Space Settlement

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN SPACE INDUSTRIALIZATION, SATELLITE SOLAR POWER, AND SPACE HABITATS L-5 Mews May 1977 half its gross weight consisting of fuel. If there were no atmospheric oxygen, it Space letters would also need to carry that, too. Its mass-ratio would then be very much like Settlement I would like to comment on Jim that of a rocket, and a simple calculation Oberg’s questions regarding the Moon, in shows that if equipped with rocket Special Issue of the L-5 News the March L-5 News. engines, it could attain nearly enough He raised the question of Volume 2, Number 5 May, 1977 velocity for a transcontinental flight just environmental effects of the use of a by flying like an ICBM. So once again it lunar mass-driver, both on the Moon itself is not clear whether the Oberg and on the regions of space available for atmosphere would make travel by lunar Contents: use by spacecraft. aircraft all that much easier than travel by Regarding the latter, recent work has rocket. Developing Space Policy 1 made it clear that the lunar-launched Finally, Bob Farquhar of NASA- Jack Salmon mass stream will be very well-defined in Goddard has done a great deal of very Arthur Kantrowitz Proposes its trajectory characteristics, and will be fine work on lunar libration-point A Science Court 4 predicted well in advance. Thus, it need communications satellites. These would L-5 interview by Eric Drexler pose no more of a hazard to navigation provide much more reliable and efficient than any other type of space traffic. communication than any lunar Boeing Designers Answer Questions Regarding the former, Oberg suggests ionosphere, for use by an extensive lunar About Satellite Solar Power 6 that the mass-driver could affect the lunar community. Thus, they would be the Norie Huddle rotation. The mass-driver, in operational lunar counterparts of our Earthside Spacelab 10 use, will exert a force of some 100,000 communications satellites, which of newtons parallel to the lunar surface, L-5 in Congress - Part 2 12 course have already replaced most forms equivalent to a weight of ten tons at the of ionospheric communication over the What’s Available Earth’s surface, or of 36,000 tons at the Earth. from the L-5 Society? C-l distance of the Moon. I note also that Oberg wonders The lunar rotation keeps one side whether it would still be possible to use a Bernal Sphere C-2 turned towards the Earth. This is not the Don E. Davis, artist mass-driver in the presence of his result of any delicate balance, upset by atmosphere. The answer is very simple: ERDA 21 small continuous forces. Instead, it No. follows from the distribution of mass Inside the L-5 Society 21 T.A. Heppenheimer within the Moon (to be technical, the Heidelberg, Germany Bibliography 22 ratio of its moments of inertia). It is an Jesco von Puttkamer extremely stable arrangement. The Moon 19 itself has mass approximately 7.3 x 10 Thinking of the food supply problems Published monthly by L-5 Society, Inc. at 1620 tons, which is, as mentioned, not that have been discussed in the L-5 News N. Park Ave., Tucson, AZ 85719. Subscription completely even in its distribution. The price: L-5 Society members, $3.00 per year, recently, I might have a workable included in dues ($20.00 per year, students unevennesses amount to far more than $10.00 per year). Subscription price to non- suggestion as far as meat goes, We are members available on request. Single copies, 36,000 tons, and one result is that the raising quail (sort of a hobby . . . ). The when available, $1.00 each. Send Form 3579, Moon oscillates slightly around this stable ADDRESS CHANGES AND SUBSCRIPTION breed we have (Coturnix: Pharoh D-1) ORDERS to L-5 SOCIETY, 1620 N. PARK equilibrium. These are the so-called AVE., TUCSON, AZ 85719. Second class lays one egg a day, reaches “laying age” postage paid at Tucson, Arizona. ©1977 L-5 physical librations. Yet these oscillations in six weeks and full size in eight weeks. Society. All Rights Reserved. or librations amount to only some two They are as prolific as bunnies-and minutes of arc in the lunar rotation, BOARD OF DIRECTORS tastier than chicken. I will keep record which is so small that it was not even and weights, etc., and let you know how Konrad K. Dannenberg, Leonard David, detected till 1838. So I can only suggest they size up as a food source. Edward R. Finch, David M. Fradin, that trying to influence the lunar rotation I was also wondering what sources are Carolyn Meinel Henson, H. Keith Henson, by means of a mass-driver, is like trying under consideration on L-5 (for L-5?). Mark M. Hopkins, Barbara Marx Hubbard, to cause an iceberg to topple over by Sometimes it would seem that a lot of Norrie Huddle, Magoroh Maruyama, blowing on it. food sources are being overlooked Jim Oberg, Phillip Parker, Jack Salmon, Oberg also suggests that it might be because they are non-western food Romualdas Sviedrys, J. Peter Vajk, useful to provide a tenuous lunar sources. There are a lot of things that are William H. Weigle. atmosphere, so as to facilitate lunar edible (and highly palatable), that are landing, point-to-point transport (as by often overlooked because they are Front cover: aircraft), and communication (by means unknown. Over 30% of the world’s BERNAL SPHERE INTERIOR. of an ionosphere). The merits of such a population delights in sweet manioc proposal are not at all clear. (casaba), a tuber that is grown in the A series of concentric buildings and To begin, the lunar gravity is not all tropical regions. I don’t know what kind galleries at each end are constructed that bad, and in the absence of detailed of potential it has as an L-5 crop, but I around the axis of the Bernal Sphere. designs it is difficult to say whether the have the idea that most of the researchers This fish-eye view is from the edge of the saving in propellant mass would not be haven’t looked into it. (My opinionated zero-gravity conical safety net which offset through the extra mass required opinion!) Has anyone looked into the encloses the structures. The foreground for an aeroshell or heat shield, possibility of raising fish? I know of one area between the windows of the building parachutes, and the like. Compare (for variety, Tilapia, that does not require and the poles that secure the net is wild example) the Viking lander to the rather moving water and lives on algae. I also and overgrown with vegetation. This area similar Surveyor lunar lander of a decade understand that it breeds fairly well. is too steep for residences and is not as earlier. fully shielded from cosmic rays. The Regarding lunar aircraft in the Oberg Shirley Ann Varughese spokes are structural supports with atmosphere, one may begin by asking South Somerville, elevators inside (Drawing by Don E. what would happen if the Earth had no New Jersey Davis, mechanical color separations by atmosphere. As it is, a 747 or other long- Jonathon Nix). range jet takes off with something like (More letters on page 24) Developing Space Policy The international implications of space development by nations or corporate entities are extensive. Can a policy be designed for organization, law, and security in space? Jack D. Salmon

rise of a politically powerful technocratic dungeon in which they now languish. (Prepared for presentation at the XVIII elite dominating centralized energy Social and political preference is then Annual Convention of the International systems (see bibliography: Lovins). strong, even extreme, in favor of in Studies Association, March 16-20, 1977) Recognition of the great biological increasing the availability of energy. But When one surveys the alternative and social dangers of the “normal” ecology teaches us that it is not possible technologies and strategies usually solutions proposed has produced a whole to do only one thing: increased energy recommended for energy policy it school of “scarcity politics.” Its members use will perturb the total environment, becomes quite clear that the industrialized range from the relatively sanguine at possibly disasterous cost. At some nations perceive the situation as indeed Schumacher and Lovins to the pessimistic point not too far in the future (at present desperate. The most obviously desperate Heilbroner or Ophuls, and the truly rates of growth, perhaps little more than “solution” is that of aggressive war, frightening visions of the Paddocks or a century), continued energy use based hinted at in 1974 by American officials Hardin (for all references, see on fossil and nuclear fuels will bring the claiming that the enormous consumption bibliography). Their prescriptions planet up against the ultimate barrier: of the industrialized societies somehow frequently involve draconian population the ineluctable working of the Second creates in them a “right” to continue control and reduction programs, drastic Law of Thermodynamics and consequent their consumption pattern and therefore reorientation of social and political planetary thermal balance changes, with a corresponding “duty” of resource values, and very different types of possible consequences including holders to supply the needed materials. technology. It is true that, as Lovins extinction of the human species. There is This “duty” would of course be enforced claims, the actions needed to accomplish a simple, basic fact: a finite planet cannot by military means if needed. Given that “alternative technology” solutions are no contain infinite growth. At some point, even the Arabs have limited supplies of more drastic than those required to growth must stop; the only significant petroleum, and the possibilities of major continue policies of “growth as usual” choices open to us are those of when and war inherent in such actions, this is at but the latter policies have the great under what conditions growth will stop. best a short-term, politically expensive advantage of falling within what Pirages It is not then possible to solve the and exceedingly dangerous solution. and Ehrlich have called the “dominant problems of the human condition on our Slightly lower on the desperation social paradigm.” Kuhn and others have planet by means of applying scale come such proposals as that of amply illustrated our intellectual and conventional, or even somewhat bulldozing and boiling major portions of social preferences for change by unconventional, technological solutions. several American states in order to incremental processes; the scarcity school Selected techniques such as geothermal, secure energy from oil shale, overlooking is proposing something far more ocean thermal, wind and solar power can both the magnitude of environmental sweeping. certainly help and should be pursued, but problems created and the probability Yet we face a tremendously important they cannot solve the world energy that the herculean efforts required would quandary: if the developed nations are to problem. If the developing nations are to consume nearly as much energy as they maintain the lifestyles to which they have continue population growth and aspire to would produce. Massive coal mining may become accustomed, and even more if improved material standards of living, be nearly as costly, although more likely there is to be any possibility at all for most alternate energy sources can’t even to produce useful output. Nuclear power third, fourth, and fifth world nations to help very much. The demand will simply has failed miserably of its early promises realize human dignity, we must not only be too big, and environmental costs may of cheap, clean and limitless power, and maintain but enormously increase our wash out much of the nominal gains. even its proponents speak of “Faustian energy production. Energy supplies are But technological optimism-the belief bargains.” Fusion power, once devoutly seen by industrial societies as necessary that humanity will somehow find a sought, seems increasingly to resemble to maintain a rather plush lifestyle; to the technological solution to virtually all fission power: it probably will produce majority of the world’s nations, access to problems, if it is really needed-possesses radioactive waste products in significant vast supplies of relatively inexpensive tremendous social inertia; it won’t stop quantity, and massive thermal pollution. energy is essential if there is to be any being part of our dominant social It would also contribute to the continued possibility of escaping the developmental paradigm because of mathematical

-1- impossibility. And it’s even possible, to even arguably possible that peace would of national security necessarily help that the amazement and perhaps the dismay break out on Earth, since incentives to cause. of at least some members of the scarcity covet one’s neighbor or one’s neighbor’s Space industrialization will probably school, that there is a feasible resources would seem to be less, while be adopted, if at all, primarily because of technological solution which has a the adventures of the high frontier would the energy component of the system. relatively short lead time (perhaps twenty absorb national energies. Should For economic and social reasons, years), promises not only vast supplies of apocalyptic war happen, parts of the provision of abundant and low-cost energy energy but other valuable side benefits race might survive in space and begin energy is of very high priority; for such as less environmental damage, and again. national security reasons, obtaining the has a high content of adventure and energy is a high priority but carries with Problems on the High Frontier glamour. it the requirement that vital energy There is now a growing literature of sources be protected against destruction The High Frontier technical and economic analysis of the or capture. Analyses of the probability The possible solution is an outgrowth concept, most supporting its feasibility. that American troops could capture, hold of the technology and science of the last R&D programs are underway in both and produce Arab oil fields under hostile decade; prior to about 1970 it would government and private agencies, a action suggested that the bet was rather have been science fiction, or at best citizen’s lobby exists, international poor; little more has been heard of the speculative science. Technology agencies (including the UN) are taking idea. Might solar power satellites (SPS) developed for the Apollo Moon voyages, interest -- for a concept which first came have similar status? coupled with geological findings on the to public notice only four years ago, a There are a number of components in Moon and recent spectroscopic analyses very respectable record. But there has the complete system, all essential to of some asteroids, provided the needed been little attention paid to problems of successful operation and growth: Earth- technological advances and data base. international politics, political or based launch and microwave reception Professor G.K. O’Neill of Princeton in organizational dynamics, and socio- installations; the mining and mass- 1969-70 assigned his freshman physics political consequences in general. launcher facilities on the Moon; the seminar a problem: “Is a planetary Technological solutions are useless if industrial colony; the SPS itself. All are surface the right place for an expanding society cannot provide the support vulnerable to sabotage, but this is true technological civilization?” From the needed; if the costs are too high, that of any major installation and would initial surprising findings flowed other presumably be dealt with by normal anti- questions and supporting results, leading sabotage methods. There is no obvious to what is now a well-developed reason why sabotage would be more conceptual design for development of “Space industrialization will successful here than in any other human civilizations in space. One of the probably be adopted, if at all, power system. major activities of these industrial Direct attack on the lunar facilities societies would be construction of very primarily because of the energy or the colonies would, if mounted from large solar power stations to orbit the component of the system.” Earth, have a long lag-time due to the Earth and supply electricity to the planet distances involved. ABM systems could by means of a microwave relay. This probably be designed to work under the energy would be provided by our favorable conditions of vacuum and long neighborhood fusion reactor, the Sun, in warning times; the availability of vacuum inexhaustible quantities for millions of support neither will nor should be and massive electrical power suggests the years into the future, and would do so at forthcoming (Ford Foundation, ch. 1; possibility of laser-based defenses, already minimal environmental and thermal cost Loving). under study for use in the more to the planet. This additional energy Among the necessary elements of troublesome atmospheric environment. would permit the developing nations to support for space industrialization are Direct attack on the Earth launch improve their status and the developed several factors directly related to facilities or microwave reception system nations to maintain theirs. If the observed international politics. This article will do not seem in principle any different pattern of declining population growth in offer a preliminary examination of three from attacks on existing power plants industrial societies holds, the population such factors; international law, and distribution centers: there is no growth problem should eventually and international organization, and national known guaranteed defense in either case, “naturally” be reduced somewhat. There security policies. only the general deterrent posture for the is even the possibility, if the concept National Security implications of superpowers or the conventional defenses proves out in all aspects, that a significant Space Industrialization available to all nations. proportion of the human population The weakest point is the SPS itself. One reason the U.S. is currently short could move completely off the planet, The SPS and its ground antenna are the of oil is that for many years a system of thus relieving the world of still more only system elements which, if destroyed, tariffs and import quotas kept environmental and energy burdens. would cause immediate loss of energy. importation of foreign oil to a minimum, This concept is a technological Destruction of the other components -- encouraging consumption of oil produced optimist solution to all the conventional industrial colony, Earth and lunar launch from domestic wells. This policy, which scarcity problems. By importing energy facilities -- would have only delayed someone has called “drain America first,” to the Earth at very low material, effects. All SPS designs are large and was justified on the grounds that environmental and thermal cost the relatively fragile targets, close to Earth development of domestic energy sources “limits to growth” barriers are pushed (approximately 22,000 miles or less), and would make the U.S. independent of back considerably. This buys time to in fixed orbits. They appear to be foreign sources in time of war. “Project accomplish other requirements if needed relatively easy targets, and their Independence” has been explicitly Further, the possibility of less stressful destruction would have large and justified on the same grounds. Additional and more rapid industrialization of the immediate effects on national defense examples of national concern over the developing countries, coupled with the and economic systems. This makes them security of energy sources could easily be possible longer-term migration of high value targets of the type to which cited from Japan, France, the United significant numbers of people to off- an enemy would devote enough of his Kingdom, and others. But as the planet locations, may greatly aid in striking force that defense would be very solving the problems of population American example shows, we need not difficult, and successful defense unlikely. assume that policies urged on the grounds growth and world social inequality. It is But destruction of an SPS would be -2- a major, unambiguous act of war, and An international public policy much as restricting. This adolescent state presumably would not occur unless core favoring an internationalized SPS system may benefit space colonization: if there national interests had become involved. requires creation of a suitable legal and can be described soon an appropriate, To the extent that deterrence works, organizational matrix. architectonic model to organize and guide SPSs should be protected; if deterrence A Legal Regime for Space development, decisions may be made and fails, SPSs are simply another item on a programs established in the near future, Over a period of several centuries long list of hard-to-defend targets. Major and with some confidence. there developed a net of national and nuclear or fossil-fueled generating plants The complex and interdependent international law to govern the activities are also vulnerable, although more nature of large-scale space of both states and private individuals on numerous and less significant as industrialization makes it desirable that and in the sea. Because of the individual targets. our conceptual models deal with whole technological limitations which existed The best, and perhaps the only systems. A legal equivalent of the until quite recent times, the legal regime effective, defense for SPSs may be similar systems design method much used in of the sea dealt with the margins of the to the defense currently used by the NASA’s engineering development may ocean (territorial waters), a narrow layer U.S. and the U.S.S.R. for their cities and be appropriate, in which one attempts at the top of the ocean within which industries: a mutual vulnerability so to construct an integrated model of all fisheries were conducted, and with rules naked that each side holds the other’s relevant systems and then optimize for navigation and passage on cities as hostages for good behavior. performance of the total system rather international waters. The sea floor and Alternatively, to build upon the than maximize the performance of a deep ocean activities in general were functionalist argument, an SPS system particular part. This of course requires rarely important enough to be legally which is internationalized and produces that social, political and economic noticed. But recent technological power for several nations may thereby factors be part of the analysis, integrated developments, economic pressures, and become a common good immune to with technological designs. Although this national security concerns have combined rational destruction. I will return to this would be one of the largest projects of to produce not only interest in but point later. social analysis ever proposed, it is not considerable conflict over a restructured But national security policies must in principle impossible and is in fact a and extended law of the sea. In particular, deal with many situations short of war: type of world order model (Falk; the political and economic demands of diplomatic pressure or economic rewards Mendlovitz). NASA has stressed the the poorer nations for a share of the and punishments are normal parts of additional values produced by space international relations. Use of “the oil program “spinoffs” into the civilian weapon” by some members of OPEC has economy, such as biomedical devices, proven sufficient to alter the foreign ceramics and systems engineering; a policies, or affect particular actions, of a social science project of this magnitude number of nations. It is this fact, more “Space law is still a rather new might well prove quite valuable for its than fear of a cut-off in time of actual field with few precedents, vested secondary social and methodological war, which gives great impetus to the interests or entangling rules.” results as well as for its primary purpose. attempts by a number of nations to The study might show insuperable reduce their dependence on foreign difficulties and avoid diversion of vast energy supplies. resources into a doomed program; if the An SPS system under national control results are promising, problem areas and would serve very well as a peacetime solutions would have been illuminated energy supplier, quite beyond the oceans’ wealth have been resisted by the and the project both improved and influence of any other nation. The Sun wealthier nations who possess the speeded (Bobrow). cannot be “turned off,” there is no technology necessary to exploit the The legal profession is probably the monopoly on space solar power by one ocean and gather its wealth. most advanced non-technological or a few nations due to a peculiar Space law has a similar, if shorter, profession in space matters. Several concentration of the resource in a few history (Lay and Taubenfeld, ch. 3). It international treaties, both bi- and multi- areas; tankers cannot be harrassed or has grown rapidly but incrementally, lateral, already cover a number of specific shipping lanes closed; the price cannot following technological feats which topics. National and international legal be affected by foreign action. Because its aroused a need for some legal conferences meet frequently, the input is from a self-renewing source of integument, and has roots in several American Bar Association has a (for practical purposes) infinite capacity, areas: arms control and national security, Committee on Aerospace Law, there is investment in this option is different desire to advance international a legal subcommittee of the UN from strategies based on exploitation of cooperation (Kash), economic needs, Committee on the Peaceful Uses of fossil resources, which would become political rivalry, and even civil damage Outer Space, and legal panels have been increasingly expensive and increasingly claims (who is responsible if a chunk of prominent features in more technically- limited over time. Because the system French satellite falls on Cousin Herman oriented conferences (e.g., the output is electricity, an energy form in Chicago?). It seems reasonable to International Astronautical Federation). which could be used to synthesize other assume that serious consideration of Who owns resources in space? Who energy forms, such as hydrogen, the SPS space colonization will arouse the same can own them? Under what conditions? system could be a fundamental building type of questions as have arisen since How may they be used? How are block in a varied and quite “independent” technology made it possible to exploit economic costs and benefits to be energy system. ocean resources more fully. The outcome apportioned? These questions must be Although there is clearly need for of law of the sea negotiations may thus dealt with in international public policy more detailed study, a first pass national be quite significant for space law as well. for space, as they are now being threshed security evaluation suggests that the space However, the differences between sea out in maritime law. industrialization/SPS system has a very law and space law may be as significant Our chief current source of space law favorable potential. If it is possible to as the similarities. In particular, space is the 1967 “Treaty on Principles design an internationalized SPS in such law is still a rather new field with few Governing the Activities of States in the a way that it cannot be an effective precedents, vested interests or entangling Exploration and Use of Outer Space, economic weapon and becomes less rules (Finch; Lay and Taubenfeld). Such Including the Moon and Other Celestial significant or attractive as a target, we principles and practices as do exist are can have the best of both worlds. quite broad and generally enabling as (Continued on page 13) -3- Arthur Kantrowitz proposes A Science Court An idea that has been around for a while, and is now gaining widespread support, the science court is discussed in depth by Dr. Kantrowitz, its originator. L-5 INTERVIEW by Eric Drexler

