Space Sustainability and the Freedom of Outer Space

The concept of sustainable development states that every nation is free to determine how to meet its own needs and accrue its own benefits as long as it does not prejudice the ability of future generations to do the same. This end is challenging in the space domain as the existing emphasis on national concerns obscures the larger issues of international structural inequalities—lack of access, barriers to capacity building and technology absorption—while simultaneously magnifying issues related to market protectionism, which are then disguised as security issues. This article makes the claim that it is possible to correct this distortion while safeguarding the focus on global issues, such as space sustainability. While the concept of space sustainability is understood differently depending on the forum for discussion, it is clear that the dominant understanding coincides with the logic for space cooperation as “Governance for Global Security,” and this focuses more on the needs of the present space actors. Analytical tools designed with the “Cosmopolitan Approaches to International Law” express forms of cooperation that produce reciprocal obligations to enable all participants, both present and aspirant, in space exploration and use.     

Challenges to the Sustainability of Space Exploration

NASA has an elaborate process for identifying and mitigating technical risks in its human space exploration program. However, non-technical risks—political, economic, and societal—are not captured in this process. Such risks are large in number, diverse in character, often unpredictable, and can be impossible to prevent because they are beyond the space agency's control. NASA's mission directorates are responsible for long-term strategic planning, so despite the difficulties, the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) must direct its attention to long-term sustainability risks and the development of mitigation plans. This article surveys long-term risk factors and, where possible, makes suggestions on mitigation approaches for consideration by ESMD and NASA's top management.     

American National Security and the Death of Space Sanctuary

At the beginning of the space age, the United States relied upon the general acceptance of a sanctuary narrative of outer space in order to help support its reconnaissance activities over the Soviet Union. The notion that space could be a sanctuary thus served as a diplomatic tactic, one designed to thwart Soviet opposition to American overflight. While the Soviets eventually achieved parity—having later acquired the ability to surveil the United States—the notion of sanctuary became untenable once the Soviet Union began to further leverage space power for the aim of attacking American satellites and naval assets. The crucial moment, as revealed in recently declassified documents, occurred in 1976 when the Ford Administration recognized the need for an American anti-satellite capability. Subsequently, while the Carter Administration appeared to pursue comprehensive space arms control, what was really in play was a gambit, one designed to eliminate the Soviet’s co-orbital anti-satellite capability and maintain strategic parity in space.     

Viewpoint: The Next Great White Fleet: Extending the Benefits of the International System into Space

This article argues that what naval power was to the 17th century—knitting together separate trading systems and bridging new resources, wealth, mobility, and establishing an international system of trade that pulled various powers into the dominant power's orbit—space power can be for the 21st century. To this end, airmen must take a wider view of what strategic value the United States Air Force (USAF) can provide for the United States (U.S.) beyond support for warfighting.     

Reflections on Space as a Vital National Interest

The article deals with the reasons why European countries should care about lunar settlement. First, the article focuses on the issue of geopolitics of the Moon and the importance of its natural resources—both energy and non-energy—and the relevance of lunar poles. The article then discusses European Union (EU) and European Space Agency (ESA) space activities. Next, there are basic strategic considerations EU/ESA countries should follow in utilizing outer space. From a terrestrial point of view, it is mainly the issue of energy independence and, from outer space, it is the possibility of denial of access to outer space. The article concludes with the acknowledgment of a growing interest in lunar colonization around the world and that Europeans should become more assertive in their lunar ambitions, including lunar development projects, for economic and strategic reasons.     

Enhancing Space Security by Improving Stakeholder Cooperation

Improving security in space requires the establishment of a consensus among actors on what it means to be safe in space, what kinds of activities should be allowed, and what activities should be prohibited. However, a necessary precursor to the emergence of such consensus is enhanced cooperation among space stakeholders. As of today, leading space actors are moving in often contradictory directions. In addition, the various sectors of the space community—industry, defense, science and manned space—tend to operate in isolation from each other. While there is a recognition of the need for improved cooperation in space, this can be achieved only if actors are made more aware of activities in other sectors that affect (or might affect) them and can craft mutually acceptable solutions with other actors. More efforts are needed to educate space stakeholders across sectors in this regard. By better understanding how the activities of all space actors are inter–related, the international community should be in a position to develop a more integrated concept of space security.     

U.S.-India Space Partnership: The Jewel in the Crown

The new strategic partnership between the United States and India is creating opportunities for security cooperation. A key element in this partnership—U.S.-India space cooperation—will most likely become the defining relationship for international space cooperation around which other space-faring nations will posture. The Indian space program is rapidly developing world-class capabilities and presents itself as a worthy partner. The U.S. space program should be able to provide innovative ideas for fruitful collaboration. Despite these propitious circumstances, there are potential obstacles of cost, security, and risk. The biggest obstacle, however, might simply be bureaucratic intransigence and inertia. The opportunity is here, now, for the United States and India each to add an important new jewel to their crown of international space cooperation activities. Most importantly, this new space partnership should enhance the security and prosperity of the United States, India, and the world.     

Space Engagement with Russia and Ukraine: Preventing Conflicts and Proliferation

The collapse of the Soviet Union brought about a number of serious concerns that space and missile technologies—including weapons-related technologies—might be exported by Russia and Ukraine to states that might use them for hostile purposes. In fact, inadvertent contribution to ballistic missile programs through space collaboration and technology sharing is considered one of the major “routes” of missile technology proliferation. Incidentally, in the case of Russia and Ukraine, out of all the potential risks associated with technology transfers, proliferation of ballistic missile technologies has been the major concern for the Western nations, and engaging these two countries in joint space projects has been viewed as a powerful incentive to comply with missile nonproliferation norms and ideals.     

A Really Hard Case: Iranian Space Ambitions and the Prospects for U.S. Engagement

On 27 October 2005, the first Iranian satellite—Sinah-1—was launched. The satellite failed soon after launch, but it represented a significant technological step by the Islamic Republic, and was also a statement of intent on behalf of Iranian space ambitions. Current and projected Iranian space capabilities are highly dependent upon foreign technologies and expertise, but the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile programmes offer a glimpse of how Iran's space programme may yet develop. This essay provides an overview of Iranian space capabilities, and places it within contemporary Iranian domestic and strategic contexts. It also offers an insight into how Iran's space programme is organized, and lastly, offers a view on how best the United States might influence Iran's space programme.     

Tele-Reality: How Space Technology Transforms Human Perceptions of Space,Time, and Self

With the introduction and development of space techniques, three types of remote reality, or tele-reality, have emerged: (1) the Earth, its environments, and its inhabitants have been brought closer to each of us; (2) the planets in the solar system are now “at hand's reach”—a robotic hand, that is; and (3) deep space is brought to our screens in three dimensions. But remote reality raises questions: What connection does it make between the perceptible and the intelligible; and what confusion does it maintain between what is real and what appears on the screen? New practices are challenging the way we handle the relationship between seeing, knowledge, and power, and questioning our ethical values. It is time and essential that we redefine the conditions and boundaries of our “tele-techniques.”     

Evaluating Decision-Making Modalities and Risk Acceptance Behavior after a Major Mishap: The Case of NASA and the Space Shuttle Columbia Accident

The February 2003 loss of the space shuttle Columbia on mission STS-107 was a mishap that stunned both NASA and the world. This research examines the pre-NASA and post-NASA decision-making modalities and risk acceptance behavior for the safe and reliable operation of the space shuttle through the lens of hazard analysis. Interviews with NASA administrators and senior Space Shuttle Program managers bring back to life their views from the 2003 through 2005 timeframe, during which NASA returned the space shuttle back to a flight status. Lessons from their effort have broad applicability to other organizations recovering from—and attempting to prevent—a major accident.     

Space Science as a Cradle for Philosophers

Not only astronauts, but also many space-related scientists have made remarkable contributions to the development of a more philosophical view of society. These contributions are illustrated by numerous works produced by famous space pioneers at the end of their careers. The link between science and philosophy is well acknowledged, but the two disciplines suffered a schism some 350 years ago. Now one could ask the question of whether the time has not come to merge both disciplines again. This precise theme can be found in many works and papers written by space scientists. In attempting to create a better understanding of the relation between space and philosophy, it is worthwhile to consider some characteristics of the space workforce. Comparisons have been made between this workforce and so-called “corporate Ronins”—independent and unconventional thinkers who are attracted by the challenging environment offered by space activities. These individuals' presence in the space workforce could therefore be a viable explanation for the philosophical dimension associated with space activities.     

The Advent of Space Weapons

Constellations of observation satellites resemble the “Panopticon” system imagined by British philosopher Jeremy Bentham in his 18th century project for an ideal jailhouse — a system that Michel Foucault analyzed in Discipline and Punish (1975). Just as the warden in the central tower watches the prisoners without their being able to see him, satellites watch the Earth while observed countries cannot escape or monitor the extent of the observation.

Will observed countries factor in the control exerted by observing countries, just as prisoners will eventually interiorize the warden's discipline? This may indeed have been the goal of the U.S. satellite observation policy during the Cold War (1950's–1980's). The U.S. at the time sought to exert a new form of power on the international scene, resorting to persuasion and deterrence rather than all-out aggression.

