Space Alert Volume VII, Issue 1, January 2019

ORF Quarterly on Space Affairs

CONTENTS FROMFROM THE THE MEDIA MEDIA COMMENTARIES  ISRO launches India’s heaviest satellite GSAT- Privateering the Solar System: A Long  ISRO’s Mars Mission Successful, India 11 to boost rural broadband View of Commercial Space and National Makes History  Kerala plans aerospace park, aims to supply Security  ISRO Inks Deal with China for Space components for Isro projects By John Sheldon  ISROIndia to Offers Demonstrate Outer Technology Space Expertise Which to Will The inner Solar System will likely become UseBangladesh 'Dead' Last Stage of PSLV Rockets more accessible for economic exploitation in  It'sU.S. Business Dismisses Time! Space Rocket Weapons Lab Treaty Lofts 6 the coming decades, whether through robots, SatellitesProposal on as 1st “Fundamentally Commercial Launch Flawed” humans, or a mixture of both. This creates a  SpaceXNASA launches Plans India'sto Send first Submarine private satellite to dilemma for long-range policy thinking. builtSaturn’s by Mumbai Moon startup  With China’s help, Pakistan plans its first An Australian Space Agency: Has the manned space mission for 2022 Country Woken up? OPINIONS AND ANALYSIS  China launches Chang’e-4 spacecraft for By Brett Biddington pioneering lunar far side landing mission Australia’s alliance relationships and  Japan-India 'Space Dialogue' to include geography have been, and are likely to remain, NEWsurveillance PUBLICATIONS sharing the fundamental determinants of Australia’s  Japan to explore satellite-jamming technology approach to space. One area where enduring  Australia’s first commercial orbital launch facility to be built in South Australia interests and new possibilities emerge is in space security, notably space situation  Virgin Galactic achieves space on awareness. SpaceShipTwo test flight Chang’e 4 in the Global Lunar Exploration OPINIONS AND ANALYSES Context By Vidya Sagar Reddy NEW PUBLICATIONS Chang’e 4 certainly boosts China’s use of space missions for showing its technological EDITORIAL BOARD superiority and gain geopolitical benefits. However, the major difference would be the Editor: Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan landing zone being closer to the lunar South Pole. Associate Editor: Vidya Sagar Reddy

1 Privateering the Solar System: A Long physical laws, and technological requirements, View of Commercial Space and National never mind relative scale. Still, in spite of the Security flaws in the strategic analogy, many policy makers and military strategists insist upon its John Sheldon use. Oceans are vast, space is vast, ergo space is an ocean, so the analogical thinking goes. The role of commercial space in today’s Science fiction books and cinema is replete national security environments is known well with ‘fleets’ of ‘ships’ that ply the galaxies, enough. There are useful policy debates to be commanded by ‘Captains’ and ‘Admirals’. In had over what national security space systems the realm of strategic thought, the study of a state should absolutely provide for to ensure space power has seen military thinkers attempt sovereign decision making in war versus to apply the maritime and naval thought of Sir where commercial entities can step in. In this Julian Corbett and Alfred Thayer Mahan to essay, however, I propose to take a longer space power as a result of the pull of the sea view of commercial space and national power analogy for space. security as the exploitation of space resources, In the final analysis, this author is largely and establishing a permanent presence on the skeptical of strategic analogies applied to any Moon, and even Mars, becomes a plausible domain, but I understand their usefulness as a reality in the coming decades. To aid this longer view, I should like to turn to history as cognitive crutch for the process of understanding new domains (and historically a broad guide. speaking, space is a new domain), how to The roots of English – and subsequently operate in them, and their strategic British - sea power lay in 16th century significance for polities. It is in this spirit that Elizabethan privateers that harassed and I offer some thoughts about the emerging plundered the Spanish fleet, and ultimately strategic implications of commercial space for destroyed the Spanish Armada. What would national security, and for the grand strategy of eventually become the sine qua non of sea a spacefaring country. power in the 19th century started off as a Let us begin with an assumption that is rough-and-ready commercial venture that admittedly debatable, but that I use actually lasted until the 19th century through companies such as the East India Company nevertheless to support my argument that ultimately commercial concerns will be the who operated large, armed fleets of ships. primary strategic actor in spacefaring activity Here we also see that the roots of modern – to include warfare – in the future, but will European naval power was also the progenitor of colonialism in the Indian Subcontinent, eventually morph into and under state control, much like the private seafaring fleets of the Africa, and large parts of Asia. The horrors and vicissitudes suffered by the victims of 16th through 19th centuries. European colonialism also offer important The first assumption is that contrary to lessons for commercial space activity and fashionable yet nonsensical and ahistorical national security in the future. analysis in some corners of political science, the state will endure as the primary actor in The domain of oceans is often used as a strategic analogy for the space domain, despite international politics on Earth, and furthermore, the political concept of the state huge differences between the two in terms of will travel with humanity as and when it environmental and topographical conditions,