Dr. Arthur Kantrowitz, a member of would claim that he could produce agreement could be made, then the the L-5 Society, is chairman of Avco electrical energy from a solar satellite judges would write a statement of what Everett Research Laboratory and senior for so much a kilowatt-hour, he could be they thought the facts were on that vice-president of Avco Corporation. His challenged to substantiate his claim in particular question. research work has included physical gas detail. The question would not be How are equivalent decisions made dynamics, magneto-hydrodynamics whether his claim sounds good, but where today? What would the science court power, high power lasers, cardiac assist did this number come from, and where replace? devices, strategic technology, and social did that calculation come from, and what Well, there certainly is a process control of technology. extrapolations are involved, and so on. today. How it goes, in dealing with I think that this would be a service to the complicated technical issues, is quite space industrialization program. variable. For example, one way is by a Drexler: What purpose would a How would the court operate? referendum such as recently was held in science court serve? I would say that the key rules in this California on nuclear energy, in which Kantrowitz: The science court is a system are that you deal with facts only, the public votes on whether nuclear procedure intended to produce a that we don’t make any political or value power shall go forward. I think mostly it statement of the scientific facts when judgments, or make any votes from confusion. Few people today these facts are necessary for the making recommendations of that sort, that you have spent the enormous amount of time of public policy. To a great extent it has separate advocates from judges, and that that is necessary to understand the been discussed in terms of problems: the you do the whole thing in public. Those technology of nuclear power. problems of our environment, the are the only rules that everybody seems Nevertheless, everybody votes about it, problems of nuclear power, and so on. to be agreed upon. The procedure was despite an enormous uncertainty about However, I think that as far as people worked out by a task force of the what the facts are. That way has the who are interested in large-scale space presidential advisory groups and is advantage that the whole thing is done in programs are concerned, it should be reported in more detail in the August the open. Frequently it is not done in the regarded as a procedure which might have 20 issue of Science magazine. open. Decisions about technical matters some utility in assessing the facts about A factual statement might be that a are frequently made by political figures the benefits and the costs of, for example, ten gigawatt satellite solar power station who sometimes use the confusion about a space industrialization program. It would cost a certain amount to set up. the facts to make their lives more might help change a situation in which We won’t say whether such things are a comfortable, to conceal value judgments many people will reject these good idea or not. We won’t get into the that they’d rather not discuss in the opportunities without having examined question of whether or not conserving open, and to avoid the uncomfortable the technology in sufficient detail to find energy is good for your soul, but only need to exercise real leadership. If, for out “what is wrong with it.” It is on the whether you can produce energy this example, our new president would difficulty of starting anything new, posed way, or conceivably how much energy undertake to lead the country into an by the tactic of ridicule (which has you could save by certain conservation adventurous space program, I think he always been the tactic against anything measures. would go down in history as a very great really new and important), that it is The procedure would start after the leader. However, if you consider what hoped that the science court procedure case managers had been chosen on both he would have to undertake to do this, could have an impact. sides. They would screen suggested judges you realize that it would be almost Could you give an example of this? for prejudice and, if both sides accepted impossible. To convert a scientific and If, for example, one would ask any of them as unprejudiced, and if both sides engineering community that has become the leading proponents of space accepted the details of the procedure, used to extreme conservatism back to an industrialization to defend his claims then it could go forward. We would try adventurous policy would be almost against a tough cross-examiner, in the to see if they could be mediated to get impossible for him. However, if, for presence of scientific judges who are agreement on statements of fact, but if example, the satellite solar power station neutral toward the question, who are not not then each side would be asked to had gone through such a procedure and biased against it or in favor of it, and if, substantiate their claims in detail and the facts that were delivered by a for example, someone like Peter Glaser would be cross-examined. If finally no credible procedure were that this is a

-4- practical, cost effective, environmentally The moral scientist will lie? aggressive effort to interest the public in acceptable way of getting all the power The moral scientist will lie, or one these scientific questions, which are we might need, then indeed it would could put it as the students at the really basic to their understanding of make life much easier for a political University of Moscow do. They have the what their future is going to be like, leader who wanted to be courageous to standard description of philosophy that through an effort to capitalize as best as make the decision, “let’s go this students have developed the world over, one can on the drama that is inherent adventurous way.” that it is like searching for a black cat in in a confrontation between two people The science court has been rather a dark room. They also take courses in where one is stating a fact whose validity controversial. What have some of the Marxist philosophy, which they identify is very important to him, he’s built his objections been? as searching for a black cat that isn’t life around it, and another man has his The objections that have been raised there in a dark room. Then they take career based on exhibiting how well he to the science court divide into several courses in Marxist-Leninist philosophy, can take apart this statement. One can classes. First, there are those who say which they have identified as searching have some confidence that after a that you can’t do it because you cannot for a black cat that isn’t there in a dark procedure like that is over, and after all separate facts from values or political or room and periodically announcing, the blood has been wiped up, that indeed moral judgments, that wherever there is “I’ve got it!” That epitomizes to my people have been motivated to get all the any uncertainty people will inevitably be mind better than anything I know the facts out. I think that the questions biased in their judgment of the technical role of the ideologue in the distortion of that would be dealt with are so important uncertainty by the way they want the facts. The invasion of what purports to to the future that we should have a answer to come out. I would respond to be science fact as purveyed by one list procedure that will achieve the credibility that class of criticism by saying that the of Nobel Prize winners or by another list that it gets by public exposure. Of course separation of facts from values is of Nobel Prize winners opposing them is it is true that if such a procedure goes on fundamental to all science, that you can just the distortion that the students of day after day after day, the public will only do science on those observations of Moscow University were complaining of. lose interest in the whole thing to nature on which all people can agree. It is the ideologue driven by the pressure some extent unless it is very cleverly People will not agree so generally on of his ideology to find the black cat. staged, which I don’t think it will be. value considerations. I think that one of Regarding the objection that you Nevertheless, it should attract more the things that has gone wrong that can’t find unbiased judges (and that interest than such procedures do now leads to the pessimism and conservatism might have some truth in it) I think that when they are closed to the public that we have today is the intrusion of if you submit the judges to a screening completely. value-laden arguments into what are process, where both sides will accept A frequent objection has been that purportedly factual discussions. How I them as unprejudiced, you’ll be better the science court will declare that the would respond to people who say that off than when you don’t have such a Earth is flat. The possibility that a YOU can’t do it is that it is high time that procedure. That is a procedure copied procedure of this sort might reproduce we tried as best we can to separate out from the law. While nobody could argue some of the features of medieval and the factual questions, to deal with them that there will be no traces of bias renaissance church courts is really based as best we can, and to perfect our present, it might be an improvement over on a misapprehension. Those courts methods of eliminating prejudice. I what we’ve got, where there are no such attempted to impose upon science the think that if you set out consciously to protections, values of the medieval church. They had separate facts from values you will do A third criticism is summarized by no concern with the separation of better than is done today, when no asking “Who guards the guardians?” The scientific fact from religious dogmas, so attempt is made to make that separation, best answer I can make is that this they were quite a different thing. when it is not considered unethical to procedure should always be done in A very wise woman who has thought a introduce your politics in distorting the public. In fact, it should be done more facts as submitted to the public. than in public, one should make an (Continued on page 16) Boeing designers answer questions about Satellite Solar Power Gordon Woodcock and Ralph Nansen, two men in the forefront of SPS design, tell why satellite solar power is the way to go, and give tentative answers to some environmental questions.

Interview by Norie Huddle, with Carolyn Henson

Ralph Nansen is the Satellite Solar Power second reason for going into space, again ground solar power is closer in program manager for Boeing Aerospace related to the large areas required by technology and, second, it lends itself Company in Seattle, and Gordon collectors, is that the design loads are naturally to intermediate load service. Woodcock is the SSPS study manager. so close to zero that we’re having a little The space system lends itself naturally They were interviewed by Carolyn and trouble defining just what they are. It’s to base load service and would be Norie at the American lnstitute of almost certain to be true that the actual considerably less well suited to Aeronautics and Astronautics annual design loads on one of these structures intermediate load. The two tend, meeting in Washington, D.C. will be imposed by the assembly process therefore, to be complementary. rather than by the operational process. Carolyn: Shifting here, what kinds Carolyn: You don’t have to worry of power costs can people expect from Carolyn: A lot of people question about windstorms or birds sitting on solar space power, what kinds of why it is necessary to put solar power collectors or things like that? environmental advantages, and what stations out in space when you can Woodcock: If all we had to worry kind of time frame can we expect to see collect solar energy here on Earth. Could about was the satellite itself, that this happening in, if work proceeded in you comment on this? Why would you advantage would be enormous. But we a reasonable fashion with no delays in want to have these in addition to, say, do have to have a ground receiving funding or anything? the central towers here on Earth, which station, and, interestingly, by the Woodcock: Well, starting from the I understand that Boeing is working on. estimates we have worked out so far (we top, the concept involves the placing of Woodcock: A lot of people are haven’t worked on the ground receiving large power stations in a geostationary working on the central tower concept, station very hard), ninety-five percent of orbit, which collect solar power and including Boeing. It’s a little closer in our total system mass is in the ground convert it to electricity, beam it to Earth technology, of course. There are really and only five percent is satellite. That’s on radio waves, reconvert it to electricity two main reasons for going into space. because the ground receiving station does for commercial use on the ground. Each The first has to do with the basic have to withstand gravity and wind loads. station would be able to produce on the difficulty in the utilization of solar Carolyn: What is the ratio of the area order of 10,000 megawatts of usefuI energy: you have to spread out over taken up by a ground receiving station power. That is, for example, enough to such a large area to collect the amount versus an equivalent-sized solar power run New York City. So, a reasonable you need. In space you need about one- station on Earth? number of satellites-say, fifty to one sixth of the area that you do on the Woodcock: The rough cuts we’ve hundred, would be enough to run the ground, in terms of the actual collectors. taken of that are ten to one in favor of whole country, if that were necessary. First, because the sunlight is more intense space-based power. It turns out, The benefits of the satellite system have because there is no atmosphere; second, interestingly enough, that the total area to do with its relatively benign the shadow periods, although they do of the ground receiving station is quite environmental impact, which is true of exist, are very brief and represent less comparable to the total area of a most solar energy schemes. Its ability to than one percent outage factor; third, satellite. There is no fundamental reason run day or night and not be bothered by more subtle but very important, is that why this is true, it is more of a weather or sunlight, its relatively small we can point our collectors at the coincidence than anything else. consumption of resources to construct Sun, whereas on the Earth you have to Now, the reason that I say ten to one the station because of the advantages of live with whatever direction the ground Instead of six to one is that because of construction and collection of solar happens to be pointing. The Sun goes the situation of having to track the Sun energy in space, and finally, because across the sky and you have to track it across the sky, with a ground solar power there doesn’t seem to be any kind of with all these mirrors. plant, something less, I believe, than capacity limit that we can find. That is, Carolyn: So tracking presents a fifty percent of the land covered actually however much energy you need, you serious problem with Earth solar power? is collector; the rest is space between can get it from this source. The only Woodcock: It does, but certainly a collectors. So there is a big difference. limit we know of is that if energy solvable problem. It has been solved. Really, you’re putting this in the utilization by man grows indefinitely, Carolyn: But it costs a lot. context of an “either-or” situation, and eventually you reach a point where Woodcock: It costs some the that’s not exactly right. To begin with, you’ve got a thermal burden problem on

