Space policy
Space policy is the political decision-making process for, and application of,
Space policy intersects with
Space policy also encompasses the creation and application of space law, and space advocacy organizations exist to support the cause of space exploration.
Space law
Space law is an area of the law that encompasses national and international law governing activities in outer space. There are currently six treaties that make up the body of international space law.
The inception of the field of space law began with the launch of the world's first artificial satellite by the Soviet Union in October 1957. Named Sputnik 1, the satellite was launched as part of the International Geophysical Year. Since that time, space law has evolved and assumed more importance as mankind has increasingly come to use and rely on space-based resources.
International space law consists of six international treaties,[2][3] five declarations and principles, and other United Nations (UN) General Assembly resolutions. The UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) is primarily responsible for the implementation of international space law, and helps advise governments and non-governmental organizations on space law.[4]
International treaties
All treaties below except the Partial Test Ban Treaty were adopted by the UN General Assembly.[2] The Partial Test Ban Treaty, being the first, was signed by the governments of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States in Moscow on August 5, 1963 before it was opened for signature by other countries.[3]
Partial Test Ban Treaty
The Partial Test Ban Treaty was entered into force on October 10, 1963.[3] The treaty prohibits nuclear weapons tests or nuclear explosions in the atmosphere, in outer space, and under water. It also prohibits nuclear explosions underground if they cause "radioactive debris to be present outside the territorial limits of the State under whose jurisdiction or control" the explosions were conducted.[5]
With increased knowledge of the effects of nuclear fallout, the issue of nuclear tests and the resultant radioactive debris drew intensified public attention. As the treaty does not outright ban nuclear tests underground, hundreds of such tests were conducted in the following decades.[6] The Partial Test Ban Treaty is seen[by whom?] as the first step towards global nuclear disarmament. Continued efforts in this direction include increasing public awareness through events such as the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
Outer Space Treaty
The Outer Space Treaty was ratified on October 10, 1967. Key provisions of the treaty include prohibiting nuclear weapons in space; limiting the use of the Moon and all other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes; establishing that space shall be freely explored and used by all nations; and precluding any country from claiming sovereignty over outer space or any celestial body.[7]
International challenges to the Outer Space Treaty have been attempted. Most prominently is the Bogota Declaration which asserts sovereignty over those portions of the geostationary orbit that continuously lie over the signatory nations' territory. The declaration has been signed by seven equatorial countries: Ecuador, Colombia, Congo, Zaire (in 1997 renamed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo), Uganda, Kenya, and Indonesia. These claims did not receive wider international support or recognition, and were subsequently largely abandoned.[8]
With the increase of private satellites and counter-space technologies since 2016, there have been calls for an update to the Outer Space Treaty. This topic, amongst others, was discussed in 2021 at the annual Outer Space Security Conference in Geneva, Switzerland.[9][10]
Rescue Agreement
The Rescue Agreement was ratified on December 3, 1968. The agreement's provisions elaborate on the rescue provisions set forth by the Outer Space Treaty. The agreement essentially requires that any state party to the agreement, upon becoming aware that the personnel of a spacecraft are in distress, must notify the launching authority and the Secretary General of the United Nations, and must provide all possible assistance to rescue the personnel of a spacecraft who have landed within that state's territory. Moreover, if the distress occurs in an area that is beyond the territory of any nation, then any state party that is in a position to do so shall, if necessary, extend assistance in the search and rescue operation.[11]
At the time the agreement was drafted, rescuing travelers in space was unlikely, due to the limited launch capabilities of even the most advanced space programs.[citation needed] More recently, it has become more plausible. The Rescue Agreement has been criticized for being vague, especially regarding the definition of who is entitled to be rescued and the definition of what constitutes a spacecraft and its component parts. With the recent increase of commercial spaceflight providers, this distinction has become more relevant, raising questions as to whether space tourists are covered by the term "personnel of a spacecraft" used in the agreement. There have been calls to revisit these issues in international space law.[12]
Liability Convention
The
Registration Convention
The
Moon Agreement
The
Policy by country
United States
United States space policy is drafted by the
Civilian and scientific space policy is carried out by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA, subsequent to 29 July 1958), and military space activities (communications, reconnaissance, intelligence, mapping, and missile defense) are carried out by various agencies of the Department of Defense. The President is legally responsible for deciding which space activities fall under the civilian and military areas.[21] In addition, the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration operates various services with space components, such as the Landsat program.[22]
The President consults with NASA and Department of Defense on their space activity plans, as potential input for the policy draft submitted to Congress. He or she also consults with the National Security Council, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Office of Management and Budget to take into account Congress's expected willingness to provide necessary funding levels for proposed programs.[23]
Once the President's policy draft or treaty is submitted to the
History
The early history of United States space policy is linked to the US–Soviet
The
The United States has participated in the
The Vision for Space Exploration established under the George W. Bush administration in 2004 was replaced with a new policy released by Barack Obama on 28 June 2010.[27]
In recent years, U.S. space operators and decisionmakers have become increasingly concerned about threats to U.S. space leadership. In the civil sector, this has been driven largely by U.S. dependence on Russia for crew access to the International Space Station (ISS) since the termination of the Space Shuttle program in 2011. In national security, foreign development of counterspace systems has become a regular feature of public statements by U.S. defense and intelligence officials.[28] This is reminiscent of similar concerns about the Soviet Union’s space program between the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957 and the success of the Apollo lunar missions. The threat of Soviet dominance in space turned out to be less formidable than expected, but it continued to drive policy and programmatic decisions for decades, until the Soviet Union ceased to exist.[29]
Europe
The
The ESA was founded to serve as a counterweight to the dominant United States and Soviet space programs, and further the economic and military independence of Europe. This has included the development of the Ariane rockets, which by 1985 had captured over 40 percent of commercial launch market in the free world. The ESA budget is split between mandatory and voluntary programs, the latter of which allow individual member nations to pursue their own national space goals within the organization.[31]
The ESA Director General's Proposal for the European Space Policy states, "Space systems are strategic assets demonstrating independence and the readiness to assume global responsibilities. Initially developed as defence or scientific projects, they now also provide commercial infrastructures on which important sectors of the economy depend and which are relevant in the daily life of citizens.... Europe needs an effective space policy to enable it to exert global leadership in selected policy areas in accordance with European interests and values."[32]
In the final part of 2010s the ESA has made strong efforts in order to make Europe stronger in the competition for the development of new strategies regarding space policy. Those included a huge increase in ESA's budget promoted by countries such as Italy, France and Germany.[33]
China
Although Chairman Mao Zedong planned after Russia's Sputnik 1 launch to place a Chinese satellite in orbit by 1959 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC),[34] China did not successfully launch its first satellite until 24 April 1970. Mao and Zhou Enlai decided on 14 July 1967 that the PRC should not be left behind, and started China's own human spaceflight program.[35] The first success came on 15 October 2003 when China sent its first astronaut into space for 21 hours aboard Shenzhou 5.
The Ministry of Aerospace Industry was responsible for the Chinese space program prior to July 1999, when it was split into the China National Space Administration responsible for setting policy, and the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, responsible for implementation.
The China National Space Administration states its aims as maintaining the country's overall development strategy, making innovations in an independent and self-reliant manner, promoting the country's science and technology sector and encouraging economic and social development, and actively engaging in international cooperation.[36]
Russia and Ukraine
The Soviet Union became the world's first spacefaring state by launching its first satellite, Sputnik 1, on 4 October 1957. The Soviet space program was active from 1955 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
In the 1980s the Soviet Union was considered to be technologically behind the United States, but it outspent the United States in its space budget, and its cosmonauts had spent three times as many days in space as American astronauts. The Soviet Union had also been more willing than the United States to embark on long-term programs, such as the
After the
The
India
The purpose of India's space program was outlined[when?] by Vikram Sarabhai (regarded as the father of the Indian space program):[39]
There are some who question the relevance of space activities in a developing nation. To us, there is no ambiguity of purpose....we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second to none in the application of advanced technologies to the real problems of man and society.