2 settles on other celestial bodies, even if initial and state-owned (or subsidized) companies. settlements are tenuous in numbers and These companies will engage in intense survivability. cooperation with each other, and will likely end up being proxies for Earth-bound states as Since the late 1990’s commercial space they compete with each other to both dominate entities spend more on space activities than and benefit from the wealth generated off- governments do, primarily in terms of satellite planet. acquisition and launch services. This trend is only increasing as space access becomes The political and historical debate over cheaper and more reliable, and as satellite and whether flag follows trade continues to this robotic technologies become more affordable day. The East India Company was a private and therefore are no longer monopolized by corporation with private shareholders, but it the state. It is therefore most likely that it will still required a royal charter to carry out its be commercial companies – private, like Elon business and pay its share of revenue to the Musk’s SpaceX, or state-owned such as, for state treasury. As commercial interests example, a company from China – will exploit morphed into state interest, the already blurry space resources and even settle celestial line between private and national interest bodies. disappeared altogether; merchants became political agents; armed employees guarding This does not mean, however, that the state is goods and stores on wharves soon became not relevant for space activities, and that enforcers of company, and government, governments cannot shape and influence the policy against local populations and their character and scope of commercial space legitimate political arrangements. These armed activity. Commercial space entities are employees are then replaced by uniformed physically located in, and under the legal soldiers; navies are built and deployed to jurisdiction of, states and are therefore subject protect trade routes, and before anyone is to regulations and laws, as well as the national really fully aware, governments find that they security imperatives of governments. Indeed, have interests they never realized they had. the emerging geoeconomic competition today between major powers such as China, United History rarely repeats itself, but it tends to States, India, and others, is characterized by rhyme. For sure, there are nontrivial technical national security concerns and imperatives challenges to be overcome, but the inner Solar determining the way in which (and the scope System will likely become more accessible for of) commercial competition is taking place economic exploitation in the coming decades, internationally. Our exploitation of space, whether through robots, humans, or a mixture whether it is in Earth orbit or beyond, will be of both. Thankfully, at least as far as we know no different. there are no civilizations to exploit and dominate, but human civilization will extend The space domain, to include celestial bodies, its reach and this in turn will sow the seeds of is increasingly seen as an economic resource future conflict between off-planet settlements that, theoretically at least, could generate vast and the insatiable demands of Earth. wealth for those with the resources and initiative to exploit it. At least in the Earth- Looking this far into the future, it can be seen Moon system, the space domain will be that commercial space is far from an unalloyed economically exploited in the coming decades, good, even if it will be an economic necessity. and this exploitation will be done by private This creates a dilemma for long-range policy

3 thinking, how to enable and encourage responsible exploitation of space resources in space and on celestial bodies while at the same time ensuring that commercial interests do not blindly morph into state interests.

This may all seem far-fetched as companies like Planetary Resources and Deep Space Industries who, only a few years ago were breathlessly heralded as the brave new future, now languish in disappointment, steep costs, and technological dead-ends. But these can be viewed – albeit at a stretch - as the historical equivalent of the doomed North American Jamestown colony financed by the Virginia Company of London in 1607. That venture proved to be a salutary lesson for others like the East India Company, who, instead of being put off, actually went off to conquer and exploit other parts of the world.

Dr. John B. Sheldon is the Chairman and President of ThorGroup GmbH, and the publisher of SpaceWatch.Global. Follow him on Twitter @JohnBSheldon

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4 An Australian Space Agency: Has the politics than either policy or business logic, Country Woken up? the Government announced that the Australian Space Agency would have its headquarters in Brett Biddington Adelaide.