-6- the Earth. What I mean is the Earth end of the century, oil will be in short would not be larger than it has been for receives a certain amount of energy supply, and by the middle of the next other kinds of high technology new from the Sun in a natural manner. In century, it will probably, for all practical energy. I haven’t seen any figures for the our utilization of all energy sources purposes, be gone, except for feedstocks total development costs of fusion energy, (except ocean thermal difference and for certain plastic industries and so forth. but I would guess they are comparable. ground solar power), we release The range of scenarios we’ve looked at From what I know of the development additional heat into the environment. If for constructing a system of this nature of nuclear energy as a practical you project the current growth rates range from: (1) having a full go ahead for commercial source of energy, I would for the use of energy for about 150 years, the whole system, which wouId take guess they are comparable. It’s very you get to the point where the artificial around twelve to fifteen years. There difficult to get a good handle on the induction of energy into the Earth’s isn’t any indication that there will be nuclear developments because there was environment -- power consumption -- any such “go” signal in the near a lot spent for weapons and it’s hard to becomes about one percent of the future. (2) A development that goes determine what the technology transfer natural energy source. Somewhere along through some sort of pilot development is. there you begin to expect some difficulty phase, which most new energy sources Carolyn: I wonder if you could with climate change. (The Sun’s input of do, looks more in the twenty to twenty- comment on the traffic requirements for energy to the Earth varies a few percent five year range. But there aren’t any ground launched satellites. from time to time anyway.) Now, it’s technological barriers preventing us Woodcock: One of the things that probably unlikely that the energy from starting any such program. We concerns people about this concept is the consumption on the surface of the Earth don’t have to invent a means of doing fact that the transportation system we’ve will grow that much for reasons of this or that. found to be economically practical for population limits and other factors. And, this purpose involves the use of a fully interestingly, the satellite form of power, reusable rocket system, not ninety although it does impose a thermal burden percent reusable, like the Shuttle, but because the electric power that is utilized completely reusable; about twice the eventually turns to heat after you have “We‘re talking about scaling up size of the Saturn 5 Moon rocket, used it, has very little waste thermal operated up to as many as ten launches heat-it is dumped in space, not on the space operations by something a day. Now this is a somewhat startling Earth. on the order of thousands. And requirement to most people; in the As to the costs involved, I don’t think there is no reason why that Saturn program we launched at most four we’re in a position to make firm quotes. can’t be done. . . ” vehicles a year. Even the Shuttle will We’ve made a number of estimates and probably fly about every two weeks once the range we’ve published in terms of the it gets into the operational phase. So ten cost of electricity in 1975 dollars ranges launches a day is kind of mind-boggling from about 25 mills per kilowatt hour to to people used to the space business. The about 75, and that’s a rough vehicle we’re talking about is fifteen representation of the uncertainty that we million pounds fully fueled, so ten liftoffs presently see. (These are bus bar costs. Norie: What do you see as the major a day is about 150 million pounds a day, You’d have to add about 10 or possibly obstacles for getting this program and that’s a pretty big number. But if 15 mills to that to get retail costs.) That underway? you take any of the large commercial just about compares with the range of Woodcock: I can see two. One is the airports and look at the vehicles they retail costs today. You find that the credibility gap. We’re talking about launch -- commercial aircraft which weigh hydro projects in the Pacific Northwest scaling up space operations by something on the average about 350,000 pounds -- and other locations, where the capital on the order of thousands. And there is they typically launch (if you can use that costs of the facilities have already been no reason why that can’t be done, but it term) about 500 flights a day, and the written off, run for operating costs of certainly causes people to be concerned total there is about 15 million pounds a 3 to 4 mills. There the retail rates are about the feasibility. The truth of the day. So it’s not at all outside our around 15. . . I think I pay around 18. matter is that our space operations operational experience for flight Some people in Seattle pay a little less today are on a very, very small scale. The systems; we just don’t launch space than 15. The other extreme, in the annual NASA budget, for example, is vehicles at that rate. But there is no continental U.S., tends to be in the New just about equal to the annual profit of reason why we couldn’t. In fact, the York City area, where people pay 80 to the world’s largest oil company. That is fleet size requirements for doing those 90. Now these satellites would behave in an interesting statistic that most people ten launches a day, because of the one respect like hydro power, because don’t know. potential of fast turn-around, is on the we use the typical accounting scheme of The second problem has to do with order of a few dozen vehicles. depreciating them over thirty years; there the fact that the development cost to Norie: What position are you at now? is no reason to think they’d be shut off bring in this type of solar power is Where do you go from here in terms of at the end of thirty years. And after that probably higher than for the other kinds research? time, they’d look like hydropower, with to which people have been exposed. Part Woodcock: The program is. you an operating cost in the 3 to 5 mill range. of this is because we have to virtually can’t even call it a program. Studies have You asked about time. That’s a very create a new industry of space been funded by NASA over the past two interesting question. If you take the industrialization. The development cost or three years. And there were some largest known oil reserves in the world, is not high in comparison with the studies before that -- l think the first Saudi Arabia’s, and you divide their benefits; in fact, when you envision a started in 1971 or 1972. A typical level known reserves by their current whole program of this nature, then the of effort would employ six to fifteen production rate, they’re going to last cost of electric power derived from this people, depending on the size of the forty years at the current production kind of source-assuming you expand it study and how long it was conducted. rates. Presumably, most of the other to a useful size, lots of satellites getting These studies and some key technology sources will be gone by then. Now lots of power-becomes quite low. If you demonstrations, particularly in the area nobody knows for sure how much there try to recover all your development costs of microwave power transmission have is yet to be found and there are a bunch it raises the cost by a few percent. I convinced quite a number of people at of elegant theories with bell-shaped would guess, however, that the total NASA that the thing is technically curves and all that sort of thing. By the investment in this kind of a system feasible. The economic factor is still a little too uncertain to determine if it is economically feasible or not. At any rate, this year the study that we are conducting is at slightly under the million dollar level. There is another study that will be of a comparable level, issued from a different NASA center. They’ll probably have that one underway in March or April so the level of study and the level of technology activity has gone up. The responsibility of the program may be transferred from NASA to ERDA and, in fact, some of the funding was money from ERDA that came through NASA. Now I might point out that the study was contracted in two phases: the first phase is under contract and the second phase is on option. So the government has not contracted at the present time to spend the whole $975,000, although we expect that they will. The planning that has been discussed for after the current phase of study involves approximately another year of study, part of which would be government in-house-looking over what the contractors do and making their own assessment. At that point, NASA is talking about what they call a Boeing’s SPS Construction Base Concept “technology-advancement decision,” not a decision to do the program, but a decision to fund the development and particularly space transportation cost. environmental impact, or do you demonstration of the key elements, I think until we started working, no one consider that premature? particularly in the areas of space really thought they had an answer to Woodcock: Environmental impact construction, energy conversion and that one. is never premature. power transmission. When you talk about several launches Norie: Good, I’m glad to hear you say The position we expect to find a day of a big, fully reusable vehicle, the that! ourselves in at the end of the current costs really can be very low. The Woodcock: We can’t find any. I talked study is that it is technically feasible and fundamental floor under the cost of the a little in my paper today about the that it is or is not economically feasible. transportation is the price of the fuel, land-use situation, but that doesn’t In the latter case, I suppose we would just as it is under the flying of an airline seem to be very much of a problem quit. But the trend of our figures now is or driving an automobile or whatever. because the land use is comparatively in the direction of improvement in Using hydrogen costs appropriate to benign. People constructing things on the economical feasibility, rather than the electrolysis, we find that the cost of ground have a tendency to scrape the reverse. So I think we’ll probably find putting a pound of payload in low Earth surface off with a bulldozer first, but ourselves in the position of saying yes, orbit in terms of the cost of buying fuel, that’s not necessary in this case. we think it is technically and is about three dollars. Norie: How about in terms of effects economically feasible but here are some Carolyn: How does that compare with on the atmosphere? issues that need to be answered by tests air freight costs? Woodcock: The atmosphere emissions before we can be sure. Woodcock: Depends on what you’re by the space transportation system would Carolyn: What in the work that sending and how far. It’s a bit higher be small by comparison with those Boeing is doing is different from the than domestic air freight but if you’re currently experienced with the Glaser work? shipping from here to Europe, then I commercial air fleet. We’re burning a less Woodcock: In terms of the concept, think it’s fairly comparable. Now the polluting fuel, mostly hydrogen. Now we not very much. The concept we’re total cost of flying this vehicle by our do distribute some of the emissions into dealing with is basically the Glaser current estimates is about five times the stratosphere which the present concept. If you read his patent, you that because we have to amortize our commercial air fleet doesn’t do, but the find that what he is actually patented is a vehicle, have to operate it, do a little principle known causes of stratosphere satellite that would convert sunlight to bit of maintenance on it after every problems are NO, and fluorocarbons solar energy by “some means,” (not flight, and there are a bunch of factors which we don’t have. A rocket engine necessarily solar cells) and then transmit which bring the total cost to three to doesn’t create NO, because there isn’t it to Earth by microwave power beam. five times the fuel cost range. We think any nitrogen in the combustion process. That’s basically the concept we’re those estimates may be a little In the lower atmosphere, it is believed studying. We’re trying to find out which conservative, but we’re still talking that it may create some by external of the energy conversion means is the about dollars per pound that are a tenth combustion; that is, you see that rocket best way to go, where is the best place or less of that projected for the Shuttle. taking off with a great tail of fire. It is to construct the thing, and to improve And so, although possibly conservative, the result of the fact that the fuel to our estimates of mass and cost. I think the numbers are a little bit surprising to oxidize the mixture in the rocket engine probably the main contribution we’ve people who are used to thinking of space is optimized for maximum performance, made is to bring a systems approach to transportation costing in the and there’s a little excess fuel. The bear on the problem, starting from an neighborhood of a thousand dollars per indications are that by the time you get economic analysis. There are potential pound. into the stratosphere, you probably aren’t ways of getting the costs in the ball park, Norie: Have you done any work with creating any NO, because the secondary -8- combustion appears to go out and the through the ionosphere and through the Woodcock: I’m not sure how much plume is very low pressure and very atmosphere and I know of no way to difference it would make. Yes, you would cool . . . and the things that maximize resolve those completely without doing have to have smaller antennae and more NO, formation are high pressure and tests. of them. There are a whole bunch of moderately high temperature. From Norie: What kinds of problems do effects we haven’t explored. The what I know of the process, it doesn’t you think might arise? possibility of using this other frequency look as if there will be a significant NO, Woodcock: The only kind of problem only came up a week or so ago. problem. in the atmosphere is a little bit of Norie: Have you done anything in The other problem is the microwave scattering from the weather. There’s not conjunction with other aerospace groups? situation. Microwaves are far less enough scattering to be a biologic effect Or with other countries like the Soviet hazardous than ionizing radiations, like but there could be a radio frequency Union or Japan in terms of trying to x-ray machines, or whatever. But there interference with other RF spectrum coordinate some of your research findings are some effects and some problems. We users and that can be predicted. The guys and discuss various possibilities of presently recognize in this country an who are looking at that carefully say that where to go from here in research? exposure standard of ten milliwatts per the problem is workable. The other one Woodcock: The basic development is square centimeter, but if you’ve read the is the ionosphere and radio waves taking place primarily in the United microwave stuff, then you know the passing through the ionosphere will heat States. There is some activity in Germany. Soviets use a standard that is one- it a little bit-well, actually, quite a lot. The only association has been some thousandth of that. And there is a great There have been a number of experiments interactions at symposia and papers deal of controversy in the technical conducted where the ionosphere was given, with no interaction at all that I literature over what the standards ought intentionally heated by radiowaves. They know of with the Soviet Union. The to be and over what the effects are and picked a frequency at which the heating primary interface that various companies that sort of thing. The nature of our effects were fairly strong and, yes, you have in the United States is through SPS system is that we believe we could can do all kinds of things. You can NASA. Our contractor reports are live with the Soviet standard with very change the electron density and so forth. attended by other contractors and we minor cost/effect on the system if that I can’t find any reason to believe that have some subcontract association with were necessary. environmental alteration of the General Electric and Hughes for some There’s one thing I like to bring out ionosphere has an impact in the ordinary studies and we have had others like early on the microwave thing. I think it sense. Heating experiments have been Garrett and other selected companies. is probably a very important effect and conducted down to 5 to 10 megahertz, The primary work is similar to the way I think practically everyone looking into and can get pretty strong reactions. The we do studies in other areas. But right this area has missed the significance-at effect decreases with the square of the now there is no activity outside of the least if they’ve considered it, they don’t frequency. The frequency we have in U.S. as far as cooperative ventures. write about it. This has to do with the mind (for our system) -- the 2450 Norie: Do you think this is likely to nature of the microwave beam itself. megahertz frequency -- doesn’t interact change? Microwave power comes in two principle with the ionosphere very much; it’s Woodcock: Very likely, because if forms. There is a continuous wave form, about 200 times higher than the we’re successful in evolving this total as in the microwave oven or an industrial frequencies that do react strongly. concept it becomes such a big industrial heating application where you just turn So even though we’re talking about base that it is very doubtful that such the power on and it’s on continuously. relatively intense beams by Earth involvement would not occur. In the The other form is radar, which is pulsed. standards, by the standards of those aerospace and related technical fields, The exposure or flux limits that are heating experiments, we’re expecting people share technology results pretty discussed are always the average power very little interaction. But if there were freely and, further, if the work is level and not the peak. One can illustrate more than we expect, or an interaction contracted by the government as most of very simply the thing I’m getting at here of a different nature than we expect, the this work is, then the reports (unless by imagining that I’ve got a little box result on the beam could be to scatter it classified) are mostly in the public here on the table that’s got a little or something like that and make it more domain once they’ve been provided to mechanism of some kind inside, and difficult to control. There are only two the government. This is true since the there’s an electrical terminal on top and ways of exploring that problem. One way Freedom of Information Act. NASA I tell you the average voltage applied to is to conduct some heating tests in the practices a very open and free policy of that terminal is six volts. Most people ionosphere at the SPS frequencies, using distributing these reports to all of the realize six volts is not sufficient for you a large radio astronomy dish like the one industry people interested and just about to feel it. Common lantern batteries are at Arecibo, Puerto Rico. The other is to anyone that is interested in them can get six volts. But if you were to touch that build a full-size SPS and find out what them unless they have run out of copies. terminal, you would get a hell of a shock, will happen. Norie: Do you have any suggestions because what I didn’t tell you is that the Norie: What do you think will how a group like the L-5 Society can be voltage is applied at 6000 volts at one happen? constructive or effective in this whole millisecond pulses, once a second. Woodcock: Well, initial Arecibo tests development? Norie: Minor details. are going on now. The ionosphere Woodcock: I think that although I Woodcock: Well, in a way, that’s the physicists keep talking about these have some technical disagreements with comparison between pulse microwave experiments at frequencies other than L-5’s proposals for the way to go about energy and continuous microwave energy. the one we want to use, but I think some this program, they reach effectively a I think that when we go about setting of theseexperiments must be conducted segment of society that we do not-and standards we should make a clear at the SPS frequency. There is a second that is the university people. distinction between the kinds of forms band we could use at 5.8 gigahertz, but Norie: I take it you have had talks in that the microwave power can take. As it would be a little harder to engineer it. the past on the technological aspects you best we can tell, the SPS could live with It would have still less ionosphere disagree on? microwave standards that were stringent interaction, but more with weather. Woodcock: Oh, yes! (Much laughter enough to cause most other industries a Carolyn: On that higher frequency, from him and Carolyn.) lot of trouble, for example, the television what would be the effect of the amount Carolyn: Actually, I won’t take a industry. Now there are some of sunlight intercepted by the rectenna? stand on that, but we do definitely stress uncertainties associated with the Wouldn’t you have to have the elements propagation of the microwave beam closer together? (Continued on page 17) -9- approximately 2.9 meters long, 4 meters wide, and may be independently suspended in the Orbiter payload bay or it may be structurally connected to another pallet segment to form a pallet train. Either the individual pallet segments or the pallet train are attached to the Orbiter with a set of attachment fittings. A subsystem igloo is mounted to the forward pallet and provides a pressurized volume to accommodate Spacelab subsystems normally mounted in the module. An instrument pointing subsystem (IPS), mounted on the pallet, provides precision pointing for payloads which require greater pointing accuracy and stability than is provided by the Orbiter. Verification flight instrumentation is carried on the Second Spacelab Mission to measure subsystem performance and environments. The U-shaped pallet segments are covered with floor and side panels with inserts for mounting of light payload equipment. A series of hard points attached to the main structure of a pallet segment is provided for mounting of heavy payload equipment. The pallet, subsystem igloo, aft flight deck Hitching a ride into space on the Shuttle, Spacelab will carry palletized equipment, and IPS, are interconnected with power, signal and other utility lines experiments exposed to conditions in space. Here’s what happens. for subsystem and payload equipment. Utility bridges support the subsystem and payload utility lines. In preparation for the Shuttle era, the provides basic services to the instruments, Figure 1 shows Spacelab in an European Space Agency is developing such as power, data distribution and exploded view. The subsystem igloo Spacelab. Spacelab consists of two basic thermal control. mounts to the forward pallet. The IPS elements-a pressurized module and an Spacelab is carried to and from orbit can be located in any position on the unpressurized pallet (or pallet segment) by the Space Shuttle. It remains attached pallet train. Controls and displays are which can be used separately or in to the Orbiter throughout the flight and located in the Orbiter aft flight deck at combination. In the Second Spacelab is controlled from the Orbiter aft flight the payload specialists station. In the Mission, experiments should be planned deck. Figure 1 shows a typical pallet Second Spacelab Mission, the work for a Spacelab configuration consisting configuration of Spacelab in the Orbiter station for the payload specialists is the of three, four, or five pallet segments. during its orbital stay. aft flight deck. A maximum of two The pressurized module will not be used. Major external features of the payload specialists can work The pallet is an unpressurized platform Spacelab pallet configuration are shown simultaneously at the aft flight deck. to which instruments such as telescopes in Figure 1, also. It consists of pallet Optional locations are provided for and antennas that require direct exposure segments which may be arranged in experiment electronics-pressurized to space may be mounted. The pallet various ways. A pallet segment is equipment can be located at the aft flight

