Mission – Why We Exist
- Help enthusiasts find ways to contribute.
- Provide sources of enabling training to facilitate engineering prototyping.
- Establish a clearinghouse for the ongoing objective analysis of proposed space development technologies.
Meeting Details for each Months Meeting
Website: https://sacramentol5society.nss.org
Meeting Call: Sacramento L5 Society, Local Chapter, National Space Society
Where: Virtual presence only, via Zoom
When: Second Saturday, each month beginning at 6pm PT
Pre-Zoom notes:
•These meetings are recorded.
•Folks will be asked to briefly share their video, and phone callers asked to identify themselves.
•We use the “waiting room” format. If I keep you waiting, call me and bawl me out! 916-429-6252
Join Zoom meeting:
Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kbdpRGEmNm
Meeting ID: 868 9868 4719
Passcode: Ask Joe Bland email
Home Page: SacramentoL5Society.org
SacL5 Officers: Joe Bland President, Jan Rosten VP, Ed Kulis Secretary/Website Admin (click name to email)
Sacramento L5 Society (SacL5)
Meeting Minutes
Date: Saturday, January 10, 2026
Time: 6:00 – 7:30 PM PST
Location: Virtual (Zoom)
Website: https://sacramentol5society.nss.org
Call to Order
The meeting experienced a delayed start due to connectivity issues. President Joe Bland ultimately initiated the meeting. Meetings are recorded, and participants identified themselves as requested.
Attendance (partial)
Joe Bland (President), Michael Abramson, Paul Turner, Jan Roston, Robin Scott, JP, Eric James, and others.
Discussion Highlights
The Great Filter, Civilization Survival, and Expansion
- Discussion focused on the Fermi Paradox and the concept of a Great Filter.
- General agreement that long-term human survival likely requires expansion beyond Earth.
- Debate over whether Earth-like planetary systems are rare or common.
- Emphasis on redundancy, resilience, and multi-level safeguards for civilization.
Space Settlement & Radiation Protection
- Extensive discussion of radiation shielding for space settlements.
- Concepts included:
- Water shielding (≈25 feet discussed as a reference level)
- Plastic and alternative materials
- Structural components serving dual shielding purposes
- Ceres discussed as a possible candidate for hollowed settlement.
- Concerns raised about radiation shielding during interplanetary travel.
Propulsion & Energy
- Nuclear electric propulsion discussed as a promising option.
- Solar electric propulsion compared and debated.
- Fusion acknowledged as promising but not yet practical.
- Geopolitical concerns noted regarding China and Russia advancing nuclear space technologies.
Space Program Direction
- Discussion on loss and possible renewal of the U.S. “pioneer spirit.”
- Historical constraints on NASA reviewed.
- Commercial space efforts (SpaceX, Blue Origin) viewed as critical drivers.
- China’s steady progress toward lunar operations noted.
- For All Mankind referenced as an example of accelerated alternate-history space development.
Chapter & Organizational Updates
NSS & Chapter Coordination
- Suggestion to hold an NSS chapters round-table discussion.
- David Stuart identified as a key Region 2 contact.
- Upcoming NSS Chapter Assembly noted.
- January 19 webinar announced regarding new NSS bylaws.
Financial & Administrative
- Chapter checking account remains frozen.
- NSS may provide a workaround for chapter funding.
- NSS does not wish to directly manage chapter bank accounts.
- Joe Bland is exploring options for accessing chapter funds.
Projects & Technical Activities
- JP reported progress on long-term projects including a submarine and ellipse ascender.
- Balloon and MiniCube flight concepts discussed.
- Helium acquisition identified as a major logistical need.
- Eric James reported that his steam engine project is complete.
- Continued interest in a SacL5 balloon flight device.
Space News Roundtable
- China continuing progress toward complex lunar missions, including the Shackleton region.
- Blue Origin platform landing discussed.
- First medical emergency return from the ISS noted.
- Recognition that NASA includes many capable and dedicated individuals despite funding and policy concerns.
Old Business
- Open Space Organization (OSO) white paper (Michael Abramson)
- SacL5 balloon flight device (Ed Kulis, Paul Turner)
- NASA grant discussions (Joe Bland)
- Space radiation hazards (Ed Kulis)
- New approaches to manned lunar settlements
- New propulsion concepts (Gerald Nordley)
New Business
Proposed Agenda Change (Ed Kulis)
Proposal to permanently modify meeting structure:
- 10 minutes – Greetings
- 20–30 minutes – Projects & Presentations (first)
- Chapter business afterward
- Meeting notice sent by Tuesday prior to meetings
- Open invitation for presentations (including topics from SacL5 archives)
- Presentations limited to ~15 minutes
- Discussion afterward for those who wish to stay
The proposal was received positively and will be discussed further.