The Department of Space (DoS) is the Indian government department responsible for administration of the Indian space program. It manages several agencies and institutes related to space exploration and space technologies. The Indian space program under the DoS aims to promote the development and application of space science and technology for the socio-economic benefit of the country. It includes two major satellite systems, INSAT for communication, television broadcasting and meteorological services, and Indian Remote Sensing Satellites (IRS) system for resources monitoring and management. It has also developed two satellite launch vehicles, Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), to place IRS and INSAT class satellites in orbit.
See also
- Chinese exclusion policy of NASA
- Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy
- Politics of outer space
- Space advocacy
- Space Generation Advisory Council
- Space law
- Space Race
References
- ISBN 0-8138-1024-8.
- ^ a b "Space Law Treaties and Principles". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
- ^ a b c "UNODA Treaty Database: Partial Test Ban Treaty". United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
- ^ "Space Treaty Implementation". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
- ^ "Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT)". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
- ^ "The Partial Test Ban Treaty: 50 Years Later". All Things Nuclear. 10 October 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "The Outer Space Treaty". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Who Owns the Geostationary Orbit?". 27 September 2011. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
- ^ "Space policy is finally moving into the 21st century". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ Ayala, Christine (8 October 2021). "Is conflict in space inevitable?". TheHill. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Rescue Agreement". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ David, Leonard (15 September 2021). "Humanity needs a space-rescue capability, report stresses". Space.com. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Liability Convention". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ Tan, Huileng. "SpaceX satellites nearly collided with China's space station twice this year, sparking online criticism of Elon Musk's 'space junk'". Business Insider. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
- ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Registration Convention". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Moon Agreement". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "The Space Review: Beyond UNISPACE: It's time for the Moon Treaty (page 1)". www.thespacereview.com. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
- ^ Goldman, pp.79–83.
- ^ National Aeronautics and Space Act (1958), Sec. 102(b).
- ^ Goldman, pp. 91–97.
- ISBN 0-8138-1024-8.
- ^ Goldman, pp. 107–112.
- ^ a b Goldman, pp. 84–90.
- ^ Connolly, John F. (October 2006). "Constellation Program Overview" (PDF). Constellation Program Office. Retrieved 6 July 2009.
- National Archives.
- ^ Cecil D. Haney, “Statement before the Senate Committee on Armed Services,” February 27, 2014
- ^ Vedda, James. Space Leadership in Transition, November 2019
- ^ "European Space Policy". European Space Agency. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
- ^ Goldman, pp. 34–36.
- ^ "Resolution on the European Space Policy: ESA Director General's Proposal for the European Space Policy" (PDF). European Space Agency. p. 21. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
- ^ Andrea Muratore, Icaro nel XXI secolo, Osservatorio Globalizzazione, 29 February 2020
- 中国科学院. 16 October 2007. Archived from the originalon 14 March 2008. Retrieved 3 July 2008.
- ^ "首批航天员19人胜出 为后来积累了宝贵的经验". 雷霆万钧. 16 September 2005. Archived from the original on 22 December 2005. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
- ^ "China's Space Activities in 2006". Information Office of China's State Council. Archived from the original on 2 April 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
- ^ Goldman, pp. 38–42.
- ISBN 978-0-387-71354-0.
- ^ "Dr. Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai (1963–1971) – ISRO". www.isro.gov.in. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
External links
- European Space Policy Institute
- Space Policy – Academic Journal
- Space Policy Resource Websites
- Center for Space Policy and Strategy at The Aerospace Corporation
- US Space Policy Archive – collected by the Center for Space Policy and Strategy
- Space Security Portal at the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
- Space Policy - Outer Space Policy, Politics and Law – Blog by Dr Jill Stuart