TYPICAL PALLET CONFIGURATION

EXPERIMENT CONTROL AND DISPLAY MOUNTED IN ORBITER AFT FLIGHT DECK AT PSS I

Figure 7: Major Spacelab Elements -10- Figure 2: Shuttle-Spacelab Operational Profile

deck if crew access is required. and one backup computer. The CDMS configuration is launched and propelled Unpressurized equipment can be exposed subsystem is largely independent from by the solid rocket boosters and Orbiter to the space environment existing on the the Orbiter subsystems, but is controlled main engines. pallet or IPS. from the payload specialists station The solid rocket booster and the In operational use, the experiment will located on the Orbiter aft flight deck. external tank are jettisoned before normally be integrated on the pallet and Communications with ground facilities, reaching orbital velocity, with orbital on the IPS and checked out as a complete either directly to a Spaceflight Tracking velocity being achieved by the orbital assembly. Interface connections with and Data Network (STDN) station or via maneuvering system. When the desired payload equipment mounted in the the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite orbit has been achieved, the Orbiter and payload specialists station and with bay- (TDRS) system, is provided through the Spacelab will be activated and the doors mounted equipment will be verified after Orbiter communication system. of the Orbiter cargo bay will be opened equipment installation in the Orbiter. Figure 2 shows typical Spacelab to expose Spacelab to space for the Spacelab includes many services for operation cycles. Users’ equipment is duration of the on-orbit mission. Before the users provided by autonomous and integrated into Spacelab, which is reentry and landing, the Spacelab systems Orbiter-dependent subsystems. Modular subsequently installed in the Orbiter. will be deactivated and the doors of the design of subsystems allows a choice of In the launch configuration, the Space Orbiter cargo bay will be closed. After part of the subsystem equipment by the Shuttle System consists of the Orbiter, a landing, Spacelab and the Orbiter will be users so that support for each mission is large external tank which provides refurbished as required and prepared for optimized. propellant to the Orbiter during launch the next flight in separate ground The Spacelab environmental control and two solid rocket boosters. This operations cycles. subsystem (ECS) comprises elements for thermal control of pallet mounted experiment equipment. Oxygen/ nitrogen atmosphere at sea level pressure and other crew habitability support such as food, drink, sleep, hygiene, and waste management facilities are provided by the Orbiter. The electrical power distribution subsystem (EPDS) distributes the basic electric power derived from the Orbiter’s fuel cells to Spacelab subsystems and Spacelab payloads. The command and data management subsystem (CDMS) provides numerous support functions, including data acquisition, formatting, display and recording. Onboard checkout and caution/warning are provided for both subsystems and Spacelab payloads. The CDMS provides three identical computers: one dedicated to data processing of Spacelab payloads, one Artist’s concept of the Spacelab being carried by the Shuttle. Both the pressurized dedicated to subsystem data processing module with payload specialists and the pallet segments are in place. -11- the $100,000 level with major unanswered questions being postponed L-5 in Congress-Part 2 indefinitely from year to year. I believe it reasonable to conclude that a lack of foresight in allocating such a small Dr. Brian O’Leary, in his testimony before the U.S. Senate, proposes that fraction of the nation’s space budget to the legislators take a serious look at plans for space industrialization. Part making a thorough assessment of a 1, testimony by Dr. T. Stephen Cheston, appeared in the April issue. potentially vital energy option constitutes a lack of public responsibility. Dr. Brian O’Leary, as our readers Subcommittee under its new jurisdiction. If this concept appears to be feasible should remember, is holding the fort at At present, finding a unified long term and in the public interest, a decision in Princeton while Dr. O’Neill is at MIT objective for full and efficient use of the favor of its development would have The folio wing testimony was presented Space Shuttle seems to be difficult or several positive effects: (1) it would solve before the Science and Space elusive. a large gap in world energy supply during Subcommittee, Committee on Rather than trying to probe the a period of dwindling non-renewable Commerce, Science and Transportation, reasons underlying this perception, I resources, serious threats to the United States Senate. It was presented would like to emphasize a major theme environment and international stress; by Dean T. Stephen Cheston of which is just beginning to receive serious (2) the achievement of self-sufficiency in Georgetown University on March 17, consideration. The concept I will be space could lead to outlets for human 1977: discussing is well-matched to the survival and opportunities for capabilities of the Space Shuttle during exploration; (3) it would help redress Mr. Chairman and Members of the the 1980s and 1990s. and would require balance of payments imbalances and free Committee: no major new development in Earth- the United States from dependence on I appreciate the opportunity to to-space transportation. If tests prove Arab oil; (4) it would provide continuity express my views on the nation’s space out existing studies, a large share of the and challenge for the nation’s aerospace program. The opinions and nation’s energy problem may be solved talent which contributed so effectively recommendations I will present are by the turn of the century. The to the achievement of Apollo; and attributable, in part, to experience implications are potentially enormous. (5) space would again capture the public derived from diverse roles I have played The concept, first proposed by my imagination, tapping what I feel to be a with respect to space exploration over the Princeton colleague, Gerard K. O’Neill, pervasive, though currently latent, past 16 years -- as a space scientist, suggests that the cost of retrieval of constituency. Over the past year, about astronaut, critic, experimenter on a resources from the Moon or asteroids is 5,000 inquiries have been directed to us planetary mission, congressional energy far less than that from the deep gravity in Princeton about our work. consultant, and, most recently, as a well of the Earth. These non-terrestrial To give an example of what could participant in the development of an materials would be processed in space by happen as early as the 1980s. I would exciting new concept. continuous solar energy into satellite like to describe a scenario which is the About six years ago, when NASA solar power stations, which would supply subject of a special symposium, “New started development on the Space Shuttle to the Earth central station electricity by Moons: Towing Asteroids into Earth program, I opposed spending $5 to $10 microwave link from geosynchronous Orbits for Exploration and Exploitation,” billion on this new space transportation orbit. Economic analyses suggest a held at the Eighth Annual Lunar Science system for a number of reasons. I felt favorable cost-benefit ratio for delivered Conference in Houston. The scenario that a commitment to this project would electricity when compared to coal and starts with the launch from Earth of a divert NASA’s resources from its more nuclear power, and the environmental long, narrow solar-powered electric motor fundamental goals of space science and cost appears to be far less. called the mass driver, a device which is applications and that public apathy It may be surprising, at first glance, to currently under development. Fifty would make it difficult for NASA to find that such a project could be weekly shuttle flights would be required. muster the larger budgets required to undertaken over the next 10 to 20 years The motor is assembled in a low Earth simultaneously meet those goals while within the constraints of NASA’s current orbit, then is launched on a trajectory being able to make full use of the annual budget, and that no major new toward a nearby asteroid. With a rather enormous growth in the capacity of technology development is required. Yet low expenditure of energy, the motor Earth-to-orbit transportation offered by studies continue to show these to be reaches the asteroid and slowly tugs it the Space Shuttle. At present, the bulk facts. A step-by-step program could be into a very high orbit around the Earth. of development funds for the Space developed which could demonstrate the By 1990, this “new moon,” weighing Shuttle has been spent and it is currently concept before a final, irrevocable several million tons, could begin to be in the test flight phase. In my opinion, it decision involving billions of dollars processed into enough satellite solar would be unwise to stop this project would be made. power stations to meet a significant under any circumstances that I could The problem is in having the foresight portion of the nation’s increased demand imagine. to take the first critical steps in for electricity at the turn of the century. Nevertheless, some of my predictions determining whether such a program is The total cost would be many times less appear to have come true. Over the past entirely feasible and worthwhile. than the several hundred billion dollars several years, worthwhile programs have Unfortunately, the current trend is in of proposed capital expansion of coal and been cut back severely-particularly the other direction. Satellite solar power nuclear power plants, even under the planetary exploration and advanced and space industrialization are the most conservation-minded extrapolations studies. Public interest in the space subjects of recent and ongoing NASA in electricity demand. program has not been strong. “Apathy is studies, but the few million dollars of It is tempting to dismiss these NASA’s Biggest Foe” is the title of an funding allocated to these studies has scenarios as speculative fiction. But the article written by Jonathan Spivak in the been cut back this year. A Lunar Polar studies are indicating the reverse. There February 25. 1977, Wall Street Journal. Orbiter resource prospecting mission are numerous historical analogies to “NASA itself,” writes Spivak,” has failed proposed by NASA is also in jeopardy. unexpected developments in technology. to advance its own causes effectively.” And the work which has begun to The Apollo Program, for example, was The search for meaningful major goals in synthesize these three areas-prospecting, successfully carried out from its inception space exploration and exploitation will industrial operations in space and in eight years within its planned budget. undoubtedly be a major task for your satellite solar power-has been funded at (Continued on page 20) -12- WHAT’S AVAILABLE FROM THE L-5 SOCIETY?

Please order these materials by number on the form “Colonies in Space,” Ron Chernow, provided on page 24. For books, back issues of the L-5 Smithsonian, February, 1976. P11 $ .56 News, postcards, posters, and slides, see page C-4. “Moon Mines, Space Factories, and Colony L-5,” Michael Guillen, Science News, For reprints and otherwise unpublished materials, the August 21, 1976. P12 $ .14 price is the price listed plus $.25 per title. This is a one time “Engineering a Space Manufacturing charge for each title and remains the same no matter how Center,” Gerard K. O’Neill, Astronautics many copies you order. Example: if you order one copy of and Aeronautics, October, 1976. P13 $ .70 a title, say of P2, “Colonies in Space,” your cost is $.07 “The Impact of Space Colonization on plus $.25. Total is $.32. If, however, you order two copies World Dynamics,” J. Peter Vajk, your total cost is equal to $.07 plus $.07 plus $.25 = $.39. Technological Forecasting and Social This charge only applies to individual reprints and otherwise Change, 1976. P14 $ 2.38 unpublished papers and not to complete sets. “Colonizing Space,” Time, May 26, 1975. P15 $ .07

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Inside center, left: BERNAL SPHERE INTERIOR. Constructed around the axis of the Bernal Sphere is a series of concentric buildings and galleries. The ceilings point toward the zero-gravity point. A conical net encloses the entire structure (see archlike openings). In this night view, the man in the foreground is standing near the edge of the zero-gravity area. The rope he is reaching for is used for climbing sports. At center right a man is sliding down the net (Painting by Don E. Davis).

-C-1-

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Please order these materials by number on the form provided Bernal Sphere Exterior PC2 $ .15 on page 24. For xerographic reprints and otherwise unpublished package of 50 BPC2 $ 3.00 papers, see page C-1.

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Inside center, right: BERNAL SPHERE ASSEMBLY. The final shielding and mirrors for the Bernal Sphere are being put into place. This view is from the outside of the windows during the day. The cosmic ray shielding in the foreground is a cutaway view. Inside the window, people are in shirtsleeves and are crawling up a net. The concentric buildings and the net that encloses them can be seen at the axis of the Bernal Sphere (Painting by Don E. Davis).