In September 2017, the Australian The State of South Australia building on the Government announced at the International heritage of Woomera, the Defence Science Astronautical Congress (IAC) held in and Technology Group and IAC2017, has a Adelaide South Australia that Australia would vibrant set of space start-up companies and have a space agency. Delegates greeted this has created a South Australian Space Centre. news with a standing ovation. The Australian However, there are numerous space start-ups Space Agency opened its doors for business in Melbourne, Sydney and Queensland. on 1 July 2018 and, since then, has been busy Western Australia, because of its size, is recruiting staff, becoming known, signing ideally suited to host all manner of ground agreements with other space agencies and with stations and radio telescopes as well. The a number of companies as well. Australian component of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project is located in WA. The Agency has been established with a small amount of money $AU26 million over four At least five separate companies are planning years to run the Agency itself and a further to launch, initially small, satellites from the $AU15 million, specifically to promote Australian mainland. One, Equatorial Launch international collaboration with other space Australia (ELA), is based in the Northern agencies around the world. The Agency’s Territory. There are others in Queensland, Charter is here. Much larger amounts have Victoria and South Australia. Several plan to been allocated to Geoscience Australia for two launch small payloads to the south into low projects: Earth polar orbits.

To develop Position, Navigation and Timing The new space agency has a task not shared by (PNT) infrastructure across the 15% of the any other space agency in the world, which is Earth’s surface for which Australia has to persuade private companies to shoulder the sovereign responsibilities or international main burden of future investment in treaty obligations; and for a major geospatial Australian space activities. Considered as a data archive, the Digital Earth Australia whole, these might come to represent an project, as well. When the decision to create Australian space program. This would seem an agency was announced, Government left to be the Government’s hope. open the question of where the headquarters Today the Australian space sector (taking would be located. Common sense dictated account of upstream and downstream Canberra, given that one of the most important activities), is assessed as generating AU$3-$4 roles of the Agency is to more closely billion annually and employing around 10,000 coordinate the many space activities of people. The Agency has been tasked by numerous Australian Government departments government to grow these number by a factor and agencies. However, the question of of three by 2030 – to $AU12 billion and to location having been left open, led to a 30,000 people employed. There is no question ‘bidding war’ between several States and the that the global space sector is growing and that Australian Capital Territory. In December, Australian companies will benefit from this and for reasons that have more to do with growth. However, the Space 2.0 revolution,

5 although gaining momentum and media DIIP 2016: Space and Space Related Projects attention, is not where the real money and political clout lies. Project Time Frame Allocation Space Telescope 2016 ongoing <100m Australia is a close ally of the United States Space Situational 2018 ongoing $1bn - $2bn Awareness Systems and this is unlikely to change any time soon, and Radars the confusing approach by President Trump to Enhanced JORN (over- 2016-2026 $1bn - $2bn allies, such as Australia, notwithstanding the-horizon radar) There is strong public support for the Alliance Satellite Imagery 2022 ongoing $3bn - $4bn Capability in Australia and Australians seem willing to Military Satellite 2016-2020 $507m distinguish between the nation-to-nation Capability relationship and the confusions of daily Satellite and Terrestrial 2016-2030 $2bn - $3bn politics including the somewhat erratic Comms Infrastructure Collins Submarine 2019-2026 $750m - $1bn behaviour of the President and the revolving Satellite door Prime Ministerships that have Communications characterised Australian politics for the past decade. The Defence Science and Technology Group America spends around 50 cents in every lists “space capabilities” as one of nine areas dollar that the world spends on space and of research and development to attract Australia hosts facilities that are crucial to US government investment through the Next national security for treaty verification and Generation Technologies Fund (NGTF). In intelligence gathering purposes. Australia’s September 2018, CSIRO, Australia’s national vital security interests in space have been laboratories, released a space road map and, largely fulfilled through the Alliance has purchased access to 10% of the recently relationship. These activities have been highly launched UK NovaSAR satellite. In December classified and have led to a bifurcation 2018, CSIRO announced that it has earmarked between the Defence and Civil space sectors. $AU16 million to be spent on space-relate For the Agency to succeed, this gulf will need projects between now and 2022. CSIRO is to be bridged. How the proposed US Space clearly trying to ensure that it is the ‘go to’ Force might play into this equation is at best organisation in Australia for civil space unclear. science.

The 2016 Defence White Paper, reinforced by Many students of space have been puzzled, the 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper, make others have been critical, of Australia’s clear that Australia is seeking to develop apparent lack of interest in developing a local independent capabilities in space. Also, both space sector. Australia’s alliance relationships documents draw close links between emerging and geography have been, and are likely to space threats and emerging cyber threats and remain, the fundamental determinants of the need to counter both. The Defence Australia’s approach to space. One area Integrated Investment Plan (DIIP), released where enduring interests and new possibilities with the White Paper, indicates that Defence emerge is in space security, notably Space plans to spend $10 billion on a range of space Situation Awareness (SSA). The United activities in the decade to 2025. The major States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal projects are listed in the table below. Australian Air Force (RAAF) will shortly operate two ground-based SSA sensors at .

6 North West Cape on the western edge of the If 20,000 new jobs are created and the local Australian continent. One of the sensors is a industry grows, that’s cream on the cake. radar and the other is a space telescope. There is also unclassified research in SSA through the Space Environment Research Centre (SERC) which is a collaborative program between government, industry and academia. Brett Biddington is the founder and principal of Biddington Research Pty Ltd, a consulting Many of the numerous space start-ups that company that specialises in space and cyber have appeared in Australia in the past six security matters. He led the team that years or so are driven more by enthusiasm for delivered the International Astronautical technology than by defensible business cases. Congress, in Adelaide in 2017. Technology push, rather than user pull, is the name of the game. To have any chance of succeeding as businesses, many will need to find export markets. However, to obtain export permits, they will need to meet the (Back to Contents) requirements of Australia’s export laws that, with respect to space technologies, are strict.

Australia has needed a space agency for a long time, but for reasons that are far more important than creating 20,000 new jobs by 2030. As a middle power, Australia needs to exert such influence as it has, regionally and globally, to help to secure the commons of space in its selfish interests and in the broader interests of humanity. The national and indeed the global economy depends on secure and assured access to the services and data provided by satellites.

By virtue of its geography (southern hemisphere latitude and equidistant from the Americas and Europe in terms of longitude), and support for the international rules-based order, Australia needs a small space agency staffed by highly-credentialed individuals who are widely respected in the international councils of space and who can back their interventions by data from an array of national sensors – ‘skin in the game’.

The Australian Space Agency is best thought of as an element of a national and international insurance policy – to help to protect millions of jobs in Australia, perhaps billions globally.

7 Chang’e 4 in the Global Lunar explore the far side of the moon. This mission Exploration Context has greater risk than the previous missions as the far side of the moon never comes into Vidya Sagar Reddy Earth’s visibility making tracking and communicating with the spacecraft difficult. China finally achieved an original space first few days ago by landing a lander and rover With the experience gathered from Chang’e 2 stack on the far side of the moon. No nation spacecraft deep space maneuvering, China has launched such a mission so far thus placed a communications relay satellite at an placing China in a unique position in the Earth-Moon Lagrange point. The relay global space order. The mission also satellite will have clear view of the far side of demonstrated China’s increasing space the moon and the Earth simultaneously, capabilities and the lead it now enjoys with facilitating two-way communications. China regional space powers such as India. The has installed deep space communications landing location near the South Pole of the ground stations in Argentina and Namibia that moon also rises its stake in lunar mining, will aid in this process. Another technological building lunar outposts and possible territorial advance China continued is the use of claims. radioisotopes for generating heat enabling the spacecraft to conduct experiments during the The moon had been a subject of Cold War lunar night. One of these experiments is to test geopolitical competition with the United if seeds can germinate and silkworm eggs States (US) and Soviet Union racing to prove hatch. The spacecraft will also conduct their technological might. The Soviet Union astronomy taking advantage of the recorded a series of space firsts in low Earth electromagnetic quietness on the far side of orbit and lunar exploration prompting Lyndon the moon. To be sure, China is turning off Johnson to remark that, “In the eyes of the emissions from Chang’e 3 on the near side and world, first in space means first, period; other orbiting spacecraft. second in space is second in everything.” The end of Cold War brought together the US and Chang’e 4 certainly boosts China’s use of Russia to work on the joint International Space space missions for showing its technological Station project but China began asserting superiority and gain geopolitical benefits. This geopolitical ambitions through outer space. is a proven method from the Cold War era. China’s lunar exploration programme is However, the major difference would be the developed with the intent to land Chinese on landing zone being closer to the lunar South the moon and the robotic spacecraft named Pole from the far side of the moon. While after the Chinese moon goddess Chang’e act classical geopolitics-minded lunar exploration as the precursors. Chang’e 1 and Chang’e 2 has renewed with Japan and India launching observed the moon and made detailed maps of lunar spacecraft in 2007 and 2008 respectively the lunar surface. and India aiming the follow-on mission in 2008, the emergence of commercial lunar Chang’e 3, however, improved the project’s services companies and increasing prospects profile by landing on the near side of the for lunar mining added a new competitive moon. A rover was released from the lander to dimension. probe the lunar surface. Chang’e 4 spacecraft was originally built as the backup for Chang’e The Apollo 11 landing on the lunar surface 3 and the Chinese space planners intended it to ended the space race but on its fiftieth

