Chapter 9 SPACE SCIENCE Contents Page Introduction. ....................371 Cooperative Ventures in Space Science: The Opportunity and the Challenge . ..................372 Competition in Space Science: The Shifting Balance.. ..................373 Prevailing Issues in Space Science . ........4 .$.375 International Cooperation in Space Science. .. .. 0 <.......................377 Historical Overview . ..........377 Current or Planned Programs . ...382 Outlook for Future International Cooperation . .........................384 The Role of Competition in Space Science . .............................386 Prospects for a “SpaceScience Race” . ..,......386 Current Ranking of Participants . .......387 Tradeoffs Between Competition and Cooperation . ......................388 Markets for Hardware and Services: Space Science as Growth industry .. ...389 International Trade Factors . ....389 Space Science in Developing Countries . ...390 The Allure of Space Science . ..390 Difficulty of Joining the Space Club. .,....391 Space Science in the 1980s and 1990s: A Vital Concern . ..................391 Policy Options. 4 . .................4....392 Cooperation With the Soviet Union . ....392 Project Continuity . .. ....393 Choosing Specialization . .....+... .............393 Technology Transfer . ................393 Table Table No. Page 9-1. International Cooperative Ventures in Space Sciences . ................379 Chapter 9 SPACE SCIENCE INTRODUCTION A substantial part of the research activity car- ried out in space is directed, not at the achieve- ment of economic benefits and commercial ap- plications, but at the purely scientific study of phenomena in and from space. This broad field of endeavor, known as space science, began to develop many years before the advent of orbiting satellites; from the 1940s on, scientists used sou riding rockets and balloons to loft instruments and animals above most of the insulating and pro- tective blanket of atmosphere to acquire data about the space environment. These studies con- tributed to an ever-increasing body of knowledge about outer space. By contrast, over the past quarter-century, Earth-orbiting and interplanetary spacecraft have been the catalyst for an explosive growth of knowledge in this field. Photo credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration The rapid expansion of space science has pro- X-ray image from NASA’s High Energy Astronomy duced a number of component disciplines and Observatory (H EAO-2) of remnant of exploding subdiscipline. For organizational purposes, the supernova in the constellation Cassiopeia. Scientists estimate that the star from which this cloud National Aeronautics and Space Administration of expanding hot gas derives originally (NASA), which funds most space science re- exploded in A.D. 1657. search, divides space science into three areas: 1 ) physics and astronomy, 2) planetary exploration, large- and small-scale cosmic processes than and 3) life sciences. can be taken from the ground, where only op- tical and radio wavelengths are received. Ac- ● Physics and astronomy encompasses the study cess to all regions of the spectrum as well as of the structure and dynamics of the Sun, solar- the removal of atmospheric distortion has pro- generated phenomena such as the solar wind, duced, in the span of a few years, a major rev- and other features of the near-Earth interplan- olution in our understanding of the nature, ori- etary environment such as the magnetosphere gin, and evolution of the universe and its and incident cosmic rays. Also included in this component matter. area are some of the most compelling and ex- citing investigations in any scientific field: the ● Planetary exploration is the study of the planets study of astronomical objects by means of tel- of our solar system and their satellites, the as- escopes and other space-borne instruments. teroids, and the comets. Activities in this area These objects include not only our own Sun include the dramatic unmanned exploratory and the multitude of stars and other condensed missions to the surface or environs of other objects of the Milky Way Galaxy, but also the planets, and the manned lunar landings. inves- gas and dust between these stars, and finally tigations of the surface features and (if possi- the vast swarm of galaxies extending out to the ble) composition are made along with studies edge of the visible universe. of the planetary atmosphere and magneto- Observations from space take advantage of sphere, if they are present. These observations the entire spectrum of electromagnetic radia- are combined with data regarding orbital me- tion to acquire much more extensive data on chanics and rotational characteristics to pro- 371 372 International Cooperation and Competition in Civilian Space Activities vide an understanding of the planet’s internal cation. Thus, programs in space science are a composition and dynamics, and thus its origin necessary basis for any nation’s activity in space. and evolution. Nations that wish to pursue practical or commer- cial activities in space on their own must first ei- ● Life sciences are generally subdivided into bio- ther pursue a program of space science them- medical research (the study of the effect of selves, or have access to the technology and basic space environmental factors on man) and data that emerge from the conduct of such a space biology (the effect of these factors on program. plants and animals). Separate but related areas are planetary biology, the study of the origin and distribution of life in the universe, and Cooperative Ventures in Space global biology, which examines the impact of Science: The Opportunity and life on our own planetary environment. impor- the Challenge tant areas of research are the effects of pro- longed exposure to microgravity and ionizing As was discussed in chapter 3, the United States radiation on humans and animals, and the has engaged in a vigorous program of interna- study of plant developmental processes in tional cooperative ventures in space. When all space under artificial lighting. One objective forms of joint activity are taken into account, NASA alone has concluded over 800 agreements of the latter research is the development of ad- 1 vanced life support systems. Because of the dif- with over 100 countries. ficulties associated with supporting life in From the standpoint of individual projects, the space, ground-based simulation studies are es- most notable single area of U.S. international pecially important in the space life sciences. space cooperation has been the space sciences.2 Although research in each of these areas pro- It was apparent from the beginning that cooper- duces results that have great intrinsic value in ation in this field offered many advantages, from adding to our understanding of the cosmos and the point of view of both the United States (the our place within it, this research is not pursued leader and principal in these ventures) and the solely for its own sake. Space science provides cooperating nations. On the technical and po- much of the research base that underlies the de- litical level, the appeal of multinational space velopment of applications-oriented programs dis- science stems from the global sphere of opera- cussed in earlier chapters. The subdiscipline of tions of satellites, and from the global and univer- solar-terrestrial physics, for example, forms a di- sal perspective necessitated by operations in rect bridge between solar research (physics and space. astronomy program) and Earth applications such More practically, the enormous cost of pursu- as communications, navigation, and meteorol- ing space science has been a strong argument for ogy. Studies of planetary magnetic fields, mag- sharing the economic burden among as many na- netospheres, and ionospheres have a direct rele- tions as efficiency permitted. In effect, if NASA vance to corresponding research in Earth’s does not have enough money to pursue a proj- plasma envelope and upper atmosphere. ect alone, by cooperating with other countries In the long term, planetary studies also offer it may actually create opportunities to undertake the possibility of habitation and minerals exploita- research it could not otherwise have done. The tion. Life sciences research offers a wealth of po- pooling of scientific and technical talent offered tential applications, from the prolongation of hu- another strong advantage, and was allied with the man stay-times in space, to the pursuit of space agriculture and partly closed life support, to the 125 Years of NASA /rrternationa/ Progr,~ms, NASA report, Janu- development of new medical treatments, diag- ary 1983. nostic techniques, and devices. Instruments and ZUNISpACE ‘8.2: A Context for International Cooperation and Competition–A Technical Memorandum (Washington, DC: U.S. sensors developed in every area of space science Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, OTA-TM-ISC-26, March eventually find their way into commercial appli- 1983), p. 68. Ch. 9—Space Science 373 value to the United States of building scientific/ (along with some technicians and engineers). The technical strength among its allies. These advan- influx of talent on the one hand and hardware tages were not restricted to the United States and on the other probably led to the development, its partners, but applied as well to the Soviet throughout the 1950s, of a broader based exper- Union–the other leading nation in the early dec- tise in the essential space technologies in the ades of space activity—in