mark kirasich says nasa needs t find a way to entice private industry to invest in space exploration.>> s right now, we're working on commercializing the international space station-- tourist sorts of things, scientific endeavors. and the moon offers some special opportunities-- mining on the moon. so, there can be busesses that take advantage, and that's... and that's what we're trying to do-- find businesses, motivate businesses that can then make a profit by flying space missions. >> sreenivasan: mining operations othe moon? i mean, it seems so sci-fi, but who gets to mine the moon? i mean, are we doing ts humanity-- as one species, so to speak-- together? are we doing it as countries? are we t dois as companies? >> well, we'll have to develop the laws, the international laws, and we'll have to work those sorts of things out. those are legal questions. i'm still working on the engineering problems. >> sreenasan: ( laughs ) kirasg ich may be focusin engineering problems, but the fact is space exploration is no longer just a two-country race between the unit the soviet union, as it w

mark kirasich oversees nasa's orion program.the capsule is 50% bigger than apollo's, roomy enough for four astronauts. >> so you will be the pilot today, i'll be the commander. >> reporter: at eye level, a 21st century space dashboard, just one example of how this moon shot will be different. >> when we went last time, the goal was land a person on the moon and return them safely to earth, and we did that. this time it is a little bit different. it's about a sustainable, long- term human space exploration program. >> reporter: orion would launch on top of an s.l.s. rocket designed to be more powerful than the apollo-era saturn 5. its destination, a mini space station orbiting the moon called "gateway." orion's crew would dock there and take a lunar lander down to the moon's surface. a handful of companies are now proposing designs for gateway. >> watch your head. >> reporter: frank demauro showed us northrop-grumman's mockup of a gateway habitat. he oversees space systems for the company. >> when orion is here, this would be ope