U.S. satellite surveillance was at work vis-a-vis the USSR through different policies linked to nuclear deterrence; and vis-a-vis U.S. Allies (NATO, Great-Britain, France and Israel), then subject to a U.S. information monopoly. The intended panoptical power was not totally efficient, however. Regarding the USSR, its exercise depended ultimately on the political climate between the two Superpowers. Allied countries succeeded repeatedly in warding off U.S. attempts at control through information.     

Reflections on Leadership: Jean‐Jacques Dordain of the European Space Agency

In 2015, Jean‐Jacques Dordain retired as director general of the European Space Agency (ESA). This is Europe's NASA and includes a host of sovereign nations that differ in language, culture, economics, and politics. As ESA’s director general, Dordain pulled together a disparate and often quarreling group of countries and got them moving in the same direction. Billions of dollars were involved in a sequence of large‐scale, complex spaceflights. Successes far surpassed failures. Dordain stated that if there is one area of administration about which ESA could teach the world, it is “that of international cooperation. Very simple—it's because ESA is an institutional cooperation venture.” In this Administrative Profile, Dordain comments on the issues he faced in guiding European cooperation as well as relations with the United States and other countries.     

Viewpoint: It is Time to Create a United States Air Force Space Corps

The United States (U.S.) has deepening dependence on space systems for economic prosperity, civil government administration, priority science and exploration programs, and national security while at the same time there is dramatic growth in competitive space capabilities and demonstrated threats to space systems globally. Despite this, the U.S. has not invested sufficient resources to meet National policy direction for capabilities to insure freedom of action in space, especially space situational awareness capabilities—the cornerstone of deterrence from space attacks. A principle reason for this shortfall is the historical absence of an organization accountable for securing the space domain like those of land, sea, and air. Using the analogy of the Army Air Corps, the author recommends creation of an autonomous Space Corps realized out of existing organizations within the USAF. The AF Space Corps would manage a separate space budget and all space professionals in organizing, training, and equipping national security space capabilities including those necessary to secure the space domain for peaceful use.     

Mind the (Mobilization) Gap: Comparing Climate Activism in the United States and European Union

The barriers to concerted political action on climate change mitigation are steep, especially in multilevel systems where power is diffused and authority contested. This article seeks to explain how mobilization—galvanizing resources and people to participate actively—occurs in complex multilevel systems. It compares two different polities—the United States and the European Union—to tease out the key features of multilevel systems and how they affect climate activism and mobilization. To capture this dynamic, it proposes a three‐staged model of mobilization: awareness building, alliance building, and network creation. The latter stage features “mobilization networks”—stakeholder networks able to transcend levels and institutional inertia and steer polities toward particular climate goals. The article demonstrates how each stage of mobilization is highly contingent on stakeholders' ability to exploit—or at least navigate—multilevel institutional barriers.     

In Pursuit of the Public Interest

What does the injunction “serve the public interest” really mean for public managers, and why is it important? By way of an answer, this analysis systematizes different perspectives on the public interest and offers a multifaceted formulation of the public manager’s duty. It is a process involving the exploration of two concerns—democracy and mutuality—in the current time frame and two others—sustainability and legacy—in the future time frame.     

Selecting the Condorcet Winner: single-stage versus multi-stage voting rules

In this paper, I study elections where voters are strategic. I find that the commonly used voting rules, such as Plurality Rule, Majority Rule, Approval Voting, and Single Transferable Vote, do not always select the Condorcet Winner and suffer from multiple equilibria. Multi-stage voting rules offer a way to get around this problem. I introduce two voting rules—Multi-Stage Runoff and the Nominate-Two Rule—that select the Condorcet Winner as the unique equilibrium outcome under mild conditions. I show that a third class of voting rules—Binary Voting Trees—also select the Condorcet Winner.     

Credibility Enacted: Understanding the Meaning of Credible Political Leadership in the Dutch Parliamentary Election Campaign of 2010

In times of perception politics, the credibility of electoral candidates is a crucial asset in political marketing. This raises the question to which political leaders citizens attribute credibility and how political credibility is gained and lost through media performance. We analyze and compare two contrasting cases during the Dutch parliamentary election campaign of 2010. Whereas in this campaign Mark Rutte—leader of the liberal party VVD—gained credibility, the credibility of Job Cohen—at the time, leader of the social-democratic PvdA—waned substantially. To understand this we extend the source credibility approach with a dramaturgical approach, and as such we shed light on what happens in the dynamic, interactive process between leaders and audiences in which credibility is constructed.