New York State once
had a thriving space industry. The Famed “Lunar Module” which allowed the
Apollo astronauts to land on the moon was built on Long Island. The giant
Saturn 5 rocket’s engines were designed in Buffalo. But those facilities are
long gone. Now, many other states across the nation are also losing jobs and
revenue as Washington cuts funding for “The Final Frontier.”
However, the recent success of a private company in sending a supply capsule to
the International Space Station may herald a new way that America can reach
orbital heights in a more affordable manner. The recent mission of the SpaceX’s
Dragon space craft, launched by the corporation’s own rocket, Falcon 9,
demonstrates that a private/NASA partnership can work.
The nation’s credibility had been severely reduced when the Shuttle era ended
with no replacement capable of the activities necessary to maintain a strong
presence in space. Washington is currently incapable (until 2017 at the
earliest) of putting an astronaut into space and must pay Moscow to ferry
astronauts to orbit. China also can send people into space; indeed, it
has embarked on an exceptionally ambitious program that includes its own
orbiting space station and trips to the Moon.
Commentator Charles Krauthammer notes
that while in the future private companies will have a vigorous portion of
space activity, that future remains decades away, and “In the interim, space
will be owned by Russia and China.”
Democrats in Congress during the Bush
(43) administration began to grumble that America’s future plans would spend
funds they felt should be committed to domestic programs. President Obama acted
on those concerns after taking office. The vast sums he spent on stimulus
programs included nothing for NASA. Republicans have failed to vigorously
oppose the lack of White House support, and have not made the matter a
significant issue. Indeed, they have at times been less than supportive
of NASA’s needs.
Both Presidents Bush (43) and Obama gave
more verbal than fiscal support to the space program, (which even when “fully
funded” receives only about 1/2 of 1% of the federal budget.) but the
recent cuts under the current administration have been the most severe. A space
research advocacy publication, Mars Daily, notes that Russia commits a higher
portion of its GDP to space industry than the U.S.
Allowing the private sector to boldly
go where only governments had gone before began with President Reagan’s 1984
signing of the Commercial Space Launch Act. It was supplemented in 1990
when President Bush (41) signed the Launch Services Purchase Act. Russia has
also seen private ventures interact with government space efforts.
The goal is to use the private sector
to provide space services in a less costly manner than a government-run program
could. NASA wants to outsource to the private sector all cargo and crew
missions to the Space Station by 2017.
The space agency states that “NASA is helping commercial
partners develop and demonstrate their own cargo space transportation
capabilities to serve the U.S. Government and other potential customers.
The companies lead and direct their own efforts, with NASA providing technical
and financial assistance.”
Uncertainty over a number of international legal issues may
chill corporate efforts. The “International Code of Conduct for Outer
Space Activities” may impose unforeseen burdens on private, military and
civilian efforts. The Obama Administration favors the Code, but Congress has
expressed concern over potential issues.
It remains to be seen whether the nation
founded by explorers and pioneers will protect its future prosperity by
devoting the resources necessary to continue their legacy.
No comments:
Post a Comment