Having got news at the end of last week that I'd won a BAAS travel award, I started this week with the great news that a company I've freelanced for over the past four years had agreed to sponsor part of my research. I banked the cheque this morning - thank you very much the fabulous CMS Cameron McKenna LLP.
I've also applied for funding direct to the Eisenhower Foundation who manage travel grant applications to visit the Eisenhower Presidential Library. If I'm lucky enough to receive an award, that will pretty much cover a 10-day 'smash and grab' trip to the NASA archive in DC and the Eisenhower facility. My plan is to get hold of as much primary source material as possible - and then analyse it and turn it into my opening chapter over the course of the rest of 2010.
I'm still working my way through Divine's book on the fallout from Sputnik, but planning ahead, have treated myself to a new book today - a repackaging of Mailer's writing around Apollo 11. My copy of 'Moonfire' should arrive in about a month.
My research seems to be sparking interest among a few of the key influencers that I want to reach - I even had an email from former US Vice President Mondale this afternoon offering to answer my questions. Man may not be going beyond earth orbit any time soon, but manned space exploration remains a subject of interest open to rigorous debate.