-C-4- which, in order to be most effective, was applied to Danzig and Trieste. A would undoubtedly take institutional multi-lateral treaty might create a class Policy (Continued from page 3) form.” In particular, the pressure for a of internationalized, less-than-sovereign share in the oceans’ benefits coming from legal entities in space, with sufficient Bodies,” now in force for over seventy developing and non-coastal countries will legal capacity to accept limited legal countries (U.S. Treaties and Other surely be matched in space development rights and obligations. These entities International Acts Series 6347). But it is as developing and non-space-traveling would be neither solely national now comparatively old, pre-dating the nations become aware of potential instruments, nor themselves nations, and Moon-landing and O’Neill’s synthesis. It benefit and seek to channel it in their would thus neatly evade the problems has already become the subject of many direction. Institutionalizing the program of “national appropriation” while suggestions for revision (Kash; Christol). in an agency subject to international simultaneously allowing their sponsoring This treaty established the broad control seems a likely preferred strategy nations to exercise control in the most principle that “use” of celestial bodies for “have nots”; the space-going nations significant matters. Perhaps NATO, EEC, is open to all nations; but neither any may resist. Comecon, or other multi-national groups territory in outer space nor outer space Because of the potential for loss of could sponsor such a “free city,” thus itself is “subject to national appropriation control, major space-going nations may maintaining the existing legal regime by claims of sovereignty.” Exploration prefer other alternatives. The similar while evading broader international and peaceful experimentation is situation in law of the sea negotiations control. permitted, but implementation of a space has produced a warning from William Something similar to the “free city” industrialization program of the type and Rogers, U.S. Undersecretary of State may be in the minds of both O’Neill scope envisioned by O’Neill will clearly for Economic Affairs, that “many of the (1976) and Peter Glaser (1976). They raise allegations of illegality if any single developing countries are trying to refer to what are probably international, nation attempts such a program. impose a doctrine of total or at least multi-national, space industry Certainly the mining of lunar materials internationalization on the industrial operating organizations which seem to and their transport into space for countries, which alone have the resemble the International construction purposes is more than a technological and financial capacity for Telecommunications Satellite strict reading of the treaty permits; mining the seabeds in the foreseeable Consortium (Intelsat). lntelsat was J.H. Glazer has even argued that future. The U.S. has offered to find created by multi-lateral treaty as an construction of a fixed-orbit colony financing and to transfer the technology “international public utility” to operate might be construed as “national and regulate international satellite appropriation” of a portion of outer communications. Such a model might space. A Canadian study in 1967 meet legal requirements as postulated by recommended that Canada claim an area J.H. Glazer, but does present some of space for use by synchronous orbit “A multi-lateral treaty might political and organizational problems, satellites (Johnson), and in December create a class of internationalized, which will be noted below. of 1976, a claim to control of Christol, and others drawing on geosynchronous orbit space over less-than-sovereign legal entities analogies from current sea law equatorial states was advanced by a in space, with sufficient legal controversy, assume that national group of eight equatorial nations (Bogota capacity to accept limited legal resource competition in space will not Communique, December 4, 1976). The automatically benefit all nations and claim may not stand, but the fact that rights and obligations.” therefore contemplate the necessity of it has been advanced suggests that large- some variety of international organization scale space development may prove to meet demands for greater equity of Glazer a prophet. benefits. Glazer’s models would attempt Further, outer space and celestial to avoid a future in which space bodies are reserved by the Treaty for to make international mining a reality. development is “monolithically “the benefit and in the interests of all But total internationalization is out of centralized” by preserving an essentially countries, irrespective of their degree of the question. . . . There are limits beyond single-country exploitation model or by economic or scientific development, and which we cannot and should not go.” creating a special-purpose “loophole” shall be the province of all mankind.” Outright violation of international device such as the “free city” for use by This principle seems very close to what space law by some great power would be groups of nations. Christol’s model the developing nations are demanding in costly, and potentially destabilizing: a suffers from the usual infirmities of large maritime law conferences; clearly space national program to acquire exclusive international organizations which must law must deal with this demand in some control over important extraterrestrial be multi-functional, deal with very form. resources, and to construct large important matters, and satisfy a broad Christol has proposed an evolutionary platforms in space, would merely arouse range of national interest; Glazer’s are approach, involving creation of an national security fears in other countries. still likely to spark the rivalry and international organization to manage Presumably strong counterpressures controversy that would be aroused by space development. He argues that the would be aroused. But full unambiguous single nation actions, present vague space regime permits internationalization seems too much to without providing any offsetting benefits. nations or organizations under their expect at this time. A third alternative might build on supervision to exploit space resources Re-interpretation of existing law and Glazer’s plus the models provided by provided only that no claims to principles may, however, permit the U.S. Constitution’s separation of sovereignty are made, and that the use important space development by some powers model and some of the usual made is both peaceful and internationally middle road between national exclusivity features of anti-trust laws. Space beneficial. Even so, “the problems of and an unlikely “space government.” colonization and industrial exploitation exploiting the natural resources of the Glazer has sought to apply traditional is clearly a complex, interdependent, space environment is very similar to that state-centric law to outer space specialized enterprise. We may posed in the exploitation of the resources development and has found several analytically subdivide it in several ways, of the deep seabed and ocean floor. In possible avenues. Under his flexible only one of which -- location of activity -- each instance there is a need to focus on interpretation of current law, one will be used here for illustrative purposes: the management of such resources by possible option would be the resurrection 1) Earth-based (at least until well way of an operating regime or authority, of the concept of a “free city” which along in the program) activities such as -13- surface-to-orbit shuttles, managerial continuing supervision by the appropriate only those nations directly involved in coordination, financing, marketing, and State Party to the Treaty” (Art. VI), the technology and operation (thus, a industrial production; which equally, clearly rules out the small number in most cases), and with an 2) lunar-based mining and associated possibility of a wide-open private organizational structure allowing operations; enterprise approach in which representation and control based on the 3) colony-based industrial fabrication; governments stand aside. Finally, unless recognition of unequal power, stakes, and 4) satellite power station operations. something highly unexpected happens in expertise of the members. Further, Accepting Glazer’s premise that it the theory and practice of world public interest, economic and political will be easier and just as suitable to government, there is unlikely to be stakes would ideally be narrow and adapt existing law rather than to invent anything approximating “space limited. In brief, the organization is more new modes, we may construct an “anti- government” on the supranational level. administrative than political. lntelsat trust” space law regime which permits Assuming a space law regime which is seems to meet most of these requirements any one country or international neither a single, all-embracing government rather well, and has been successful. But organization to operate in no more than nor real anarchy, organizations involved can this model apply to space one (or two or three, depending upon in space industrialization must utilize industrialization? the degree of “safety” desired) of the models which are flexible. An According to the O’Neill scenario, above listed sub-divisions. A central international legal regime and its within some thirty years there would be coordinating organization would organizational components must work a human population in space numbering probably be necessary for efficient both on Earth and in space, and must at least 10,000 and perhaps as much as operation, but it could be international work with individuals and groups who a million. Because of the rapid growth and could be barred from direct will no doubt also remain subject to capabilities of the system and the involvement in operating areas. Those their own national laws in areas and presumed great attractiveness of life in who propose measures to control the roles not controlled directly by space colonies, that number could grow oil multinationals frequently construct international space law. A similar geometrically-into the billions. Certainly, similar models (Blair). condition exists in regard to ocean law, even numbers of people approaching a Space exploitation will require in which individuals may be subject to million would be beyond the scope of extensive interdependence between the international law, to the laws of their Skolnikoff’s model: in 1970 more than several operating divisions listed above, nation of citizenship, or to the laws of ten national governments had populations but the “anti-trust” provisions would of less than one million, and a majority require their legal and political separation. of the world’s nations had fewer than Under the logic of separated powers, in ten million population. This scale of which each “branch” has a self-interest human population suggests that politics in both cooperation with the other “An international legal regime will be at least as important as branches and in checking their and its organizational bureaucratic organization. unrestrained growth and power, it may components must work both In addition to sheer numbers of be possible to avoid both extremes of people in space, there is the expectation “monolithic centralization” and on Earth and in space . . .” that very large proportions of national nationalistic aggrandizement. Each and international energy systems will member nation should be able to assure depend upon satellite solar power. that its interests would not be Massive economic stakes will be involved. endangered, but a norm of cooperation National, even planetary, economic and would be necessary for successful other nations, depending on the social well-being could depend upon the exploitation. The American federal particular conditions. energy, industrial products, and perhaps government has operated for two There is a tendency to extrapolate raw materials produced in space. centuries on a similar model: some degree from existing models of space Simultaneously, according to the plan, of inefficiency and risk of deadlock has organization into the future, although the space colonies themselves would be been accepted as the price for prevention this probably will produce an in the process of reducing their of tyrannous government, while the inappropriate model for space dependence on Earth by developing overarching need for cooperation forces industrialization. Existing space asteroid resources, space agriculture and compromise. Perhaps a similar, organizations deal with narrow functional machine facilities. This reversal of roles, functional division of powers in space and usually technical problems: from space colonies dependent on Earth can provide a key to both legal and communication satellite operation, to the opposite condition, will clearly political institution-building. resource surveys, meteorology. Although have political consequences. Additionally, such a model automatically complex, these are relatively impersonal Something analogous to this process spreads financial burdens and benefits and small scale, focused on technology has happened before in human history, across a number of countries, thus easing (Steinhoff). Models of organization in the great colonial migrations of the the problems of raising capital and which have appeared in space industry seventeenth through nineteenth centuries simplifying the problems of distribution literature, such as the “Ensat” (O’Neill, in the Western world, and in other cases of profits. 1976) or “Sunsat” (Glaser, 1973) models, throughout recorded history. Colonies assume a relatively narrow focus, begin as administrative, functional Some Organizational and Political technology-dominated, functional organizations, but develop internal and Possibilities organization held together primarily by external politics. Parent countries have The organizational and political economic motivations. There is a clear always insisted upon a significant voice devices used for space exploitation will analogy to Intelsat, the International in the affairs of their offspring, and be shaped by, and will continue to shape, Telecommunications Satellite successful colonies usually have sooner the legal model established. Current space Organization. or later drawn free. During this process law and practice, as well as normal Skolnikoff (pp. 159-160) has modeled both the colony and the sponsoring international rivalry, seem to rule out the the effective international organization, nation had to adjust to the development possibility of some single nation particularly those which are technology- of new economic relationships, new value dominating all areas of space related, as being characterized by highly constellations, new types of both industrialization. The 1967 Outer Space specialized and technical subject matter, cooperation and friction; that is, to Treaty requires that all space activities having a clearly defined and restricted conflict and its resolution by political must be under the “authorization and function, with a membership limited to means. Whether one sees space -14- communities as colonies which will seek launches of satellites (Kash). All these technology: nuclear power systems, liberation, or as economic dependents projects together would aggregate far massive waterworks to move rivers which will grow in power and eventually less than the minimal initial costs of rather than people, supersonic planes rival the mercantilist core powers which space industrialization. It is clear that rather than a slower pace of life. The established them (Gilpin), there is clearly saving money does not always overcome energy crisis has brought forth chiefly a potential for rivalry between nations on political objections, but it helps (White). programs for increased energy supply; Earth over control of space industry, For the wealthier nations, there should population explosions have produced the between colonies in space, and between be a willingness to pay some political advice that we should “increase the Earth and the colonies. The Skolnikoff price in order to obtain important banquet of life” rather than limit the technology-oriented model is clearly not economic help. The poor nations diners. In view of this observed regularity applicable to space industrialization. conversely may be able to pay only a of human behavior, coupled with the At the opposite extreme would be an small portion of the economic cost, but apparent technical and economic organizational mode dominated by be willing to do so in return for some feasibility of space industrialization, it representational and economic equity political voice in a program of very great seems quite reasonable to believe that concerns rather than functional potential importance to them. By this article is dealing with a real future. expertise, with multi-purpose functions dividing the space industry system into We have not been particularly good and something approaching universal several program elements, and organizing at dealing prospectively with the socio- membership. The organization would economic and political participation political aspects of technological deal with high stakes, high public interest, around them, it should be possible to developments, even when they could and a complex set of demands. accommodate a number of variations in reasonably have been foreseen long Formation of this organization would be national size, wealth, goals, etc. before their arrival. Many of the social of great significance, since the terms of An organization composed of and and political ramifications of nuclear its charter would be an important part responsible to several different nations, energy systems, ocean mining technology, of the stakes. It is not unreasonable to computerized personal data systems, and expect development of what many other recent technologies could approximates a universal government for have been -- and sometimes were -- space to be slow in formation, diluted to foreseen, but little or nothing was done a least common denominator, and “Current space industrialization about them until quite late. Technology difficult to work. Indeed, it seems studies indicate initial costs will assessment and forecasting are gaining unlikely to happen at all. run from as low as $40 billion respectability and attention as means of Between the Kropotkin-like “mutual to perhaps $200 billion over changing that pattern. aid” of an “Ensat” and the pitfalls of a For technological development of the “space government,” there may be twenty-five years.” potential importance and comparatively reason to refer again to the “anti-trust” fast time scale of space industrialization, model. This model is essentially a variety we urgently require simultaneous efforts of functionalism, proposing that the toward assessment and institution- advantages of cooperation will be modeling. This article presents sufficient to entice nations into accepting preliminary models for both international with nationals of several countries a buffered system within which they law and organization, and a preliminary involved, should be sufficiently full of cannot control but can prevent others assessment of some basic national security leaks to make it very difficult from controlling, and can nonetheless security questions aroused by the for any nation to mount a security gain the material advantages sought. concept of space industrialization. No threat through the space industry system. fundamental obstacle to realization of Advocates of space industrialization, The complex ramifications of particularly for energy production, the concept is apparent. Design criteria organizational coordination should create for central elements of the legal, typically cite economic studies indicating sufficient bureaucratic structure and organizational, and security components that their preferred alternative is less integration to allow nation-states a costly than other alternatives, and point number of options for normal interest- of the concept are described. In keeping to its possibility of very profitable long- group maneuvering as part of the check- with Ophuls’ (pp. 228-29) definition of term operation. Even though these are and-balance system. In brief, the “design” as the approach which seeks to good advocacy points, it is still true that technological motivations of efficiency, produce an outcome “by establishing any project designed to supply a major economy, and effectiveness may, in this criteria to govern the operations of the proportion of the world’s energy will be case, require for their political process so that the desired result will enormously expensive. Current space acceptability the use of a political occur more or less automatically, without further human intervention,” I have industrialization studies indicate initial structure capable of frustrating any level emphasized basic structural and costs will run from as low as $40 billion of efficient action which might motivational elements. Thus, the legal to perhaps $200 billion over twenty-five constitute a threat. If space structure recommended emphasized years, a range of about fifteen to twenty- industrialization is to proceed, the incremental change and use of existing five percent of what the U.S. electric political price must be paid. utilities expect to spend on capital during national and international legal models; that same period. In increasingly Summary the organizational structure assumes that burdened capital markets, as nations It is a curious fact that human nations will continue to exhibit attempt to deal with the capital needs of societies frequently exhibit an inertia nationalist concern for security and not only increasingly-expensive energy akin to that of physical bodies under participation; the national security model but a host of other demands, there will Newton’s Laws. Although the advice of emphasizes the neutralization of the probably be great reluctance by any one Schumacher, Lovins, and others urging system rather than its active defense. nation to shoulder an additional capital a simplified lifestyle and ecological burden of this size. adjustments may be the essence of Bibliography There is a history of U.S.-Soviet wisdom, it violates the dominant social Blair, J.M. (1977) The Control of Oil (New negotiations on ways to save money by paradigm of the industrialized societies York: Pantheon). Bobrow, D.B. (1974) Technology-Related joint space projects, and of somewhat which would have to accept and live by International Outcomes: R&D Strategies to more successful arrangements between it. These societies have demonstrated a Induce Sound Public Policy (International the U.S. and several non-communist preference for social problem solution Studies Association, Occasional Paper No. 3). countries for cost-sharing, such as by means of very large scale, complex Christol, C.Q. (1976) Statement before the -15- Subcommittee on Space Science and --(1976) “An Open Door for a Closed treated more or less equally. Well, this Applicatrons, Committee on Science and World” (Pleasanton, California: Science resulted in a committee report which Technology, U.S. House of Representatives, Applications, Inc.) (mimeo). had no classified information in it at all. July 28 (mimeo copy). White, I. L. (1970) Decision-Making for Falk, R.A. (1975) A Study of Future Space (West Lafayette, Indiana: Purdue). It reached the White House where there Worlds (New York: Free Press). was a space council set up at that time. Finch, E.R. (1976) Energy-Ecospace, paper We received the instruction that there presented at XXVII Congress of the were to be twenty-five copies of this only, International Astronautical Federation, October 10-16. Science Court they were all to be classified top secret, Ford Foundation Energy Policy Project and all twenty-five were to be locked up (1974) A Time to Choose (Cambridge: (Continued from page 5) in the safe in the executive office of the Ballinger). good deal about this procedure, Margaret White House, in which as far as I know Gilpin, R. (1975) U.S. Power and the Multinational Corporation (New York: Basic Mead, has said that all social inventions they remain to this day. Books), over the course of time are corrupted. That persuaded me that there was Glaser, P.E. (1973) “Space Shuttle It’s kind of a pessimistic view, but she something quite wrong with this whole Payloads” testimony in Hearings before the isn’t really pessimistic, she just notes that system. I tried other routes. I went to Committee on Aeronautical and Space this is what happens to social inventions, Sciences, Part II, U.S. Senate, 93rd Congress, the members of the president’s science 1st Session, October 31. that in the course of time the people who advisory committee (I knew some of --(1976) “Solar Power from Satellites” are devoted to doing the procedure them personally) and undertook to testimony in Hearings before the Subcommittee properly move away from front center convince them that if we were going to on Aerospace Technology and National Needs of the Committee on Aeronautical and Space and others who have other motivations, the Moon, which was then under Sciences, U.S. Senate, 94th Congress, 2nd like making a good living out of this discussion, we could do it at least ten Session, January 19 and 21. business, move toward front center and times more cheaply with Earth-orbital Glazer, J.H. (1976) “Juridical Models for give it an entirely different aspect. She assembly than the way it was being done. Space Settlements,’ Earth/Space News 5 (July), 9-11 has also made good suggestions for We had boosters in Atlas and Titan Hardin, G. (1968) “The Tragedy of the slowing that corruption, such as the which could put stuff into low Earth Commons,” Science 162 (December 18), importance of having a cadre of trained orbit at about a thousand dollars a 1243-48. people who supervise this procedure, pound. The price is of course almost Heilbroner, R.L. (1974) An Inquiry into the Human Prospect (New York: Norton) and who are dedicated to delaying, at unchanged today, although in different Heppenheimer, T. and M. Hopkins (1976) least, its corruption. dollars. You needed about 250,000 “lnitial Space Cooperation: Concepts and R&D I think that those who believe such a pounds in orbit to do the Apollo kind Aims,” Aeronautics and Astronautics 14 (March procedure might have too much authority of mission, which would have cost 250 (March), 58-64, 72. Johnson, K. (1967) “Canadian Report Urges to some extent balance off those who million dollars. This is a tremendous Domestic Comsat,” Aviation Week and Space think you can’t make it work at all. difference from the twenty billion that Technology 86 (March 27) 69-71. While I think both of those arguments it did cost. Maybe you’d have to launch Kash, D.E. (1967) The Politics of Space have some relevance, they are a little out a good deal more stuff into orbit, more Cblonization (Lafayette: Purdue University Press). of phase. At first I think it will be very than the quarter of a million pounds, to Kuhn, T. (1962) The Structure of Scientific difficult to make it work at all; later allow for Earth-orbital laboratories, Revolutions (Chicago: University of Chicago when you’ve learned to make it work assembly stations, and what have you. Press). well, or really before then, you should Maybe it would have cost ten times that Lay, S.H. and H.J. Taubenfeld, (1970) The Law Relating to Activities of Man in Space start thinking very seriously about much, two and a half billion, but I don’t (Chicago: University of Chicago Press). preventing the procedure from being see how it could have cost twenty Lovins, A.B. (1976) “Energy Strategy: The corrupted too quickly. billion dollars. I undertook to convince Road Not Taken,” Foreign Affairs 55, How did your interest in this people of this. While I managed to (October), 65-96. Mendlovitz, S.H. (1975) On the Creation of procedure first arise? convince a considerable number of a Just World Order (New York: Free Press). It arose out of my involvement with scientists, I discovered that I couldn’t National Aeronautics and Space the space program in the late 1950s and have any influence on the policy, nor Administration, Office of Aeronautics and early 1960s. I was appointed to a could I get a proper hearing, even though Space Technology (1976) “Space Manufacturing from Nonterrestrial Materials,” committee which was charged with at that time I was known to the space Ames Research Center. drawing up a space program for the Air community because of my work on O’Neill, G.K. (1974) “The Colonization of Force in the year 1960. I was exposed reentry. That persuaded me that we Space,” Physics Today 27 (September), 32-40 to a lot of folklore from the early space needed a new institution, and so I gave --(1975) “Space Colonies and Energy pioneers, and it became apparent to me Supply to the Earth,” Science 190 (December it a good deal of thought. By 1967 I had 5), 943-47. that Earth-orbital assembly would be a published it in several places, and I --(1976) in New York Times Magazine, powerful technique on which all kinds started to try to persuade the Congress January 18. of space adventures could be built. This of its validity, with thus far no visible --(1977) The High Frontier (New York: Morrow). had been suggested by many of the success. Ophuls, W. (1977) Ecology and the Politics original pioneers in space thinking, but What progress has been made towards of Scarcity (San Francisco: Freeman). in that period there was a slogan that testing the science court idea? Paddock, W. and Paddock, P. (1967) tried to compress the differences between It has attracted a certain amount of Famine 1975 (Boston: Little, Brown). Pirages, D. and P. Enrlich, (1974) Ark II American and the Soviet space programs attention, and some people have been (San Francisco: Freeman). into a few words: that the only things kind enough to say that it is an Rogers, W. (1976) Statement in U.S. that we lack that the Russians have are educational notion. Whether or not it Department of State Current Policy Series No. bigger boosters. That slogan received will receive the attention needed for the 16 (November), 7. Schumacher, E.F. (1973) Small is Beautiful enough currency to enable it, in a sense, development of a new procedure is still (New York: Harper and Row). to drown out the earlier and I think still problematic, though several universities Skilnikoff, E.B. (1972) The International very sound ideas about Earth-orbital are preparing proposals for the National Imperatives of Technology (Institute of assembly. Nevertheless, this committee, Science Foundation, which has said that International Studies Research Series No. 16, University of California, Berkeley). after thinking about it a good deal, it has some interest in funding Steinhoff, E.A. (ed.) (1971) Organizing reached the conclusion, and I was one of experimental trials of this procedure. I Space Activities for World Needs (New York: the driving forces, that Earth-orbital would hope that the next year or two Pergamon Press). assembly was at least as important a will see half a dozen such attempts to try Vajk, J.P. (1975) “The Impact of Space Colonization on World Dynamics,” Lawrence direction for the U.S. space program as it out and develop the procedure to the Livermore Laboratory, University of California. building bigger boosters. The two were point where it can be of some use. -16- a large way attack the fundamentals of develop an inexhaustible energy source Boeing on SPS stopping inflation. to the point where it is practical, then And, of course, the next thing is that you essentially put a lid on energy price (Continued from page 9) it is a fundamental attack on the energy growth on other sources as well. the possibility of using extra-terrestrial problem looking at an inexhaustible Norie: They have to be competitive? materials in the things we publish. source with essentially an infinite Nansen: Right. Therefore as a national Woodcock: I find some interesting capacity that can be competitive with goal it seems practically ideal. There is parallels between the L-5 Society and the other sources and can eventually be a hardly any drawback that we can see. American Rocket Society in the 1920s solution to the energy problem. Another Environmentally it’s clean. It has and 1930s. feature is that because it is high everything going for it. Norie: For example? technology and would develop the basic Norie: Have you come in contact with Woodcock: Well, the American utilization of space for practical purposes, the book Small Is Beautiful, by E.F. Rocket Society of those days evolved it also helps our position in the world Schumacher? into the AIAA. It started out as a group relative to other nations. A lot of the Nansen: No, I’m not familiar with it. of enthusiasts for a very new technology potential technologies developed are Norie: You might be interested in who were regarded by most people as a useful not only in the civil side of our checking it out. It’s a beautiful statement bunch of nuts. . .and which evolved over country’s activities but in the military about the need for changing the direction a period of years into a major industry also. So there are some secondary of modern society and deals, in part, with and one of the most respected technical benefits. the concept of having small, locally based societies. Norie: Don’t you think that the factories using intermediate rather than Norie: Makes you think of. . . wasn’t military possibilities are something that high technologies, to support the local it Copernicus? Wasn’t he the one who might scare a lot of citizens away? They population and to increase the self- was considered pretty much of a kook and had to recant or else face death? Woodcock: No, you’re thinking of Galileo. Copernicus never fell into that trap. He was the guy who understood the political system well enough not to publish his book until he was on his deathbed. Carolyn: Well, I guess we have to admit we’ve come a long way. Woodcock: Yes, a long way politically from the days when people could get burned at the stake for having revolutionary ideas, particularly when they are religious and philosophical ones. Norie: Would you have any suggestions of how a group like L-5 might be able to improve its credibility gap? Woodcock: I think what you have to do is fairly simple. You try to make an appointment with some of the people you have in mind and tell them what it is that you want to talk about. And then talk and get to know them on a personal basis. That’s by far the most effective means of communication of ideas, particularly with someone who isn’t Boeing's Photo-thermal Solar Power Satellite Design necessarily very receptive to the idea. If he gets to know you personally and you certainly scare me! sufficiency of the local area. Would you don’t seem like such a strange type after Nansen: It’s possible if you think of see these two systems as potentially being all, then he might decide that your ideas some of the potential ways of using it, compatible? may not be so strange, either, and might but we’re looking at it strictly as a Nansen: Yes. With this kind of power, bear some careful looking into. commercial utilization to develop you can bring the power to the area in Nansen: Using space solar power as a commercial power. Solar power has a which you want to use it. You’re not tied national goal addresses every single characteristic very similar to hydroelectric to any region or any specific area. You major problem the country has. In the power in that after you amortize your don’t have to bring the industry to where economic area it creates significant jobs capital investment, there are no fuel the power is available, you can just bring simply because it puts money into labor- costs; therefore, you can potentially get the power out to where you want your intensive industry and you get a high your power costs very low if the system factory, for example, in the midwest. ricochet effect of creating more jobs works as we foresee it. And also that There is really no big natural power because of that. It’s the highest of any particular feature is very important to generating source in the midwest, and, industry. It’s going into the high technical holding down all energy costs. Right now therefore, the Dakotas lack a lot of heavy industry which addresses the fundamental all our energy is essentially generated by industry, simply because they don’t have attack against inflation. One of the key depletable finite sources and so with readily available energy for them. So they ways to grow without inflation is to increasing demand and decreasing have the opportunity with this kind of increase productivity. That’s a resources, the inevitable result is rising system to spread the base out. fundamental feature, and the only way prices. They will continue to rise -- and I Norie: How about wind or ground- you can increase productivity is to raise think there isn’t any way to stop them -- based solar? the level of technology. Therefore any until you develop an inexhaustible source Nansen: If development in this activities that address high technology in that will put a lid on it. As soon as you program follows in the typical fashion of -17- programs like this, it would stumble along but the overall savings generally are much steer these facets that would be a for quite a few years gradually increasing greater. representative sort of thing that a in activity levels but it would take a long Carolyn: I don’t understand what you country like Japan would produce time, simply