8 anniversary in 2019, a new race is emerging. prospecting and probable quasi-territorial An American instrument on Chandrayaan-1 claims as the basis. The Outer Space Treaty provided conclusive evidence recently for the banned making territorial claims by states and presence of water (in the form of water-ice) on made them responsible for non-governmental the moon. Several spacecraft mapped the lunar activities on celestial bodies. However, states surface showing the presence of various allowing access to and mining a site on a metals that are currently used by various celestial body without making territorial industries on the Earth. These resources can be claims and providing legal protection to mined for use in space itself with emerging extracted space resources mean a way around technologies such as 3D printing adaptable to the international space law. Moreover, the outer space. Lunar water is the most premium emerging view that the moon is Earth’s eighth given its need for possible human settlements continent shifts the outer space paradigm to and making rocket fuel. The moon being the terrestrial. gateway to the solar system and its significance in humans setting foot on Mars is China seems to be aware of these raising the demand for these resources. developments and is protecting its stakes as lunar exploration 2.0 begins. Japan is Whether lunar mining is feasible and supporting private efforts and that compels economical or not, the US and Luxembourg India to make a deep impact with its next lunar are supporting mining of space resources by mission. Chandrayaan-2 has been delayed for providing legal and monetary assistance to now but the mission must be expected to commercial space companies. They have ensure India’s interests in outer space when it promulgated national laws allowing private finally lands on the lunar surface. entities to own, transport, use and sell resources mined in space. NASA has been a source of technological support and funds to Vidya Sagar Reddy is an Associate Fellow in these companies through its Commercial the Nuclear and Space Policy Initiative of Lunar Payload Services programme. SpaceX Observer Research Foundation. and Blue Origin are planning rocket services while Jeff Bezos intends to create Amazon- like delivery service to the moon. Japan is also a part of these developments by cooperating with Luxemburg which is beneficial to its (Back to Contents) local company ispace. Moreover, the American, Russian and European governments too have demonstrated interest in lunar exploration.

The Chinese efforts at lunar exploration should be viewed from this emerging global situation. Chang’e 4 will be followed up by Chang’e 5 which is a sample return mission. China believes that the robotic exploration phase should be followed by human exploration. This ambition too has resources

9 FROM THE MEDIA

ISRO launches India’s heaviest satellite kilogrammes with approximately 500 Watts of GSAT-11 to boost rural broadband power. The proposed highly inclined orbit is expected to be around 500 kilometres when it The satellite weighs 5854-kg GSAT-11 and is is closest Venus, and 60,000 kilometres when the heaviest satellite ever built by the Indian it is farthest. Space Research Organization (ISRO). It has a mission life of 15 years. “GSAT-11 will boost Source: Indian Express, November 12, 2018 the broadband connectivity to rural and inaccessible Gram Panchayats in the country ISRO Says Increasing Production of Solid coming under the Bharat Net Project, which is Fuel Boosters for Rockets part of Digital India Programme,” said ISRO The Indian space agency is increasing the Chairman Dr. K. Sivan. production of its solid boosters to power more Source: Live Mint, December 5, 2018 number of rockets that it is planning to send up carrying satellites. he space agency said ISRO's PSLV-C43 successfully places into SPROB is now carrying out a challenging task orbit HysIS along with 30 satellites to deliver 12 numbers of S139 motors by 2019 end, which is double the present capacity. The ISRO's workhorse rocket PSLV-C43 Thursday S139 motors powers the first stage of Indian successfully injected into orbit India's earth rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). observation satellite HysIS along with 30 co- passenger satellites from eight countries. Source: NDTV, November 29, 2018 During the launch however, scientists had to restart the fourth stage engine twice for Kerala plans aerospace park, aims to placing the 30 co-passenger satellites. The supply components for Isro projects primary mission of the Hyper Spectral The Government of Kerala is in the process of Imaging Satellite (HysIS), whose life is five setting up an aerospace park and is also years, is to study the earth's surface in visible, targeting development and manufacturing near infrared and shortwave infrared regions related to space projects in collaboration with of the electromagnetic spectrum. the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro). Source: Economic Times, November 29, 2018 The project aims to develop an ecosystem, including setting up a large manufacturing ISRO calls for global proposals to carry base, for aerospace components and vehicles experiments on Venus mission in the long-run.

