Space policy
Encyclopedia
Space policy is the political decision-making process for, and the application of, public policy
regarding space exploration
. It includes policy regarding a country's civilian space program, as well as its policy on both military use
and commercial use
of outer space. Space policy intersects with science policy
, since national space programs often perform or fund research
in space science
, and also with defense policy, for applications such as spy satellite
s and anti-satellite weapon
s. It also encompasses government regulation
of third-party activities such as commercial communications satellite
s and private spaceflight
.
Space policy also encompasses the creation and application of space law
, and space advocacy
organizations exist to support the cause of space exploration.
that encompasses national and international law
governing activities in outer space
. There are currently five treaties that make up the body of interational 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.
consists of the China National Space Administration
and the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
, a state-owned company which is the main contractor for the Chinese space program.
The China National Space Administration states that it aims are 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.
(ESA) is the common space agency for many European nations. It is independent of the European Union
, though the 2007 European Space Policy
provides a framework for coordination between the two organizations and member states, including issues such as security and defence, access to space, space science, and space exploration.
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.
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."
was inherited from its predecessor state, the Soviet Union
. Russia's civilian space agency is the Russian Federal Space Agency
, and its military counterpart is the Russian Space Forces.
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 Salyut and Mir
space station programs, and increased their investment in space programs throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union
, the 1990s saw serious financial problems because of the decreased cash flow, which encouraged Roskosmos to improvise and seek other ways to keep space programs running. This resulted in Roskosmos' leading role in commercial satellite launches and space tourism
. While scientific missions, such as interplanetary probes or astronomy missions during these years played a very small role, Roskosmos managed to operate the space station Mir
well past its planned lifespan, contribute to the International Space Station
, and continue to fly additional Soyuz
and Progress
missions.
The Russian economy boomed throughout 2005 from high prices for exports, such as oil and gas, the outlook for subsequent funding became more favorable. The federal space budget for the year 2009 was left unchanged despite the global economic crisis, standing at about 82 billion rubles ($2.4 billion). Current priorities of the Russian space program include the new Angara rocket family and development of new communications, navigation and remote Earth sensing spacecraft. The GLONASS
global navigation satellite system has for many years been one of the top priorities and has been given its own budget line in the federal space budget.
was developed by the Barack Obama
administration and released on June 28, 2010. It replaced the earlier Vision for Space Exploration
, which was the space policy under the George W. Bush
administration.
In the United States, space policy is made by the President of the United States
and the United States Congress
through the legislative process. The space policy of the United States is carried out by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA), which is the civilian and scientific space program of the United States, and by various agencies of the Department of Defense
, which include efforts regarding communications, reconnaissance, intelligence, mapping, and missile defense. In addition, the Department of Commerce
's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
operates various services with space components, such as the Landsat program
.
The early history of United States space policy is linked to the US–Soviet Space Race
of the 1960s. The National Aeronautics and Space Act
creating the NASA was passed in 1958, after the launch of the Soviet Sputnik 1
sattellite, and 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. Although the costs of the Vietnam War
and the programs of the Great Society
forced cuts to NASA's budget as early as 1965, the first moon landing
occurred in 1969, early in Richard Nixon's presidency. Under the Nixon administration NASA's budget continued to decline and three of the planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled. The Nixon administration approved the beginning of the Space Shuttle program
in 1972, but did not support funding of other projects such as a Mars landing
, colonization of the Moon
, or a permanent space station
.
The Space Shuttle first launched in 1981, during Ronald Reagan's administration
. Reagan in 1982 announced a renewed active space effort, which included initiatives such the construction of Space Station Freedom
, and the military Strategic Defense Initiative
, and, later in his term, a 30 percent increase in NASA's budget. The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
in January 1986 led to a reevaluation of the future of the national space program in the National Commission on Space report and the Ride Report.
The United States has participated in the International Space Station
beginning in the 1990s, the Space Shuttle program has continued, although the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
has led to the planned retirement of the Space Shuttle
in mid-2011. There is a current debate on the post-Space Shuttle future of the civilian space program: the Constellation program of the George W. Bush administration
directed NASA to create a set of new spacecraft with the goal of sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars, but the Obama administration cancelled the Constellation program, opting instead to emphasize development of commercial rocket systems.
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
regarding space exploration
Space exploration
Space exploration is the use of space technology to explore outer space. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft....
. It includes policy regarding a country's civilian space program, as well as its policy on both military use
Militarisation of space
The militarisation of space is the placement and development of weaponry and military technology in outer space.-History:Acquisition of high grounds for military advantage has been a perennial feature of military campaigns. For thousands of years, military tacticians have exploited the concept of...
and commercial use
Commercialization of space
Commercialization of space is the use of equipment sent into or through outer space to provide goods or services of commercial value, either by a corporation or state. Examples of the commercial use of space include satellite navigation systems, satellite television and satellite radio...
of outer space. Space policy intersects with science policy
Science policy
Science policy is an area of public policy concerned with the policies that affect the conduct of the science and research enterprise, including the funding of science, often in pursuance of other national policy goals such as technological innovation to promote commercial product development,...
, since national space programs often perform or fund research
Funding of science
Through history, the systems of economic support for scientists and their work have been important determinants of the character and pace of scientific research. The ancient foundations of the sciences were driven by practical and religious concerns and or the pursuit of philosophy more generally...
in space science
Space science
The term space science may mean:* The study of issues specifically related to space travel and space exploration, including space medicine.* Science performed in outer space ....
, and also with defense policy, for applications such as spy satellite
Spy satellite
A spy satellite is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications....
s and anti-satellite weapon
Anti-satellite weapon
Anti-satellite weapons are designed to incapacitate or destroy satellites for strategic military purposes. Currently, only the United States, the former Soviet Union, and the People's Republic of China are known to have developed these weapons. On September 13, 1985, the United States destroyed US...
s. It also encompasses government regulation
Regulation
Regulation is administrative legislation that constitutes or constrains rights and allocates responsibilities. It can be distinguished from primary legislation on the one hand and judge-made law on the other...
of third-party activities such as commercial communications satellite
Communications satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite stationed in space for the purpose of telecommunications...
s and private spaceflight
Private spaceflight
Private spaceflight is flight above Earth altitude conducted by and paid for by an entity other than a government. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology augmented by collaboration with affiliated design...
.
Space policy also encompasses the creation and application of space law
Space law
Space law is an area of the law that encompasses national and international law governing activities in outer space. International lawyers have been unable to agree on a uniform definition of the term "outer space," although most lawyers agree that outer space generally begins at the lowest...
, and space advocacy
Space advocacy
Space advocacy can be described as the general position supporting, pleading or arguing for the idea or cause of space exploration and settlements...
organizations exist to support the cause of space exploration.
Space law
Space law is an area of the lawLaw
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
that encompasses national and international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
governing activities in outer space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
. There are currently five treaties that make up the body of interational 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
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in October 1957. Named Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1 ) was the first artificial satellite to be put into Earth's orbit. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957. The unanticipated announcement of Sputnik 1s success precipitated the Sputnik crisis in the United States and ignited the Space...
, the satellite was launched as part of the International Geophysical Year
International Geophysical Year
The International Geophysical Year was an international scientific project that lasted from July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific interchange between East and West was seriously interrupted...
. Since that time, space law has evolved and assumed more importance as mankind has increasingly come to use and rely on space-based resources.
China
The Chinese space programChinese space program
The space program of the People's Republic of China is directed by the China National Space Administration . Its technological roots can be traced back to the late 1950s, when the People's Republic began a rudimentary ballistic missile program in response to perceived American threats...
consists of the China National Space Administration
China National Space Administration
The China National Space Administration is the national space agency of the People's Republic of China responsible for the national space program. It is responsible for planning and development of space activities...
and the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation is the main contractor for the Chinese space program. It is state-owned and has a number of subordinate entities which design, develop and manufacture a range of spacecraft, launch vehicles, strategic and tactical missile systems, and ground...
, a state-owned company which is the main contractor for the Chinese space program.
The China National Space Administration states that it aims are 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.
Europe
The European Space AgencyEuropean Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
(ESA) is the common space agency for many European nations. It is independent of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, though the 2007 European Space Policy
European Space Policy
A formal European Space Policy was established on 22 May 2007 when a joint and concomitant meeting at ministerial level of the Council of the European Union and the Council of the European Space Agency adopted a Resolution on the European Space Policy...
provides a framework for coordination between the two organizations and member states, including issues such as security and defence, access to space, space science, and space exploration.
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.
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."
Russia
The space program of RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
was inherited from its predecessor state, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Russia's civilian space agency is the Russian Federal Space Agency
Russian Federal Space Agency
The Russian Federal Space Agency , commonly called Roscosmos and abbreviated as FKA and RKA , is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research. It was previously the Russian Aviation and Space Agency .Headquarters of Roscosmos are located...
, and its military counterpart is the Russian Space Forces.
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 Salyut and Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
space station programs, and increased their investment in space programs throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, the 1990s saw serious financial problems because of the decreased cash flow, which encouraged Roskosmos to improvise and seek other ways to keep space programs running. This resulted in Roskosmos' leading role in commercial satellite launches and space tourism
Space tourism
Space Tourism is space travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. A number of startup companies have sprung up in recent years, hoping to create a space tourism industry...
. While scientific missions, such as interplanetary probes or astronomy missions during these years played a very small role, Roskosmos managed to operate the space station Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
well past its planned lifespan, contribute to the International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
, and continue to fly additional Soyuz
Soyuz spacecraft
Soyuz , Union) is a series of spacecraft initially designed for the Soviet space programme by the Korolyov Design Bureau in the 1960s, and still in service today...
and Progress
Progress spacecraft
The Progress is a Russian expendable freighter spacecraft. The spacecraft is an unmanned resupply spacecraft during its flight but upon docking with a space station, it allows astronauts inside, hence it is classified manned by the manufacturer. It was derived from the Soyuz spacecraft, and is...
missions.
The Russian economy boomed throughout 2005 from high prices for exports, such as oil and gas, the outlook for subsequent funding became more favorable. The federal space budget for the year 2009 was left unchanged despite the global economic crisis, standing at about 82 billion rubles ($2.4 billion). Current priorities of the Russian space program include the new Angara rocket family and development of new communications, navigation and remote Earth sensing spacecraft. The GLONASS
GLONASS
GLONASS , acronym for Globalnaya navigatsionnaya sputnikovaya sistema or Global Navigation Satellite System, is a radio-based satellite navigation system operated for the Russian government by the Russian Space Forces...
global navigation satellite system has for many years been one of the top priorities and has been given its own budget line in the federal space budget.
United States
The current space policy of the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was developed by the Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
administration and released on June 28, 2010. It replaced the earlier Vision for Space Exploration
Vision for Space Exploration
The Vision for Space Exploration is the United States space policy which was announced on January 14, 2004 by President George W. Bush. It is seen as a response to the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, the state of human spaceflight at NASA, and a way to regain public enthusiasm for space...
, which was the space policy under the George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
administration.
In the United States, space policy is made by the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
and the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
through the legislative process. The space policy of the United States is carried out by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
(NASA), which is the civilian and scientific space program of the United States, and by various agencies of the Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
, which include efforts regarding communications, reconnaissance, intelligence, mapping, and missile defense. In addition, the Department of Commerce
United States Department of Commerce
The United States Department of Commerce is the Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. It was originally created as the United States Department of Commerce and Labor on February 14, 1903...
's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...
operates various services with space components, such as the Landsat program
Landsat program
The Landsat program is the longest running enterprise for acquisition of satellite imagery of Earth. On July 26, 1972 the Earth Resources Technology Satellite was launched. This was eventually renamed to Landsat. The most recent, Landsat 7, was launched on April 15, 1999. The instruments on the...
.
The early history of United States space policy is linked to the US–Soviet Space Race
Space Race
The Space Race was a mid-to-late 20th century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space exploration. Between 1957 and 1975, Cold War rivalry between the two nations focused on attaining firsts in space exploration, which were seen as necessary for national...
of the 1960s. The National Aeronautics and Space Act
National Aeronautics and Space Act
The National Aeronautics and Space Act is the United States federal statute that created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration . The Act, which followed close on the heels of the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik, was drafted by the United States House Select Committee on Astronautics...
creating the NASA was passed in 1958, after the launch of the Soviet Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1 ) was the first artificial satellite to be put into Earth's orbit. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957. The unanticipated announcement of Sputnik 1s success precipitated the Sputnik crisis in the United States and ignited the Space...
sattellite, and in response to the flight of Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
as the first man in space, Kennedy in 1961 committed the United States to landing a man on the moon
Moon landing
A moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both manned and unmanned missions. The first human-made object to reach the surface of the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2 mission on 13 September 1959. The United States's Apollo 11 was the first manned...
by the end of the decade. Although the costs of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and the programs of the Great Society
Great Society
The Great Society was a set of domestic programs in the United States promoted by President Lyndon B. Johnson and fellow Democrats in Congress in the 1960s. Two main goals of the Great Society social reforms were the elimination of poverty and racial injustice...
forced cuts to NASA's budget as early as 1965, the first moon landing
Apollo 11
In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
occurred in 1969, early in Richard Nixon's presidency. Under the Nixon administration NASA's budget continued to decline and three of the planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled. The Nixon administration approved the beginning of the Space Shuttle program
Space Shuttle program
NASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
in 1972, but did not support funding of other projects such as a Mars landing
Mars landing
A Mars landing is a landing of a spacecraft on the surface of Mars. Of multiple attempted Mars landings by robotic, unmanned spacecraft, six were successful. There have also been studies for a possible manned mission to Mars, including a landing, but none have been attempted.-Mars probe program:In...
, colonization of the Moon
Colonization of the Moon
The colonization of the Moon is the proposed establishment of permanent human communities on the Moon. Advocates of space exploration have seen settlement of the Moon as a logical step in the expansion of humanity beyond the Earth. Recent indication that water might be present in noteworthy...
, or a permanent space station
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
.
The Space Shuttle first launched in 1981, during Ronald Reagan's administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
. Reagan in 1982 announced a renewed active space effort, which included initiatives such the construction of Space Station Freedom
Space Station Freedom
Space Station Freedom was a NASA project to construct a permanently manned Earth-orbiting space station in the 1980s. Although approved by then-president Ronald Reagan and announced in the 1984 State of the Union Address, Freedom was never constructed or completed as originally designed, and after...
, and the military Strategic Defense Initiative
Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative was proposed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan on March 23, 1983 to use ground and space-based systems to protect the United States from attack by strategic nuclear ballistic missiles. The initiative focused on strategic defense rather than the prior strategic...
, and, later in his term, a 30 percent increase in NASA's budget. The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of central Florida at 11:38 am EST...
in January 1986 led to a reevaluation of the future of the national space program in the National Commission on Space report and the Ride Report.
The United States has participated in the International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
beginning in the 1990s, the Space Shuttle program has continued, although the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred on February 1, 2003, when shortly before it was scheduled to conclude its 28th mission, STS-107, the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in the death of all seven crew members...
has led to the planned retirement of the Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle retirement
The retirement of NASA's Space Shuttle fleet took place from March to July 2011. Discovery was the first of the three active space shuttles to be retired, completing its final mission on March 9, 2011; Space Shuttle Endeavour did so on June 1...
in mid-2011. There is a current debate on the post-Space Shuttle future of the civilian space program: the Constellation program of the George W. Bush administration
George W. Bush administration
The presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
directed NASA to create a set of new spacecraft with the goal of sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars, but the Obama administration cancelled the Constellation program, opting instead to emphasize development of commercial rocket systems.
See also
- Space RaceSpace RaceThe Space Race was a mid-to-late 20th century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space exploration. Between 1957 and 1975, Cold War rivalry between the two nations focused on attaining firsts in space exploration, which were seen as necessary for national...
- Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space PolicyCitizens' Advisory Council on National Space PolicyThe Citizen's Advisory Council on National Space Policy was a group of prominent US citizens concerned with the space policy of the United States of America...
- Space Generation Advisory CouncilSpace Generation Advisory CouncilThe Space Generation Advisory Council in support of the United Nations Programme on Space Applications is a non-governmental organization which "aims to bring the views of students and young space professionals to the United Nations, Space Agencies and other organisations".SGAC's primary work has...