because the basic power mean by overall savings. because it involves a small sensing system generating system is not scaleable. You Nansen: Well, when you gear up an of some type, undoubtedly electronic, can’t scale SPS down to small units and industry, you have 100,000 or 200,000 and a drive system. And they will be get a useful amount of power. To make people directly working on the program. required by the thousands-pretty near it pay, you have to go to a big investment, Now if you are going as fast as you can millions when you look at a production and in order to do it, you need to develop and pushing them really hard, then the run of satellites. So a country like Japan not only the power generating system, block of time you’re going to employ with its high rate of production of solid but you also need to develop the those 200,000 people is eight years. state devices would be ideal. transportation system, the baseline for Whereas, if you do things slowly and There all kinds of systems of this operations. You need to develop man’s orderly, you might not have 200,000 nature-engine systems, generator capability to live, work and operate in people. You might have 150,000 people systems-when you’re talking about space. So you have a whole bunch of and take twenty years instead. So every thermal satellites or photovoltaic parallel activities. Now the only way that day you have that work force and are systems, switchgears or photocells, you can really make that kind of progress paying them during the development antenna elements. happen, traditionally, is to make a very period is money that goes into the Woodcock: It’s really hard to imagine large commitment in the massive program without any economic returns. a program like this getting off the ground investment required to make the whole So the faster you do it the fewer days without some element of international thing happen. Now the only way you can you have to pay them during the period cooperation. do that is essentially to make it a you’re still getting nothing back. You Nansen: Orbit locations, potential national goal. Otherwise, you can’t get can therefore reduce development costs traffic control, and similar issues will the necessary funding over a short period by reducing the time it takes you to do certainly require new international of time which is really required to bring the job. to a point. After all, if you agreements. That much power going into something like this into being. And go too fast, then you waste things and microwaves and the potential of radio fortunately it is the kind of system that make mistakes. But generally speaking interference has to be considered will have payback to all the people. It is the quickest you can do it is the cheapest. throughout the world, not just in the not a product that is selective to a few Woodcock: I think the comparison U.S. Some basic international agreements individuals that get the benefits. In this you want to make-using the Apollo have to be reached. case, everyone in the nation, and time frame, which is the best comparison Woodcock: Let me point out one ultimately in the world, would receive we have for this kind of program-is that thing about inexhaustible energy sources benefit from it. Therefore, it has the this is about how long it would take you -- this one or any other -- that is a very ability to have personal appeal that will to establish a construction facility. Then powerful economic consideration. In the encourage their support for a massive you could start to construct the first past half dozen or so years, we have seen investment. And all of the kinds of satellite and there would be a little bit a not steady but monotonical increase in exciting and big things we’ve done have more time to go through the the cost of energy. One reason is that the gone like this. For example, going to the construction. In this kind of a sources are finite and getting more and Moon. There was a situation in which commercial program it probably makes more finite all the time; the cost has everything had to be developed. I believe sense to go to a prototype for redesign nowhere to go but up. Provided you have it was May of 1961 that Kennedy made and reconstruction before you go into the kinds of characteristics that we have the announcement that we’d get to the actual production. That is, by the way, in SPS (e.g., no capacity limit), the source Moon within the decade. Well, at the end exactly what we do in the commercial of energy is free and non-depletable and of that year every single major element airplane business, especially the 707. The the cost is in the device that collects the of the Saturn-Apollo program was under first commercial jet transport was a hand energy. As soon as you get a practical contract. It moved fantastically fast. The built prototype and from that we learned system on line, then the cost of energy whole industry was mobilized. NASA was enough about what the design should be will go down, because then you’ll get mobilized. to go into production. Now we go better and better at it. As you get better Carolyn: Did they think of the lunar directly into production on commercial at it, then you can make things cheaper, module concept that early? aircraft. and since the source is not limited in any Nansen: It was very sketchy. The Norie: One thing I’m quite interested reasonable, practical sense, that would technical base in 1961 for landing on the in is the potential for international probably make a big contribution to this Moon was not as good as it is today for cooperation in this whole area. I should problem of inflation which some space solar power. We believe we are think that the Japanese with their energy economists believe is basically driven by further along and know more about space crisis would be extremely interested in the cost of energy and not by other solar power today than we did about getting involved in this and would also things. going to the Moon in 1961. have a lot to offer in electronics and Nansen: Well, it attacks it two ways. Woodcock: Both Ralph and I were in other fields. It attacks it for the reason Gordy stated on the early phase days of the Apollo Nansen: As a matter of fact, this which is the relation between basic program so we are speaking from a system has so many components and energy cost and inflation. Plus it increases certain perspective on this thing. subsystems involved that many of these the technology level which increases Nansen: Yes, we were there from the could be broken down and development productivity and that is the key source of very beginning. We landed in 1969 in could be semi-independent of other national growth without inflation. You eight years with a program of about the things. For example, the thermal engine have to increase productivity or you size and development effort that we’re satellite, where each individual mirror cannot do that. So we address inflation talking about here with space solar power. facet has to be steered individually and from two directions. So you can conceive of doing the first it needs to track the Sun and the cavity Woodcock: It’s possible in the basic step of this thing in as short as eight absorber and direct sunlight there, and it economic world to regard inflation as a years, if we went at the pace of the has to be able to move through a small tax. It’s the most regressive tax of all, Apollo. And, as a matter of fact, in most number of degrees to correct for any more regressive than the sales tax. If you ways, that is the cheapest way to do inaccuracies in the basic satellite pointing really look at how inflation hits different something on a massive scale-to do it as or in deflection of the structure. So there sectors of the economy, the people with fast as you can. You waste some money, are sensing units and actuators there to the least income are hurt by it the most. -18- as the capital investment to get your first operational satellite sending power in bus bars? Nansen: Well, you don’t have a good hard number, but you can kind of estimate it if you look at the Saturn- Apollo program if you escalated it to today’s inflated dollar. That’s about the development bill. As for the capital cost, there’s quite a range, as Gordon said earlier. But it looks as if it is not significantly higher than the projected costs of new nuclear plants, the breeder reactor type. I t’s about that range of capital cost in terms of dollars per installed kilowatt hour of generating capability. Norie: On Project America, we visited Los Alamos and were given a very interesting presentation by one of the scientists there about possible forms of energy in the future. Their emphasis is on nuclear fusion. According to the man who talked with us, they had heard a discussion on the solar space satellite concept, and they rejected it on the basis Boeing’s Ground-based Solar “Power Tower” of cost. As I remember it, they said it would cost too much to put the things in The people with the most income are Moon. This doesn’t mean that someday orbit. hurt by it the least and some may be that’s not going to be practical. It’s just Nansen: Oh, the first time most people helped. that we don’t have the technology at look at our satellite program they say the Norie: In the new Carter hand and, frankly, what we’re looking at same thing simply because they’re administration there’s a lot of talk given is a close-in start to attack the energy equating today’s space costs of to the problem of inflation. Has there problem with our program. communication satellites. A been any attempt to get in touch with Norie: In other words, you want communication satellite may cost people in the Carter administration to something that has very high credibility. . $10,000 a pound because they are small, find out their feelings about this whole Nansen: Yes. complex systems, one of a kind with very program? Norie: . . . at every step of the way. sophisticated (dense) electronical Woodcock: We haven’t made any real Nansen: That’s right. packaging and today’s transportation attempts yet. The administration is Norie: And then after you get there. . costs are $600 a pound. pretty busy right now just getting into Nansen: Then you can improve it, or Woodcock: To get it into office. But certainly this type of thing explore other possibilities. We’re trying geosynchronous orbit today is about should be very appealing to him because to start from a known position, and then $5,000 a pound. it addresses the kinds of things that he find how to make it better with the Nansen: So when you extrapolate has been saying that he is going to do. It unknown. these kinds of costs-and that’s what addresses just about every problem he Norie: That seems reasonable people do who don’t understand the said he wants to tackle and it also is a considering the way the government system-then it’s totally unfeasible. But dynamic, exciting adventure that I think works. when you tackle these problems and lay would be very appealing. So we expect a Nansen: Yes, it has to be practical. out the kind of system we have, then it good response, but we haven’t tried yet. You see, the period that either most becomes totally different. It is a Norie: It seems that one of the big people or the government would accept commercial venture of a completely differences between what you’re a large investment in space-to explore or different order of magnitude. exploring and what the L-5 Society is develop-is gone. We have gone through Woodcock: The usual way of interested in has to do with the use of our “exciting period” in space. This dispensing with the SPS concept is to extra-terrestrial materials. I guess you happens in every field. Now what we’re say that the cost of transporting into are taking a more conservative approach. faced with is this: if we want to proceed, geosynchronous orbit is $10,000 per Woodcock: (pause) I guess you could we’ve got to do something practical, kilogram, which is about right for the call it more conservative. something with economical return. It has Titan I I I, and that the satellites by the Carolyn: I guess you’re not got to be a utilitarian operation. So in most recent publications weigh about accustomed to being called conservative! order to do the other exciting things, ten kilograms per kilowatt. So all you Woodcock: (laughing) No. Shall we you’ve got to have somebody pay the have to do is multiply those two say that the program we at Boeing bill. And the best way to pay it is to numbers together and you come out with advocate involves a good deal less develop a good source of income. That’s $100,000 per kilowatt. And that is technical uncertainty to make the thing what the SPS program represents. And at clearly not an acceptable cost. That’s work. the same time, it would develop the about the amount of consideration that Nansen: We’re trying to lay out a basic capabilities of the transportation system, the concept gets from lots of people. system that you can look at today and the capability to live and operate in Norie: Is that perhaps because they say, yes, we can do every single technical space. It would give us the opportunity have a competing scheme and don’t want aspect of that. We have proven in some to go do other things at very minimal cost to give you any more consideration? way or another that we can do each one because you’ve made your major Woodcock: I’m not sure that’s of the things we’re talking about. And investment in the tools. generally true. I think that when people you can’t say that today if you start Carolyn: Could you give us a ballpark think about space-and they’ve got talking about using materials from the figure of the investment in R&D as well plenty of reason to think this-they think -19- of something that’s exotic, exciting, and fairly negligible because it would require (5) Participate in debates and decisions certainly expensive. There are some very considerable impact. It isn’t a significant on these issues after the data are made fine and historical parallels in that area. economic factor. Minor damage would be available. One can find statements made by people expected on a routine basis and would I hope you agree with me that an who should have known better-by that have to be repaired. That seems to be a exciting concept has been developed. For I mean physicists, aerodynamicists and second or third order factor in terms of the first time in history, the vast quantity so forth-a few years after the Wright expense. of energy and materials available to us in brothers and when airplanes were already Interestingly enough, if you look at space present an imaginative and practical flying. They said, it’s conceivable that the flux of large objects-by that I mean new outlet for human experience. airplanes could be developed to the point meteorites larger than the typical pea- where one could somehow struggle across sized meteorite -- the natural flux of the Atlantic with a few passengers, but objects of near -- Earth space is far less than that the costs would be so exorbitant the flux of manmade objects. And there that no one could afford it except the is a problem of collisions between man news rich capitalist who could afford to own made objects and things as large as the CLOSED ECOLOGY TESTED his own yacht; that visions of fleets of SPS. This is currently under evaluation. giant aircraft carrying ordinary people Norie: Do you mean man made FOR SPACE great distances across the Atlantic have objects like satellites? Science News just got to be wholly visionary. There is Woodcock: Satellites, too but Permanent colonies in space, Earth- no way that is ever going to happen. Now, most notably junk. When a satellite is orbiting stations and piloted flights to this statement was made about 1910, launched, there is usually one active other planets are all possible applications after airplanes were flying. Another quote satellite and several pieces of junk like for life-support systems that function as was made in 1926 by, I believe, an spent stages, shrouds and separation closed ecologies, providing air, water and astronomer. And this was after Goddard’s mechanisms. food through a variety of mutually first rocket flight had been published. Of dependent biological systems. A recent course, Goddard had written a book in Soviet test sustained three people for six 1919 in which he said that one might months in a system that provided oxygen conceivably send a rocket to the Moon by recovery from atmospheric carbon and this guy went through a little bit of . . .Congress dioxide, water from “photosynthetic arithmetic to show, as one can readily do, regenerative process” and included the that the energy per unit mass of (Continued from page 12) production of “a certain amount of grain something that is going to escape the To have contemplated its completion and vegetables.” The result, according to Earth is far greater than the caloric within twelve years of the launch of I.I. Gitelson and colleagues from the content of any known fuel. And he said Sputnik in 1957 would have appeared Soviet Academy of Sciences, “established that for this reason the idea of shooting heretical. beyond question that a small, steadily things at the Moon was obviously I am proposing the open discussion, operating, essentially closed system of ridiculous. It simply gives an example of timely funding and systematic progression ‘substance-turnover’ involving man is the irrationality that extreme of a concept which would have enormous quite feasible. . . .” specialization will carry some scientists implications for this nation and the to! You can find more quotations of that human race. With this goal in mind, I nature than you can find space to print have the following recommendations for LUNA 24 SAMPLES INSPECTED them. One of the best sources of many the Committee’s consideration in dealing Three U.S. lunar scientists (Dr. of them was a book published some with NASA and Carter Administration Michael B. Duke, NASA/Johnson Space years ago called Profiles of the Future by during the next few years: Center; Dr. G.J. Wasserburg, California Arthur C. Clarke. (1) Work with NASA to identify those Institute of Technology; and Dr. Charles To go back to costs, another point is long term goals which are consistent with H. Simonds, Lunar Science Institute), that in the early phases of a program cost the public interest and are of visited Moscow on December 13-15 to estimates tend to be low. There’s good fundamental importance. examine lunar materials returned by the reason for it. It’s not that people are liars (2) Help clarify agency jurisdictional Luna 24 mission last August and to or that they’re incompetent or ignorant. problems. For example, the lines of arrange for the transmission of samples It’s simply that in the early days of a responsibility for satellite solar power for study by U.S. researchers. Luna 24 program designed to accomplish a major between NASA and ERDA are not clear returned a 2 meter long, 8 millimeter objective, one is unable to identify all the and may be retarding a timely study of diameter core from southeastern Mare elements of the program. the concept. The capabilities of NASA in Crisium, which has not been sampled Norie: Could you point to some of this area, in my opinion, are previously by U.S. or Soviet missions. the spinoffs of the space program so far? extraordinarily strong. The site may contain material from Woodcock: There are lots of them. All (3) In order that informed decisions nearby highlands and material from the kinds. Some of them direct, some of be made, use the Committee’s power of ray crater Giordano Bruno some 1200 them pretty indirect. I think the whole authorization in restoring vigor to the kilometers away. miniature computer essentially happened most promising programs which have long A Soviet-American space cooperation because of Apollo, pocket calculators. . . lead times, which require study and agreement provides for the exchange of Nansen: It’s fascinating to think that development, and which may develop samples from each of the lunar returns. if you could get in a time machine and go into a major activity. This would include The U.S. has provided 3 grams of sample back about thirty years and show one of opening a dialogue with the Office of from each of the six Apollo missions; the these pocket calculators to a reasonably Management and Budget and reversing Russians have reciprocated with 3 grams competent engineer or scientist, he some of their decisions-for example, of Luna 16 and 2 grams of Luna 20 would have had to conclude that it works cuts in the modest funding of satellite samples, plus two small fragments of by magic! power, space industrialization and the Luna 20 rock provided separately. Norie: Could you comment on the Lunar Polar Orbiter. Considering the fact that the Russians problems of maintenance and repair of (4) Take part in presenting to the return has been 100 and 50 grams, the SPS? Would there be a problem of American people those options which respectively, for Luna 16 and 20, their meteors crashing into it, etc.? appear to be most promising once they cooperation in this exchange has been Woodcock: Major damage would be have been studied and partially developed. exceptional. -20- SOLAR ENERGY ABSTRACT JOURNAL AVAILABLE ERDA Solar Energy Update, a monthly abstract journal from the Energy ERDA, NASA SANCTION LARGE Research and Development SCALE WIND POWER PROJECT Administration (ERDA), has been made available on a subscription basis. The following is an announcement The journal abstracts and indexes from ERDA that details a windpower reports, journal articles, conference project that has been funded. Of interest proceedings, patents, theses and to space enthusiasts is the scale of the monographs on solar energy, including project. photovoltaic, solar thermal, and ocean thermal power plants, tidal power and A huge rotor blade, half the length of wind energy. a football field, will be built in 1977 as Solar Energy Update (NTISUB/c/145) part of the Energy Research and for 1977 is available from the National Development Administration’s (ERDA) Technical Information Service, U.S. program to develop a new generation of Department of Commerce, 5285 Port wind energy conversion systems. Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia 22161 Under the program direction of for $27.50 a year, including a ERDA, the National Aeronautics and cumulative index. Single copies may be Space Administration’s Lewis Research purchased for $3.25. Subscription rate Center, Cleveland, Ohio, has selected the for outside the North American continent is $40 a year and $6.50 for Kaman Aerospace Corporation of Stewart Nozette, L-5 member from single copies. Bloomfield, Connecticut for negotiation Tucson, gives a lecture on space at the Solar Energy Update is intended to of a contract for about $2 million to Museum of Science and Industry in be an ongoing supplement to Solar fabricate the 150-foot blade. Chicago. The purpose of the contract is to Energy: A Bibliography, which contains determine if a blade this size can be built references to information entered into and handled. Rotor blades of this nature ERDA’s Technical Information Center FROM THE OFFICE and size have never been built before. data base before 1976. Stock number Space Settlement, the new quarterly Two blades of this size, spanning 300 and price of this bibliography are as special edition of the L-5 News begins feet or approximately the length of a follows: TID-3351-RIP1 (Volume 1, with this issue. Advertising space will be football field, would be needed for a Citations) -- $13.75 for domestic and available in Space Settlement in future wind turbine rated at about two $27.50 for foreign; TID-3351-RIP1 issues. For information regarding rates, megawatts of electric power for a site (Volume 2, Indexes) -- $11.00 for circulation and other information, please with average wind speeds of 14 miles per domestic and $22.00 for foreign. write: Advertising, Space Settlement, hour. 1620 N. Park Avenue, Tucson AZ 85719. Detailed design studies of such wind The staff hopes you like this long turbines are scheduled to begin later this issue. The Don Davis paintings were put year. By the time the large blade has been inside so you can take them out easily. If built and tested, and design studies have inside the you want to see more issues like this one, been completed, ERDA and NASA will take Space Settlement down to your local have enough data to determine the library and get them to subscribe. Next course of the future test program for L-5 Society month’s L-5 News will be shorter, but wind turbines of this size. will be filled with exciting news from the Wind turbines this large would be Princeton conference (it seems that about larger than the existing 100 kw NEW COORDINATOR FOR 10 percent of our members will be there). experimental wind turbine in Ohio, L-5 SOCIETY, Western Europe Printing some of Eric Drexler’s latest which has blades spanning 125 feet, and work on solar sails is also being The West European Branch of the L-5 the two 200 kw wind turbines of the considered. same size which are scheduled to be built Society has a new coordinator and in 1977-79. membership secretary, and a new NASA 1975 SUMMER STUDY They would also be larger than the secretarial address. Please send all The NASA 1975 summer study, Space two 1.5 megawatt wind machines being membership correspondence, dues, Settlements, A Design Study, is out! The designed and built for ERDA and NASA requests, and items for the branch or information is somewhat out of date by the General Electric Co. for international news magazines to: (which is unavoidable on a topic that installation and testing in 1978-80. Roger Sansom evolves this fast), but the printing and ERDA is pursuing development of even L-5 Society (WE) Coordinator graphics are absolutely first rate. There larger wind machines because studies 45 Wedgwood Drive, are eight beautiful color plates in this show that the cost of energy decreases Lilliputt, Nr. Poole, 8½ by 11, 185-page book with a color with increasing the size of the machine. Dorset, United Kingdom. cover. At $5.00, this has to rate as the Construction methods used in building The WE Branch has begun to reissue bargain of the year. The editors, Richard this large blade will derive from methods the Branch Newsletter and does hope to Johnson and Charles Holbrow, NASA for building helicopter blades. The largest issue a regular monthly edition again. and the GPO have certainly done an helicopter blade in use is about 55 feet “I believe that the Branch can look excellent job on this. long. forward to another exciting twelve Kaman’s rotor blade will be made months as we pioneer the items that will primarily of glass fiber and will weigh be needed for the space community and about 12 tons. It will undergo static and space industry programs of the next few dynamic testing at the company’s decades.” --Phillip J. Parker, outgoing Connecticut plant. coordinator. -21- U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences, “Solar Power from Satellites,” GPO, 1976. bibliography U.S. National Research Council, Space Applications Board “Practical Applications of Space Systems: Jesco von Puttkamer, of Advanced Programs, Office of Space Flight, Materials Processing in Space,” NASA, has prepared the following bibliography for those interested GPO, 1975. in making an in-depth study of space settlements. SPACE STATIONS Baker. David “The Problem of Space Congress, House of Representatives Station Longevity,” Space Flight 16: GENERAL Serial M, Vol. II, GPO, September 303-304, August 1974. Berry, Adrian The Next Ten-Thousand 1975. Blagonravov, Anatolij A. “Space Years: A Vision of Man’s Future in --“Industrial Productivity as a New Platforms: Why They Should Be the Universe, Saturday Review Press, Overarching Goal of Space Built,” Space World, Vol. H-8-92, 1974. Development,” October 1975 (To be August 1971. Cole, Dandridge M. Beyond Tomorrow: published). Bono, P., and K.W. Gatland “The The Next Fifty Years in Space, --and B.D. Newsom “Utilization of Space Commercial Space Station,” in Amherst Press, 1965. Environment for Therapeutic Frontiers of Space, MacMillan Co., Ehricke, Krafft A. “Extraterrestrial Purposes.” New York, 1970. Imperative,” Bulletin of the Atomic Gilmer, J.R. (ed.) “Commercial Ehricke, Krafft A. “Beyond the First Scientists 27: 18-26, November 1971. Utilization of Space,” AAS Advances Space Stations,” AIAA Meeting, --“Toward a Three-Dimensional in the Aeronautical Sciences, Vol. 23, NASA-Marshall Space Flight Center, Civilization,” Space World, December 1968. Huntsville, Alabama, January 1971. 1970. Glaser, Peter E. “Solar Power via Hagler, Thomas A. “Building Large --“A Strategic Approach to the Satellite,” Astronautics and Structures in Space,” Astronautics and Development of Geolunar Space,” Aeronautics, August 1973. Aeronautics 14: 56-61, May 1976. Paper SD69-710, IAA Orbiting --“The Satellite Solar Power Station: An Kline, Richard L. “The Space Station and International Laboratory and Space Option for Energy Production on Space Industrialization,” paper Sciences Conference, Cloudcroft, Earth,” AIAA, 1975. presented at AAS/AIAA Bicentennial New Mexico, October 1969. Lessing, L. “Why the Shuttle Makes Space Symposium, Washington, D.C., --“In-Depth Exploration of the Solar Sense,” Fortune 85:93-97, 113, October 6-8, 1976. System and its Utilization for the January 1972. Low, George M. “Skylab. . . Man’s Benefit of Earth,” New York Academy Minney, O.H. “The Utilization and Laboratory in Space,” Astronautics of Sciences 187:427 seq., 1970. Engineering of an Orbital Hospital,” and Aeronautics, Vol. 9, No. 6, June Hearth, D. “Outlook for Space,” NASA AAS Preprint 67-123, Dallas, Texas, 1971. SP-387, January 1976. May 1967. Parin, W. “Life on Orbital Stations,” von Puttkamer, Jesco (ed.) “Space for Stine, G. Harry The Third industrial Journal of Aerospace Medicine, Vol. Mankind’s Benefit,” NASA SP-313, Revolution, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1975. 41, No. 12, December 1970. 1972, Washington, D.C. von Puttkamer, Jesco “The Next Twenty- Smith, T.D., and D.E. Charhut “Space --“On Man’s Role in Space,” Monograph Five Years: Industrialization of Station Design and Operation,” AIAA (A Review of Potential Utilitarian and Space,” Second International Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Humanistic Benefits of Manned Space Congress on Technology Assessment, Vol. 8, No. 6, June 1971. Flight), NASA Office of Space Flight, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, AIAA Technical Activities Committee December 1974. Michigan, October 24-28, 1976. “Earth-Orbiting Stations,” --“Developing Space Occupancy: Wuenscher, H.F. “Manufacturing in Astronautics and Aeronautics 13: Perspectives on NASA Future Space Space,” Astronautics and Aeronautics, 22-29, September 1975. Programme Planning,” Journal of the September 1972. Marshall Space Flight Center “Manned British Interplanetary Society (BIS), Arthur D. Little, Inc. “Feasibility Study Orbital Facility: A User’s Guide,” Vol. 29, No. 3: 147-173, March 1976 of a Satellite Solar Power Station,” GPO, 1975. NASA CR-2357, 1974. McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Co. SPACE INDUSTRIALIZATION Proceedings of Third Space Processing “Space Station Program Definition Bekey, I., H.L. Mayer, and M.G. Wolfe Symposium, NASA-Marshall Space Study/Space Base,” MSFC-DRL-140, “Advanced Space System Concepts Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama, Contract NAS8-25140, 1970. and Their Orbital Support Needs April 30 - May 1, 1974. --“Space Station -- Executive Summary,” (1980-2000),” Aerospace Corp. Proceedings of Twentieth AAS Annual Contract NAS8-25140, August 1970. Report ATR-76 (7365)-1, Vols. 1-4, Meeting: Skylab Results, August --“Space Station: User’s Handbook,” Contract NASW 2727, April 1976. 20-22, 1974. MDC G-0763, March 1971. Bredt, J.H., and B.O. Montgomery Proceedings of AIAA/NASA Symposium --“Manned Orbital Systems Concepts “Materials Processing in Space-New on Space Industrialization, NASA- (MOSC) Study,” NAS8-31014, Challenges for Industry,” Astronautics Marshall Space Flight Center, October 1975. and Aeronautics 13, May 1975. Huntsville, Alabama, May 26-27, --“Space Station Systems Analysis Ehricke, Krafft A. “Lunar Industries and 1976. Study,” Part 1 Final Report, MDC Their Value for the Human U.S. Congress, House Committee on G6508, Vols. 1-3, Contract NAS9- Environment on Earth, “Acta Science and Astronautics “Space 14958, September 1976 (NASA/JSC). Astronautica, Vol. 1: 585-682, 1974. Shuttle-Skylab: Manned Space Flight North American Rockwell, Inc. “Space --“Space Tourism,” AAS Preprint 67- in the 1970s,” GPO, 1972. Base,” MSC-00721, Contract NAS9- 127, Dallas Texas, May 1967. U.S. Congress, House Committee on 9953, July 1970. --“Space Industrial Productivity, New Science and Technology, “Space Proceedings of the NASA Symposium on Options for the Future,” U.S. Shuttle 1975,” GPO, 1975. the Effects of Confinement on Long- -22- Duration Manned Space Flight, Michaud, M.A.G. “Escaping the Limits Conference No. 127 on Space NASA/Office of Manned Space Flight, to Growth,” Spaceflight April 1975. Manufacturing Facilities, Princeton 1966. O’Neill, Gerard K. “The Colonization of University, May 1975 (in preparation). Rockwell International Corporation Space,” Physics Today 27: 32-40, Reis, Richard “Colonization of Space,” “Space Station Systems Analysis,” September 1974. Mercury July 8, 1974: 3-4. SD 75-SA-0301, February 1976. --“The High Frontier” and associated Robinson, George S. “Legal Problems of --“Modular Space Station Phase B. articles, CoEvolution Quarterly 7: Sustaining Manned Space Flights, Extension,” Contract NAS9-9953, 6-29, Fall 1975. Space Stations, and Lunar NASA/JSC. --“The Next Frontier-Space Communities Through Private --“Austere Modular Space Facility,” Communities,” Aerospace 13: 2-7, Initiative and Non-Public Funding,” SD 75-SA-0105, September 1975. December 1975. International Lawyer 1973: 455-475. --“Observation, Assembly, Staging and --“Space Colonies and Energy Supply to --“Scientific Renaissance of Legal industrial Support (OASIS) Facility,” the Earth,” Science 190: 943-947, Theory: The Manned Orbiting Space SD 75-SA-0106, September 1975. December 5, 1975. Theory: The Manned Orbiting Space --“Space Station Concepts,” SD 76-SA- --, R.W. Miles, R.H. Miles (ed.) Station as a Contemporary 0072. Proceedings of the 1975 Princeton Workshop,” International Lawyer --“Space Stations for the International University Conference on Space 1974: 20-40. Future,” (J.F. Madewell and R.E. Manufacturing Facilities (in press). --Living in Outer Space, Public Affairs Sexton), SD 76-0076. --“Settlers in Space,” Science Year, World Press, 1975. Book Science Annual -- 1976, Field Salkeld, Robert “Space Colonization SPACE COLONIZATION Enterprises Educational Co., 1975. Now?,” Astronautics and Aeronautics AND LUNAR BASES --Testimony in U.S. Congress, House September 1975: 30-34. Asimov, Isaac “After Apollo, A Colony Committee on Science and Tsiolkowski, K.E. Beyond the Planet on the Moon,” New York Times Technology on Future Space Programs Earth, translated by Kenneth Syers, Magazine May 28, 1967: 30. 1975, GPO, 1975. Pergamon Press, London, 1960. --“Colonizing the Heavens,” Saturday --Testimony on Power Satellite Vajk, J. Peter “The Impact of Space Review June 28, 1975: 17. Construction from Lunar Surface Colonization on World Dynamics, --“The Next Frontier,” National Materials before Committee on UCRL-77584, Lawrence Livermore Geographic July 1976: 76-89. Aeronautical and Space Sciences, U.S. Laboratory, 1975. Chedd, Graham “Colonization at Senate, GPO, January 1976. --“Technological Forecasting and Social Lagrangia,” New Scientist 1974. --“Colonies in Orbit,” New York Times Change,” LLL, 1976. Chernow, Ron “Colonies in Space,” Magazine January 18, 1976: 10-11, NASA/Ames Research Center “Space Smithsonian February 1976: 6-11. 25-29. Colonization-A Design Study,” Clarke, Arthur C. Islands in the Sky, --“Space Colonies: The High Frontier,” NASA SP-413, 1976. NAL Signet Book, 1965. The Futurist February 1976: 25-33. NASA/ASEE Systems Design Institute --Rendezvous with Rama, Harcourt, --“Engineering a Space Manufacturing “Design of a Lunar Colony,” Brace, Jovanovich, 1975. Center,” Astronautics and Aeronautics University of Houston, Rice Dossey, J.R. and G.L. Trotti Vol. 14, No. 10, October 1976. University, NASA/MSC, NASA Grant “Counterpoint-A Lunar Colony,” --The High Frontier: Human Colonies in NGT 44-005-114, September 1972. Spaceflight July 1975: 17. Space, Wm. Morrow and Co., New North American Rockwell, Inc. “Lunar Heppenheimer, T.A. and M. Hopkins York, 1977. Base Synthesis Study,“ NASA “Initial Space Colonization: Concepts Parker, P.J. “Lagrange Point Space Contract NAS8-26145, SD71-477, and R&D Aims,” Astronautics and Colonies,” Spaceflight July 1975. 1971. Aeronautics March 1976: 58-72. Parkinson, R.C. “Takeoff Point for a --“Orbiting Lunar Station (OLS) Phase A Libassi, Paul T. “Space to Grow,” The Lunar Colony,” Spaceflight September Feasibility Study,” NASA Contract Sciences, July 8, 1974. 1974. NAS9-10924, MSC-02687, April 1971. Maruyama, Magoroh “Design Principles --“The Colonization of Space,” for Extraterrestrial Communities,” Spaceflight March 1975: 17. Futures April 1976: 104-121. von Puttkamer, Jesco “Developing Space Short reviews of recent articles will Maruyama, M. and A. Harkins (eds.) Occupancy: Perspectives on NASA be featured regularly in the bibliography Cultures Beyond Earth, Vintage Press, Future Space Program Planning,” update, as well as mention of books and 1975. Proceedings of Princeton University periodicals about space.