Action Items
- Paul Turner: Contact Ken Davis (Sacramento School of Engineering & Science)
- Ed Kulis: Contact Benevity regarding volunteer hour submission
- Joe Bland: Follow up on Sacl5 bank acount.
- Fred Becker: Contact Larry regarding petitions and report back to Ed
- Jan Roston: Visit JP to review project work
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 PM PST.
Project Activities
Projects in Progress
- Balloon Device Project – See: Details
- Project started for see details page created on website
- Eric’s Steam Engine
- Will run on compressed air.
- It’s a “Walking Beam” Design with fly-ball governors to stabilize speed with offset cams to operate the steam valves.
- White Paper on an Open Space Organization
- Development of White Paper on an “Open Space Organization (OSO) (Michael Abramson)
- Michael presented the current state of the proposed white paper.
- We will look for other names since “Open Space Organization” has awkward connotations and “Outer Space Organization” may be in use by other organizations.
- Here are a few alternative suggested by Michael and Joe:
- Open Outer Space Organization (OOSO)
- United Outer Space Organization (UOSO)
- Space Development Organization (SDO)
- Space Developers Organization (SDO)
- Outer Space Development Organization (OSDO)
- Outer Space Developers Organization (OSDO)
- United Space Development Organization (USDO)
- United Space Developers Organization (USDO)
- United Outer Space Development Organization (UOSDO)
- United Outer Space Developers Organization (UOSDO
- Organization of Outer Space Development (OOSD)
- Organization of Outer Space Developers (OOSD)
- Joe’s Projects and Patents
- Joe’s patent applications on energy generation, storage, and distribution still in process
- Patent office hasn’t rejected any patents and the process is moving forward.
Chapter Library
- Paul Turner Books
- See Paul Turner’s Publications at Cle Curbo on Spotify and Space Trade Update
- Quest for Sylvane to buy: Amazon.com Services LLC. To learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BFK3R5JK/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4GW4RK0NG26WJWD29GYA
- In the Garden of Mistress Bloom – Awarding winning SciFi Stories
- A debut collection of short sci-fi fiction that explores time and space with mischievous humor.
- JP Aerospace
- Tours
- NSS Headquarters at the Cape offers tours of Kennedy Space Center
- Breakfast on the Moon Series
- SacL5 YouTube Breakfast on the Moon Series
- The YouTube channel contains the series of video conferences that SacL5 organized from 2019 through 2023 to celebrate each of the Apollo Lunar Landing Missions.
- Websites – Cool Links
- Dark Sky Festival
- Meet the artist that shot a bouquet of flowers 30,000 meters into space | CNN
- A Japanese Artist Launches Plants Into Space (nytimes.com)
- Homepage | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center
- Webb’s Jupiter Images Showcase Auroras, Hazes – James Webb Space Telescope
- Andry Astronaut You Tube
- NASA Cube Sats
- Dream Chaser
- Books
- Rebecca Doyle is the Author of Our Moon
- Rebecca is a journalist covering the cosmos, with a focus on astronomy, space exploration, and history.
- The late Robert Compton, our SacL5 founder. published a Physics text book like no other.
- Design Notes Log G,O.D (General Operations Director)
- This is a text book like no other. It follows the mental processes of the lonely Creator, defining matter to enhance the experience of existence and then creating time to distinguish matter as it moves. The logic continues in this way to build the intuition and demonstrate the mathematics required in the first few years of college physics courses.
- Some of you may remember that thrill. as you learned the calculus of derivatives providing the symbols that could move the static structures of algebra through the pictures in your mind. Compton’s book continues this thrilling awe that mathematics creates as its symbols correspond mostly to the universe with enough accuracy to create houses and steeples and medicine and instruments to travel beyond the clouds and deep into atoms.
- Design Notes Log G,O.D (General Operations Director)
- A Traveler’s Guide to the Stars” by Les Johnson – Realistic discussions of crewed starship designs / timeframes for a feasible trip to Proxima Centuri in a reasonable amount of time
- “The Sparrow” by Mary Doria Russell – A SciFi novel about the first contact and a a trip to meet singing aliens living near Proxima Centuri. The meeting does not go well.
- The Alice Network – Women Spies in World War 1
- Fly Girls – How Five Daring Women Defied All Odds and Made Aviation History
- Goodnight Moon Base – What if every bedtime was a powerful inspiration for your child’s future?
- Rebecca Doyle is the Author of Our Moon
- Media
- Moonfall – Leave your physics back at home but if you like a series of mostly predictable travails to reflect dim light on your popcorn then go for it.
- Start Trek: Strange New Worlds – “Quality of Mercy” – Last episode of Season 1. Rich characters, deep references, thoughtful reflection on what qualities are mercy
- The Orville: New Horizons – Comedy but good
- Star Trek: Discovery – No universe too big to save and of course, need to save all multi-verses through all time…
- Severance – Hmm…, might that enthusiasm for work, plaques, and quarterly pizza parties really be for someone else?
