Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), Speaker of the House Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont), and Rep. Greg Bonnen (R-Friendswood) met with leadership at the Johnson Space Center on Tuesday to talk about Texas' role in the future of space exploration.
Last year, the legislature passed a bill to create two commissions to advance space exploration.
The Texas Space Commission was launched "to promote innovation in the fields of space exploration and commercial aerospace opportunities, including the integration of space, aeronautics, and aviation industries into the economy of this state."
The law also created the Texas Aerospace Research and Space Economy Consortium.
Phelan said 1,800 aerospace companies operate in Texas and support 150,000 jobs. He said one of every 10 aerospace jobs in the country is in Texas.
"That's just the direct jobs," he said. "Let's talk about the technology this space has created in Texas. Telecommunications, transportation, health care, broadband, you name it, this space has created an economic windfall for the state of Texas."
Bonnen was an author of House Bill 3447, which created the commissions.
"Space exploration is really entering a golden age," he said. "The cost of getting into orbit is falling precipitously, and things our parents could have only dreamed about are starting to become a reality, and it's happening at an accelerated rate."
Members of the Texas Space Commission Board of Directors include executives from Lockheed Martin, Boeing, SpaceX, and other companies along with education leaders, including the president of the University of Texas at El Paso and the director of the Texas A&M Space Institute.
Abbott said Texas has led in space exploration for 60 years.
"The first word spoken after brave astronauts completed their landing on the moon was the word, 'Houston,'" he said. "We need to be in the forefront to make sure we are graduating students from our universities who are equipped to maintain that leadership."
Abbott said he is issuing a challenge to university systems in Texas to be the first to offer either an undergraduate or graduate degree in space engineering.
"Let's have a space race unto itself in the education sector," he said.
"It is a very exciting time in human space exploration," said Vanessa Wyche, director of the Johnson Space Center. "In fact, the past two years have been our busiest in decades."
Wyche said the future will include increased private-sector investment in space. She said companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, and others could set up private space stations in low Earth orbit, while NASA works to return people to the moon.
"And this time establishing a sustainable human presence on the moon in preparation for human missions to Mars," she said.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Tell your Smart Speaker to "PLAY 1080 KRLD"
Sign Up to receive our KRLD Insider Newsletter for more news
Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube