Space policy of the United States
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The space policy of the United States includes both the making of space policy through the legislative process, and the implementation of that policy in the United States' civilian and military space programs through regulatory agencies. The early history of United States space policy is linked to the US–Soviet Space Race of the 1960s, which gave way to the Space Shuttle program. At the moment, the US space policy is aimed at the exploration of the Moon and the subsequent colonization of Mars.
Space policy process
United States space policy is drafted by the Executive branch at the direction of the President of the United States, and submitted for approval and establishment of funding to the legislative process of the United States Congress.
Drafting
In drafting space policy, the President consults with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), responsible for civilian and scientific space programs, and with the Department of Defense, responsible for military space activities, which include communications, reconnaissance, intelligence, mapping, and missile defense.[1] The President is legally responsible for deciding which space activities fall under the civilian and military areas.[2] The President also consults with the National Security Council, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Office of Management and Budget.[3]
The 1958
International aspects of US space policy may involve diplomatic negotiation with other countries, such as the 1967
Legislation
Once a request is submitted, the Congress exercises due diligence to approve the policy and authorize a budgetary expenditure for its implementation. In support of this, civilian policies are reviewed by the
Military policies are reviewed and overseen by the House Subcommittee on Strategic Forces and the Senate Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, as well as the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee conducts hearings on proposed space treaties, and the various appropriations committees have power over the budgets for space-related agencies. Space policy efforts are supported by Congressional agencies such as the Congressional Research Service and, until it was disbanded in 1995, the Office of Technology Assessment, as well as the Congressional Budget Office and Government Accountability Office.[6]
Congress' final space policy product is, in the case of domestic policy a bill explicitly stating the policy objectives and the budget appropriation for their implementation to be submitted to the President for signature into law, or else a ratified treaty with other nations.
Implementation
Civilian space activities have traditionally been implemented exclusively by NASA, but the nation is transitioning into a model where more activities are implemented by private companies under NASA's advisement and launch site support. In addition, the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration operates various services with space components, such as the Landsat program.[1]
Military space activities are implemented by the United States Space Force and United States Space Command.
Licensing
"Any citizen of or entity organized under the laws of the United States, as well as other entities, as defined by space-related regulations, which are intended to conduct in the United States a launch of a launch vehicle, operation of a launch or re-entry site, or re-entry of a re-entry vehicle, should obtain a license from the
Space programs in the budget
Funding for space programs is set through the federal budget process, where it is mainly considered to be part of the nation's science policy. Other space activities are funded out of the research and development budget of the Department of Defense, and from the budgets of the other regulatory agencies involved with space issues. In 2020, NASA received $22.6 billion, approximately 0.5% of the total budget of the federal government.[9] NASA funding has hovered around 0.5% since 2011, after steadily decreasing from 1% of the annual federal budget around 1993, a percentage it had hovered around since 1975. Previously, the threat posed by the Soviet Union had increased NASA's budget to around 4% of the total federal budget, peaking at 4.4% in 1966, but the apparent U.S. victory in the Space Race rendered NASA unable to sustain political support for its visions. NASA funding has been criticized over its entire lifetime on the grounds that more pressing concerns exist, such as social welfare programs,[10] as well as for various other reasons.
International law
The United States is a party to four of the five space law treaties ratified by the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. The United States has ratified the Outer Space Treaty, Rescue Agreement, Space Liability Convention, and the Registration Convention, but not the Moon Treaty.[11]
The five treaties and agreements of international space law cover "non-appropriation of outer space by any one country, arms control, the freedom of exploration, liability for damage caused by space objects, the safety and rescue of spacecraft and astronauts, the prevention of harmful interference with space activities and the environment, the notification and registration of space activities, scientific investigation and the exploitation of natural resources in outer space and the settlement of disputes."
The United Nations General Assembly adopted five declarations and legal principles which encourage exercising the international laws, as well as unified communication between countries. The five declarations and principles are:
- The Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Uses of Outer Space (1963)
- All space exploration will be done with good intentions and is equally open to all States that comply with international law. No one nation may claim ownership of outer space or any celestial body. Activities carried out in space must abide by the international law and the nations undergoing these said activities must accept responsibility for the governmental or non-governmental agency involved. Objects launched into space are subject to their nation of belonging, including people. Objects, parts, and components discovered outside the jurisdiction of a nation will be returned upon identification. If a nation launches an object into space, they are responsible for any damages that occur internationally.
- The Principles Governing the Use by States of Artificial Earth Satellites for International Direct Television Broadcasting (1982)
- The Principles Relating to Remote Sensing of the Earth from Outer Space (1986)
- The Principles Relevant to the Use of Nuclear Power Sources in Outer Space (1992)
- The Declaration on International Cooperation in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space for the Benefit and in the Interest of All States, Taking into Particular Account the Needs of Developing Countries (1996)
History
Truman administration
In the aftermath of World War II, President Harry S.Truman approved Operation Paperclip between 1945 and 1959, a secret US intelligence program in which more than 1600 German scientists, engineers, and technicians, including Wernher von Braun and his V-2 rocket team, were brought to the United States from Germany for US government employment to gain a US military advantage in the Soviet–American Cold War. The Space Race was spawned when the Soviet Union comparably relocated more than 2200 German specialists in Operation Osoaviakhim one night in 1946.[15]
Von Braun was a strong proponent of spaceflight. It is believed that he and his team were technically capable of launching a satellite several years earlier than the Soviet launch of
Truman established the Joint Long Range Proving Ground at Cape Canaveral, which would later on become the
Eisenhower administration
In December 1953, the US Air Force had pulled together all its various satellite efforts into a single program known as Weapon Systems-117L (WS-117L). In October 1956, the Lockheed Aircraft Corp. got the first WS-117L production contract, but a diplomatic problem associated with aerial surveillance worried President Eisenhower and held back the spy satellite program.[17]
Space programs such as the
Later in 1958, Eisenhower asked Congress to create an agency for civilian control of non-military space activities. At the suggestion of Eisenhower's science advisor
Kennedy administration
Early in
In response to the flight of Yuri Gagarin as the first man in space, Kennedy in 1961 committed the United States to landing a man on the Moon by the end of the decade. At the time, the administration believed that the Soviet Union would be able to land a man on the Moon by 1967, and Kennedy saw an American Moon landing as critical to the nation's global prestige and status. His pick for NASA Administrator, James E. Webb, however pursued a broader program incorporating space applications such as weather and communications satellites. During this time the Department of Defense pursued military space applications such as the Dyna-Soar spaceplane program and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory. Kennedy also had elevated the status of the National Advisory Space Council by assigning the Vice President as its chair.[24]
Johnson administration
However, his ambitions would be restricted by the prohibitive costs of the Vietnam War and programs of the Great Society, which forced cuts to NASA's budget as early as 1965. As a result, Johnson's administration proposed the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which barred nuclear weapons from space and prohibited countries from claiming celestial objects as their own as a way to help slow down the Space Race.[29] The actual flights of the space program were similarly tumultuous under the Johnson administration, as Johnson's term saw both the tragedy of Apollo 1, where 3 astronauts died in a training fire, and the Apollo 8 mission, which carried the first men into lunar orbit, the latter of which occurring just before the end of his term in 1968.[24]
Nixon administration
On January 5, 1972, Nixon approved the development of
Ford administration
Space policy had little momentum during the
Carter administration
Although coinciding with much of the development of the Shuttle program as begun during Nixon, the
Carter provided the first supplemental budget to NASA in 1979, allowing the Shuttle to continue its development. In an interview in 2016, Carter stated, "I was not enthusiastic about sending humans on missions to Mars or outer space... But I thought the shuttle was a good way to continue the good work of NASA. I didn't want to waste the money already invested."[37]
Reagan administration
The first flight of the Space Shuttle occurred in April 1981, early in
The January 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster led to the Rogers Commission Report on the causes of the disaster, and the National Commission on Space report and Ride Report on the future of the national space program.
In commercial space travel, Ronald Reagan backed a plan which allowed American satellites to be exported and launched on China's Long March rockets.[39][40] This was criticized by Bill Nelson, then a Florida representative, as delaying the U.S.'s own commercial space development, while industry leaders also opposed the idea of a nation-state competing with private entities in the rocketry market.[41] The China satellite export deal continued through Bush and Clinton administrations.[40]
George H. W. Bush administration
Clinton administration
During the
The Clinton administration's National Space Policy (Presidential Decision Directive/NSC-49/NSTC-8) was released on September 14, 1996.[44] Clinton's top goals were to "enhance knowledge of the Earth, the solar system and the universe through human and robotic exploration" and to "strengthen and maintain the national security of the United States."[45] The Clinton space policy, like the space policies of Carter and Reagan, also stated that "The United States will conduct those space activities necessary for national security." These activities included "providing support for the United States' inherent right of self-defense and our defense commitments to allies and friends; deterring, warning, and if necessary, defending against enemy attack; assuring that hostile forces cannot prevent our own use of space; and countering, if necessary, space systems and services used for hostile purposes."[46] The Clinton policy also said the United States would develop and operate "space control capabilities to ensure freedom of action in space" only when such steps would be "consistent with treaty obligations."[45]
George W. Bush administration
The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred early in George W. Bush's term, leading to the report of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board being released in August 2003. The Vision for Space Exploration, announced on January 14, 2004, by President George W. Bush, was seen as a response to the Columbia disaster and the general state of human spaceflight at NASA, as well as a way to regain public enthusiasm for space exploration. The Vision for Space Exploration sought to implement a sustained and affordable human and robotic program to explore the Solar System and beyond; extend human presence across the Solar System, starting with a human return to the Moon by the year 2020, in preparation for human exploration of Mars and other destinations; develop the innovative technologies, knowledge, and infrastructures both to explore and to support decisions about the destinations for human exploration; and to promote international and commercial participation in exploration to further U.S. scientific, security, and economic interests[47]
To this end, the
mission, a test launch of a prototype Ares I rocket, was successfully completed in October 2009.A new National Space Policy was released on August 31, 2006, that established overarching national policy that governs the conduct of U.S. space activities. The document, the first full revision of overall space policy in 10 years, emphasized security issues, encouraged private enterprise in space, and characterized the role of U.S. space diplomacy largely in terms of persuading other nations to support U.S. policy. The United States National Security Council said in written comments that an update was needed to "reflect the fact that space has become an even more important component of U.S. Economic security, National security, and homeland security." The Bush policy accepted current international agreements, but stated that it "rejects any limitations on the fundamental right of the United States to operate in and acquire data from space,"[51] and that "The United States will oppose the development of new legal regimes or other restrictions that seek to prohibit or limit U.S. access to or use of space."[45]
Obama administration
The
On April 15, 2010,
The NASA Authorization Act of 2010, passed on October 11, 2010, enacted many of these space policy goals.
Trump administration
On June 30, 2017, President
On December 11, 2017, President Trump signed Space Policy Directive 1, a change in national space policy that provides for a U.S.-led, integrated program with private sector partners for a human return to the Moon, followed by missions to Mars and beyond. The policy calls for the NASA administrator to "lead an innovative and sustainable program of exploration with commercial and international partners to enable human expansion across the solar system and to bring back to Earth new knowledge and opportunities." The effort will more effectively organize government, private industry, and international efforts toward returning humans on the Moon, and will lay the foundation that will eventually enable human exploration of Mars.
The President stated "The directive I am signing today will refocus America's space program on human exploration and discovery." "It marks a first step in returning American astronauts to the Moon for the first time since 1972, for long-term exploration and use. This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprints – we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars, and perhaps someday, to many worlds beyond."
"Under President Trump's leadership, America will lead in space once again on all fronts," said Vice President Pence. "As the President has said, space is the 'next great American frontier' – and it is our duty – and our destiny – to settle that frontier with American leadership, courage, and values. The signing of this new directive is yet another promise kept by President Trump."
Among other dignitaries on hand for the signing, were NASA astronauts Sen.
On December 20, 2019, the United States Space Force was established with the passing of NDAA FY2020.[57]
On December 9, 2020, the White House issued a National Space Policy, which advocated expanding U.S. leadership in space, allowing unfettered access to space, encouraging private sector growth, expanding international cooperation, and establishing a human presence on the Moon with an eventual human mission to Mars.[58]
Biden administration
President Joe Biden's press secretary has expressed his support of the Artemis Program which seeks to land a man and the first woman on the surface of the Moon. It is uncertain whether the Biden Administration will retain the 2024 target date for the first crewed landing as the Trump Administration did.[59] President Biden also has expressed his approval of the United States Space Force.[60] On Dec 1, 2021, the Biden Administration issued a new framework for space policy, called the United States Space Priorities Framework, where the administration pledges to invest in satellites that can observe Earth from space in an effort to better understand climate change. The framework also looks to invest in various STEM initiatives.[61]
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