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-23- (Cont’d. from inside front cover) I would rather see more of this energy back their projects, then those going into channels that will get us out pragmatic "push" people at Advanced I was wondering if solar power by to them rather than have them meet us Programs will be able to push just as microwave beam heats the Earth. Both for purposes of colonization. We should hard as the folks like Leary are pulling. nuclear and fossil energies do: nuclear be thinking more along lines of becoming How about giving the folks at NASA a through its wastes into the ocean and technological equals or we might find hand? -Carolyn Henson fossil fuel by the greenhouse effect. The ourselves in a satellite status relative to heat these energies give off will melt the the cultures who were energetic enough I was happy to see the essence of the ice caps and flood many major cities of to make it. concept of the Fourth Kingdom as the the world. If solar power via microwave I very strongly agree with the remarks lead in your January 1977 “soft” issue of doesn’t heat the Earth, this gives solar of Dr. Leary in this regard and think that the L-5 News. The cover artwork by panels in space one more advantage over the impulse for this venture should be J. Nix was especially exciting to me. The its counterparts. generated from the “grass roots” level. art was appropriate with its dramatic Richard Hankins If the project is approached through symbolism, reinforcing what the words La Mesa, California institutional and bureaucratic channels, are trying to say. I am convinced the After this last winter, melting the icecaps it will soon become buried in red tape and knowledge of this evolutionary seems a good deal less likely. and invite disbursement of funds into imperative resides just below the surface All energy sources heat the Earth, solar areas other than colonization. of consciousness of nearly everyone in via microwave heats it less than nuclear The biggest boost space colonization the human family. Symbolic artwork, or coal (waste heat is radiated in could receive at this time would be to such as you have featured, can help space). However, human energy use is have Dr. Leary and Captain Freitag reach through all of the irrelevant clutter still very, very small in comparison to the change jobs. Judging from the interviews in our consciousness and bring a new solar flux. -- K H (which are most interesting) Captain awakening to many. Freitag seems to look upon the whole In your very fine review of O’Neill’s I completely agree with Barbara adventure as a dubious risk. Dr. Leary, The High Frontier, Carolyn, you resolved Hubbard’s comments in the January on the other hand, is the pioneering type with a few swift strokes of the pen a L-5 News under “Why Space Now?” It is of individual who would be best suited possible philosophical problem in the a question of timing whether we go into for the office of Advanced Programs at L-5 Society. You referenced O’Neill’s space colonization now or later in view NASA. interests in terms of “within this century, of the energy situation on Earth. I hope Richard Semock life can begin spreading outward into the we pick up the option now instead of APO San Francisco Galaxy.” And I totally agree that if the procrastinating until the time comes Galaxy is our ultimate goal, we can go when we realize we do not have the on constructively debating and carrying energy to emigrate. If the present trend Personally, I like Jesco von out the probable intermediate steps continues, which seems very likely, more Puttkamer's "push/pull" approach (L-5 humanity will take before eventually and more of our energies are going into News, November, 1976, page 2) to space settlements. That is to say, we need both leaving this solar system. The pathway maintenance channels for things like out may include any or all of the subsistence and less into developmental the radical visionaries to “pull” us toward their hopes of the future and the following: colonies orbiting Earth, Moon, areas. Sun or other planets; colonization of There is another point I would like to pragmatic and cautious people who look at where we are now and think about many of the planets and/or some moons mention in favor of going out now and of Jupiter; industrial and scientific space that is from a competitive standpoint as how to “push” ourselves into the future. How does this relate to Leary and activities in orbit and/or on the Moon, viewing Earth against the background of etc. There is increasing evidence people the cosmic community. This may at first Freitag trading jobs? Just imagine what would happen if NASA were populated were thinking of space travel thousands seem a shaky basis to support the massive of years ago. They could not have effort involved in space colonization since by starry-eyed individualists? The non- starry-eyed taxpayers would be darn imagined the myriad of mechanical we have not as yet come into contact devices and scientific approaches skeptical about any proposals coming with another culture. Statistically, the civilization had to practice with and out of NASA and in short order would question was answered long ago and perfect to finally come up with a projects to communicate with them are pressure the President into firing those capability to leave Earth’s gravity. proliferating at a greater rate than are far-out people. our preparations to meet another On the other hand, if the idealists can William J. Sauber culture. get the Great American Taxpayers to Midland, Michigan