ISRO has invited proposals from the Source: Business Standard, November 18, international scientific community to carry out 2018 novel experiments on its planned Venus mission, scheduled to launch in 2023, the ISRO to Demonstrate Technology Which space agency said. The capacity of the Will Use 'Dead' Last Stage of PSLV proposed spacecraft is likely to be about 100 Rockets

10 “Normally, the last stage of a PSLV rocket communication satellite built by Mumbai- after releasing the primary satellite in space based startup ‘Exseed Space’. The mini becomes dead and categorised as debris. It communication satellite aims at serving the remains in the same orbit as that of the country during national calamities by helping released satellite. Now, we are working in a the amateur radio community in coordinating new technology where we will give life to this messages amongst them. “dead” last stage of PSLV, also called PS4 stage, for six months after its launch. This Source: New Indian Express, December 5, rocket stage will double up as a satellite.” 2018

Source: Times of India, December 13, 2018 Virgin Galactic achieves space on SpaceShipTwo test flight It's Business Time! Rocket Lab Lofts 6 Virgin Galactic achieved a long-awaited Satellites on 1st Commercial Launch milestone when its SpaceShipTwo suborbital Rocket Lab's primary launch site is on the vehicle performed its highest test flight to Mahia Peninsula, on New Zealand's North date, exceeding one altitude often used as the Island. But the company will also fly from the boundary of space. The vehicle reached a peak Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Virginia; altitude of 83 kilometers and top speed of the first missions from the U.S. pad could Mach 2.9 before gliding back to a safe come as early as next year, Rocket Lab landing. That altitude exceeds the boundary of representatives have said. 50 miles, or about 80 kilometers, used by U.S. government agencies for awarding astronaut Source: Space.com, November 10, 2018 wings.

SpaceX launched 64 satellites in record- Source: Space.com, December 7, 2018 breaking mission NASA's intrepid Voyager 2 probe crosses It marked one of the largest satellite ride- into interstellar space sharing missions ever launched and the most crowded single mission in US history, Voyager 2, a NASA probe launched in 1977 according to Spaceflight, SpaceX's customer and designed for just a five-year mission, has for the launch. The mission illustrated the become only the second human-made object growing demand to launch small satellites, to enter interstellar space as it continues its modern devices that some companies hope marathon trek from Earth. The boundary will empower an array of new businesses — crossed by the intrepid probe as it journeys a from internet service to supply chain bit more than 11 billion miles (18 billion km) monitoring. from Earth is called the heliopause, a place where the hot solar wind runs up against the Source: CNN, December 4, 2018 interstellar medium, the soup of stuff residing SpaceX launches India's first private between the stars of our Milky Way galaxy. satellite built by Mumbai startup Source: Reuters, December 11, 2018 India’s first satellite built by a private firm US to ease restrictions on space tech tie ups was launched into space by Elon Musk’s -- except with China SpaceX on Monday. It is a mini

11 The administration of U.S. President Donald Commsat Technology Development Co, Trump is planning to expand cooperation with blasted off on Friday afternoon, which its other countries on the U.S. space program as designers say will attempt to test the “internet part of a strategy to counter China's of things” technology in fulfilling tasks such technological and military expansion. as tracing cargo ships and monitoring Washington is considering easing restrictions endangered wildlife. The satellites were on exports of space technologies to U.S. allies, launched atop a Long March 2D carrier as well as working with Japan and Europe on rocket. new manned NASA missions to the moon. Source: China Daily, December 7, 2018 Source: Nikkei Asian Review, November 24, 2018 China launches Chang’e-4 spacecraft for pioneering lunar far side landing mission NASA InSight Lander Arrives on Martian China launched its Chang’e-4 moon mission Surface Dec. 7, successfully sending the lander and NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic rover into a lunar transfer orbit ahead of an Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport unprecedented attempt at a landing on the far (InSight) lander successfully touched down on side of the moon early in the New Year. the Red Planet after an almost seven-month Chang’e-4 was originally planned as a backup journey. InSight's two-year mission will be to to the Chang’e-3 lander and rover mission, study the deep interior of Mars to learn how which made China the third country to achieve all celestial bodies with rocky surfaces, a soft-landing on the lunar surface, and the including Earth and the Moon, formed. first since the Soviet Union’s Luna 24 in 1976.

