,” which can only be carried out by long-term field studies. For starters, NASA intends to send astronauts back to the moon on a test mission in 2022, laying the groundwork for assembling “The Gateway,” a spaceship that will orbit the moon to support missions. Contractors in Huntsville have already been contributing to the Space Launch System rocket system, a major element of the emerging space architecture.
Private space exploration has a chance to take off here as well in conjunction with Space Policy Directive 1 or otherwise. Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin space company is scheduled to complete a rocket engine production facility in Huntsville in January. This month, Blue Origin announced a team comprising Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Draper that is making a bid to build a lunar lander.
Finally, a sixth branch of the military is imminent: White House officials have requested a public communications plan from the DoD for Space Force. This branch, operating within the Air Force, will ensure use of space for national security and economic purposes.
Staying Smart, Promoting STEM
These are all exciting developments for a generation inspired by the Apollo missions and shuttle program. INTUITIVE, a 20-year aerospace veteran headquartered in Huntsville is leading a campaign of STEM promotion and outreach through its collaboration with WHNT-TV. “Even if these marquee opportunities were to evaporate, we remain a smart place because we have people smart enough to handle any challenge,” said Holmes. “I can just look down a hallway at INTUITIVE and point out experts in critical STEM areas for the future: AI and machine learning; dealing with the physics of greater speeds; additive manufacturing in space; virtual reality; and cyber security.”
The STEM series will showcase Huntsville leading in such areas as those Holmes mentioned. For example, the Missile Defense Symposium was hosted in Huntsville in August, a three-day event where military leaders and technology innovators review priorities of the military and share insights about the future of defense. This October, the UAH Invention to Innovation Center (I2C) was home to NASA’s International Space Apps Challenge, a global hackathon that uses NASA data to produce global insights about real challenges. Stay tuned to INTUITIVE’s Facebook page and WHNT’s website for ongoing STEM events and coverage that showcase expertise needed for the future of space and defense.
If you’re interested in joining the forward-thinking team at INTUITIVE, visit irtc-hq.com/careers.