WHAT’S AVAILABLE FROM Reprints: Papers: Back Issues: Slides: THE L-5 SOCIETY? P1 UP1 B1 S1 ORDER FORM P2 UP2 B1 __ S2 Ordering Instructions: P3 UP3 B1__ S3 See the listings on pages C-1 and P4 UP4 B1 __ S4 C-4 for the choice of what to order. P5 UP5 B1 __ CS5 Enter the number of copies ordered in the box next to the order number P6 UP6 B1 2:5 Subtotal and put the price on the line next to P7 CUP7 Postcards: Subtotal _____ it (Don’t forget 25¢ per Xerox title). P8 Books: PC1 Subtotal Total the price in each column and enter the totals on the subtotal P9 B1 BPC1 Subtotal lines in the last column. Add $1 for P10 B2 PC2 Postage, postage and handling (entered) for P11 B3 BPC2 Handling $1.00 the total order, and total. P12 B4 Posters: Please put your name and address on the L-5 Society P13 B5 PO1 TOTAL: Membership form (reverse) and fill P14 PO2 in total amount of order. Thank you. P15 CP16 PO3 -24- Corresponding with Professor O’Neill personal values (e.g., self-preservation, stay where we are or move to a more before the 1975 Princeton Conference, I personal freedom, financial well-being attractive city, state or country (world?). raised some of the same questions as does and self-esteem) are more likely to lead Denial of this argument but acceptance John Holt in Skeptic about the possible to action than are appeals to non-personal of the overindustrialization argument military risks of space research, values such as “brotherhood“ or would create a public policy which might industrialization, and habitation. The best “exploration and expansion.” Among the incorporate ecological considerations but source of information that I have found personal values, the value which is would not provide for space colonies as on the subject since then was a book, affected most directly and most an “escape valve” in case policy did not War and Space (Prentice Hall), by Robert immediately will dominate. If all are work as planned-not an uncommon Salkeld who also participated in the equally threatened, self-preservation is observation. conference. Unfortunately, the book is far more powerful as a determinate of Accomplishment of these two now out of print, but it may still be action than is financial well-being or persuasive tasks would likely result in found in some libraries. self-esteem. rapid implementation of space While warfare is not a pleasant topic, When the Soviets took the lead in the colonization. A slower implementation the book was surprisingly reassuring in at fictional “space race,” many Americans could result from acceptance of the least one sense: Mr. Salkeld points out perceived a direct threat to a plethora of energy crisis as a serious personal that all fixed or low-orbiting weapons values including self-preservation and dilemma and of solar satellite power (such as Mr. Holt’s speculative “death- self-esteem. Financial considerations stations as a practical alternative. ray” satellites) are vulnerable to became subordinate until we felt the Hopefully these power stations would be counterattack. The only area of real threat had dissipated. Countries run modern day “goldmines” or “crossroads” invulnerability is deep space. (Just try to deficit budgets and create inflationary from which communities would spawn. locate and intercept a cruise-missile-sized conditions in order to appease threats to The grimmest scenario is one where weapon somewhere out there among the personal values posed by their neighbor’s nature does the convincing. When our asteroids.) If man’s propensity for war ICBMs, MiGs, and Phantoms. planet pathologically convulses with cannot be contained, I’d just as soon it be How is it that an appeal or persuasive overpopulation and overdevelopment it satiated as far from Earth as possible. And condition comes to affect a value becomes problematic whether or not we from L-5. hierarchy? It generally seems that if the could launch a space colonization project. So, yes, of course there are risks in facts supporting an appeal are believed, Dr. O’Neill and the L-5 Society are space development. It would be foolish to values will be affected. Thus appeals for pursuing a rapid implementation path in deny it. But I’m now convinced that the birth control will not tinge self- demonstrating the economic viability and potential benefits far outweigh any such preservation values and hence will go attractiveness of space colonization. risks. (Indeed, warfare on Earth will be unheeded among those who don’t believe Pursuing this path alone may eventually just that much more likely to occur if we the world is overpopulated or who don’t get us space colonies-though it may do not make use of the resources believe overpopulation is the cause of come after an immense amount of available in space.) resource scarcity. scarcity-induced human suffering. Philip M. Blackmarr Thus an ideally persuasive campaign Patience may be a virtue, but in this Los Angeles, California must be backed by facts which are context procrastination is a far more credible and verifiable. The speed with serious vice. The book War and Space is available in which the desired action will be It is equally necessary for us to xerographic form from the L-5 Society implemented will largely be a function persuade people of the immediate nature for $7. How about a new edition, Bob? of how directly the audience perceives of the survival crisis. Since any major the appeal to affect salient personal project requires years of lead time, we Aristotle was not aware of the asteroid values less how directly the appeal is must drive home the point that dangerous belt though he wrote quite a lot about perceived to affect contradictory values. trends (e.g., scarcity and pollution) must persuasion. We are more than merely “Your money or your life?” If we be reacted to as if they were full-blown aware of the existence of the asteroids. think (s)he’ll shoot, we’ll usually pay. crisis situations. Despite the necessity of We know that the asteroids and the Moon Our biggest and broadest problem with this line of argument for rapid are reservoirs of mineral wealth-the stuff space colonization is to make credible implementation of space colonization, it of which space colonies are built. Yet we the claim that the presence of a is a path full of dangerous traps. Space must concern ourselves with the same burgeoning population and industrial colonization proponents hardly need to elementary question that occupied establishment is a direct threat to the be further hampered by being dubbed Aristotle: What is the process by which life and freedom of every citizen of the “doomsday prophets.” Such a persuasive one is moved to action? How is it that world. Unless people believe that an campaign must be forceful yet subtle-a people are persuaded? advanced industrial system operating on difficult condition to maintain. The To realize the goal of the L-5 Society, the skin of a planet immediately structure of such a forceful/subtle that of disbanding in a mass meeting at endangers their personal value hierarchy, campaign will need the input of many L-5, a great many people will have to be few people will be convinced of the need people and blossom after countless hours moved to perform some very significant to transplant people and industry to of thought. For our goal to be realized, actions. space. At the expense of sounding cynical such a campaign will have to be pursued Unfortunately, the mere fact that it is about a man I very much regard, I doubt on some sort of a significant level. technologically feasible to construct if Kennedy wanted Americans to go to History from Aristotle’s time to the space colonies is not an argument that space merely “because it’s there.” More present is replete with inane things that will sway the masses, and their leaders in likely is the explanation that we went humans have been persuaded to do. I’m government and business, to initiate a because the Soviets were there. We certain we all agree it is time we were space colony construction project. For believe something; that something affects persuaded to do something intelligent. example, controlled fusion reactions are salient personal values directly and L-5 is empty, the Moon is drowning in not presently technologically possible but immediately, and we act-quickly. locked-in oxygen, and the asteroids are are hotly pursued. Another problem we have is that of just waiting for a pick and shovel. Something else controls the spigot; generating widespread belief in space Martin Rothblatt what is it? Modern persuasion theory colonies as an attractive, practical and Los Angeles, California generally holds that if an appeal does not economical alternative habitat. touch a person’s values it will be Acceptance of this argument will affect ineffective. Furthermore, appeals to all the values which motivate us to either . ~ · • • • . . °"• • f e •. . • ... ~ - • • . .. .r. • •• . ,. •·· • . . ..•. . • . • .... :• • •. " • . • • • • •· • • • • ' • •. •• ·• ••. .. • • • • • • • • • • • . . • • .. .,.._ • • •• .• .• • • • • -I ~ • •i · • •• • • ~ t; .