Source: NASA, November 26, 2018 Source: Space News, December 7, 2018

With China’s help, Pakistan plans its first China launches two remote sensing manned space mission for 2022 satellites for Saudi Arabia, ten microsats for private companies Pakistan will send a human to space for the first time in 2022 with China’s help, China carried out its 35th orbital flight of 2018 information minister Fawad Chaudhry on Friday with the launch of two remote announced, the same year India plans to sensing satellites for Saudi Arabia and a host launch its manned space mission. Pakistan’s of microsatellites for Chinese commercial first space mission has been planned for 2022 space companies. The two high-resolution and the federal Cabinet meeting chaired by Earth observation satellites were developed by Prime Minister Imran Khan approved the plan, King Abdulaziz City for Science & ahead of his maiden visit to Beijing. Technology (KACST) and carry hyperspectral observation systems, with Saudi Arabia and Source: Hindustan Times, October 26, 2018 China signing an agreement for their launch in Chinese space startup Commsat launches January 2016. seven mini-satellites Source: GB Times, December 7, 2018 Seven mini-satellites mostly designed and Japan-India 'Space Dialogue' to include assembled by a Chinese space startup, surveillance sharing

12 Japan and India are moving to share satellite Source: Ars Technica, December 5, 2018 data and surveillance technologies, acknowledging the strategic importance of Australian Space Agency drums up US monitoring outer space and the world's oceans. interest for new industry The Japan-India Space Dialogue, established The newly-formed $41 million Australian in October by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Space Agency has been knocking on doors Abe and Indian Prime Minister Narendra across the US to promote the Australian Modi, aims in part to keep pace with the U.S., industry's specialty in small-scale satellites, China and Russia in this area. global positioning and remote "internet of Source: Nikkei Asian Review, December 9, things" technology.

Japan to explore satellite-jamming Source: Financial Review, December 12, 2018 technology Adelaide chosen to host Australia’s space The Japanese government plans to possess the agency capability to jam hostile communication “Our government’s $41 million investment satellites in outer space, a new policy into the agency will act as a launching pad to stipulated in a draft outline of the next triple Australia’s space economy to $12 billion National Defense Program Guidelines set to and create up to 20,000 jobs by 2030. We are be approved by the Cabinet. The guidelines’ committed to growing Australia’s space sector outline also calls for possession of the ability and our government is also investing $260 to jam attackers’ command and control system million to develop world-leading satellite as well as communications in outer space. capabilities and to significantly increase GPS Under consideration is introducing a ground- accuracy in our cities and regional areas.” based device that uses electromagnetic waves to jam hostile satellites’ communications, Source: News Australia, December 12, 2018 which are essential for attackers’ command Australia’s first commercial orbital launch and control over their forces. facility to be built in South Australia Source: The Lead, December 4, 2018 Southern Launch will target rockets with The old guard may be turning against the payloads between 50kg and 400kg, like Russian space program Rocket Lab’s Electron, that carry microsatellites into polar or sun synchronous "Even if we build Federation, we don't have orbits to service Internet of Things any way to launch it into space. There's no applications such as monitoring agricultural booster for it, and no money to build it. There land. There has been a huge shift in the space are only decisions that we need to build a ship ecosystem from the old-space equatorial orbits and a new booster. But there's nothing else for large telecoms and TV satellites to the besides words. We've been given a task but no NewSpace polar orbits for IoT. means to fulfill it. The Americans are actively exploring the Moon. We also talk about it, but Source: The Lead, December 4, 2018 how are we going to explore? No one knows.

Because we don't have ships; we don't have boosters that can do it." (Back to Contents)

13 OPINIONS AND ANALYSES

Kenneth Chang, “Rocket Lab’s Modest Loren Thompson, “Space Race: How The Air Launch Is Giant Leap for Small Rocket Force Can Respond Faster As China, Russia Business,” New York Times, November 10, Threaten U.S. Orbital Systems,” Forbes, 2018 December 7, 2018

“Can India be the next space startup haven, or Con Coughlin, “Why Britain could fight its will China beat us to it?,” The Print, future battles with Russia in space,” The December 9, 2018 Telegraph, December 12, 2018

