President Donald Trump’s nomination of Jim Bridenstine, a U.S. representative from Oklahoma, as the next administrator of NASA could bring a wave of business to Southern California aerospace companies.
That’s according to Greg Autry, assistant professor of clinical entrepreneurship at USC’s Marshall School of Business, a friend and professional contact of Bridenstine.
“I think in general he has a balanced approach, between a traditional and entrepreneur approach (to funding space ventures),” Autry said. “And that’s great for Southern Californian companies like Boeing, SpaceX and Virgin Galactic.”
Virgin Galactic’s small-satellite launch service could be the sort of low-cost program that Bridenstine might be interested in exploring, he added.
His relationships in Congress also could help him as a NASA administrator, said Autry.
An example: His nomination for the top post at NASA has been endorsed by U.S. Rep. John Culberson of Texas, who chairs the committee that funds the agency.
Culberson is a strong proponent of a mission to explore Jupiter’s icy moon of Europa – a program that leans heavily on NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Culberson and Bridenstine could work together to funnel even more funding to the Pasadena research and development lab, according to Autry.
Trump’s pick for NASA administrator would likely advocate for higher spending for the agency on all fronts, Autry added.
“I think that there is the potential to see funding levels in NASA that we haven’t seen in a long time,” he said. “I think the pie will be bigger for everyone.”
Trump nominated Bridenstine to the NASA administrator position Sept. 2. The Senate has yet to hold confirmation hearings.
Tipping Point
HRL Laboratories of Malibu last month received a $2.5 million award funded mostly by NASA to pursue the development of 3-D- printed ceramic rocket engine components.
The project’s goal is to advance ceramic 3-D printing to a point where it can be passed to the commercial sector for further advancement and use. Ceramic 3-D printing is not as advanced as metal and plastic 3-D printing technologies, but is promising, said Tobias Schaedler, senior scientist with HRL.
“The technology is at a tipping point,” he said. “With NASA we can get across the tipping point so industry can take it to product.”
HRL, formerly Hughes Research Laboratories, is co-owned by Boeing Co. of Chicago and General Motors Corp. of Detroit. Both companies are interested in advancing 3-D printing for their manufacturing operations, said Schaedler.
The lab’s breakthrough technology is a preceramic resin that can be printed using a many plastic 3-D printers and hardened into a ceramic when it is heated.
“It’s notoriously difficult to process ceramics,” he said. “(3-D printing) could enable new rocket engine designs that currently you can’t manufacturer because they are so complicated with conventional methods.”
Tinder on Fire
West Hollywood-based Tinder was the No. 1 grossing app in Apple’s App Store on Sept. 1, which was reportedly the first time in the company’s history it topped the list.
The surge in revenue came two days after parent company Match Group launched a $15-a-month version of the app that allows users to see who has liked their profiles. The app’s quick ascension to the top of the sales chart adds fuel to the company’s financial filings for the quarter ended June 30, which said Tinder exceeded 2 million average paid monthly customers, an 86 percent increase over the prior year. Match does not break out Tinder’s financial performance in its filings, but the company’s overall revenues jumped 12 percent year over year in the second quarter to $310 million, up from $275 million in 2016. The company’s stock has risen about 25 percent since the beginning of August.
The basic functionality of Tinder remains free to use, but the success of the app’s premium versions shows there are some features users hungry for dates are willing to pay for.
But Tinder’s paid features won’t dispel its reputation as an app for people seeking one-night stands and quick romantic hookups.
“Most users of this app are pretty much short-term minded, so the sooner they get a response the better,” said Ali Mogharabi, an equity analyst with Morningstar Research Services in Chicago. “I think that’s what motivates the users to pay for the additional features.”
Staff Reporter Garrett Reim can be reached at [email protected] or (323) 556-8332.