Kenneth Chang, “Rocket Lab’s Modest Loren Thompson, “Five Existential Launch Is Giant Leap for Small Rocket Challenges Facing Elon Musk's SpaceX,” Business,” New York Times, November 10, Forbes, December 11, 2018 2018 Dwayne Day, “Spooky Apollo: Apollo 8 and Andrew Kramer, “Russia Wants to Extend the CIA,” The Space Review, December 3, U.S. Space Partnership. Or It Could Turn to 2018 China.,” New York Times, December 11, 2018 Mark Whittington, “Of flags on the Moon,” Ellis Talton and Remington Tonar, “To The Space Review, December 3, 2018 Commercialize Space We Need To Build Infrastructure, Not Just Launch Rockets,” Daniel Keane, “What will a new space agency Forbes, December 10, 2018 do for Adelaide, Australia and the world?,” ABC News, December 12, 2018 “Should ISRO help India’s private space players grow or focus only on its big Duncan Blake, “The problems with small missions?,” The Print, November 30, 2018 satellites – and what Australia’s Space Agency can do to help,” The Conversation, December Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, “India’s big 7, 2018 space leap; ISRO now readying flight to Venus,” Financial Express, November 20, Kazuto Suzuki, “Space: A New Battleground 2018 for Japan,” Nippon, December 5, 2018

Namrata Goswami, “The Moon’s Far Side and Jeff Foust, “Turning space policy into space China’s Space Strategy,” The Diplomat, regulation,” The Space Review, November 5, December 12, 2018 2018

Eric Berger, “Here’s why China’s launch to Lucianne Walkowicz, “Five myths about the far side of the Moon is a big deal,” Ars space,” The Washington Post, December 11, Technica, December 10, 2018 2018

Joan Johnson-Freese, “Asia’s Many Space Declan Butler, “Could the United Kingdom Races,” The Diplomat, December 1, 2018 really build its own global satnav system?,” Nature, December 12, 2018 Dean Cheng, “Space Force: premature or overdue?,” Space News, November 19, 2018 (Back to Contents)

14 NEW PUBLICATIONS

REPORTS / STATEMENS / MULTIMEDIA Oluwaseun Tella, “Space as a Fulcrum of Nigeria's External Relations and Regional India-Russia Joint Statement during visit of Hegemony,” Space Policy, Vol. 46, November President of Russia to India, Press Information 2018, pp. 46-52 Bureau, October 5, 2018 Andrés López, Paulo Pascuini and Adrián India-Japan Vision Statement, Press Ramos, “Climbing the Space Technology Information Bureau, October 29, 2018 Ladder in the South: the Case of Argentina,” Space Policy, Vol. 46, November 2018, pp. Joint Statement of the 25th Session of the Asia- 53-63 Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum, November 6-9, 2018 Peter Stubbe, “A gradual approach towards space traffic management: The contribution of EU Statement – United Nations 1st UNISAPCE+50,” Acta Astronautica, Vol. Committee: Thematic Discussion on Outer 152, November 2018, pp. 179-184 Space, Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations, October 23, 2018 Jonathan McDowell, “The edge of space: Revisiting the Karman Line,” Acta UK Statement to the UNGA 73 First Astronautica, Vol. 151, October 2018, pp. Committee on Outer Space, UK Mission to 668-677 UN in New York, October 25, 2018 CHAPTERS / BOOKS / MONOGRAPHS / Interview of One Space CEO on company’s OCCASIONAL PAPERS progress, plans, and China’s space industry Michael Wall, Out There: A Scientific Guide JOURNAL ARTICLES to Alien Life, Antimatter, and Human Space Travel (Grand Central Publishing: New York, Evgeniia Drozhashchikh, “China’s National November 2018) Space Program and the “China Dream”,” Roger Launius, The Smithsonian History of Astropolitics, Vol. 16, Issue 3, November Space Exploration: From the Ancient World to 2018, pp. 175-186 the Extraterrestrial Future (Smithsonian Books: Washington, October 2018) Gurbachan Sachdeva, “Commercial Mining of Celestial Resources: Case Study of U.S. Space Stephen Hawking, Brief Answers to the Big Laws,” Astropolitics, Vol. 16, Issue 3, October Questions (Bantam: New York, October 2018) 2018, pp. 202-215 Seth Fletcher, Einstein's Shadow: A Black XiaodanWu, “China's Space Law: Rushing to Hole, a Band of Astronomers, and the Quest to the Finish Line of its Marathon,” Space See the Unseeable (Ecco: New York, October Policy, Vol. 46, November 2018, pp. 38-45 2018)

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