Space Policy最新文献

In June of 1994, the term “planetary defense” was first published in a white paper included in a U.S. Air Force report called SPACECAST 2020. The white paper warned of the threat of potentially hazardous asteroids to Earth and suggested methods of asteroid impact mitigation through an organized Air Force program. Today, the United States strongly contributes to the world-wide effort to find, track, characterize, and mitigate potentially hazardous objects (PHOs) via the NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO). This paper analyzes the evolution of U.S. planetary defense since SPACECAST 2020 and evaluates the influence of the white paper's recommendations nearly thirty years on.

Interdisciplinary research approaches are more likely to deliver outcomes beyond the capability of a single discipline is well established in the research literature. In view of the inherent complexity of space exploration, and the considerable challenges characterizing what has been termed the “New Space Age”, interdisciplinary research would seem well positioned to engage with the space sector to a very significant extent. However, contributions that the Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (HASS) disciplines can make in addressing the needs of business, industry, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and policymakers in the space sector remains equivocal. This exploratory study aims to investigate the latent contribution and value-added potential of HASS disciplines to inform the space sector through interviews with 32 senior practitioners and policymakers from this sector in Australia, Europe, and the USA. Findings suggest not only a definitive role of HASS disciplines in the space sector but also an almost symbiotic relationship existing between HASS and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics disciplines. In addition, HASS contributions to the space sector have changed over time, and challenges facing HASS disciplines in the future represent opportunities to embed HASS as a more credible contributor within the space sector.

Discussion surrounding first contact with extra-terrestrial intelligence (ETI) is hotly debated in the literature. This paper responds to claims made by Jebari and Olsson-Yaouzis that the ‘dominant thought’ in the philosophy of language indicates that communication with ETI would not be possible, and that the resultant uncertainty forces us into the Hobbesian Trap—the proclivity to adopt pre-emptive military strategies as a function of mutual distrust and fear of imminent attack. The ‘dominant thought’ in the philosophy of language constitutes largely behaviourist thinking and hinges on ‘shared human context.’ However, shared universal contexts, together with the potential existence of post-biological ETI, suggest that communication at a level sufficient to interpret basic dispositions (what I call the level of ‘performative function’) may be possible.

Deploying both philosophical and game theoretical analyses, this paper provides several refutations and a repudiation of Jebari and Olsson-Yaouzis's claims: I correct the assumption that ETI would necessarily adopt a game theoretical rationality, critique the notion that ETI would choose a risk-dominant strategy rather than a payoff-dominant strategy, repudiate the claim that communication with ETI would not be possible, and show how the Hobbesian equivalence principle is violated in a proximal first-contact situation. Finally, in the absence of game theoretic decision-making (and inline with the calls from the Billingham report), this paper commences work on the development of an incomplete set of Axioms of First Contact from which to generate a definitive groundwork for both post-detection protocol and rules of engagement. An open invitation to other contributors to criticise, augment, and advance this bottom-up approach to first contact is extended.

Theories of deterrence and geopolitics have been applied to space activities for many decades, with linkages to nuclear competition during the Cold War. Despite common usage in U.S. policy documents and statements, it is not always clear how the concepts of deterrence and geopolitics should be applied. This article reviews deterrence theory as applied to space, to include the challenge of China, and the increasing use of commercial space assets for military purposes. Both topics are of interest to policy-makers and hence their inclusion. This is followed by a discussion of geopolitics in space, to include the works of Everett C. Dolman, Daniel Deudney, and Bleddyn Bowen, as well as the nascent application of critical geopolitical perspectives to space. The article observes that the international approach being taken by the United States in space does not align with the theories of either Dolman or Deudney. On the other hand, current U.S. military space doctrine is consistent with the propositions of Bowen, with the U.S. Space Command focused on supporting terrestrial combatant commands as opposed to controlling the space domain per se. Applications of deterrence and geopolitics to cooperation and competition in space are necessarily grounded in material realities, e.g., geography, military forces, technologies, and economic power, but the beneficial development of space requires both State power and international constraints on that power. For the United States, and ideally all spacefaring States, the successful application of deterrence and geopolitics to the exploration and use of space would be a peaceful and stable space environment in which cooperation among likeminded States would flourish even as adversarial States continued to pursue their own, competing, interests in space.

Many commentators have suggested that we are witnessing the advent of a ‘New Space Age’. In addition to the opportunities presented, this New Space Age also brings challenges, many of which are unprecedented, invariably complex, and which are not readily amenable to easy or previously developed tailor-made solutions. Cross-disciplinary approaches have been suggested as a means toward which solutions to such space-related problems may be reached. This qualitative study draws on interviews with 30 policy-makers, industry body representatives, academics, and practitioners to investigate the ways in which cross-disciplinary approaches can contribute to solving the problems presented by the New Space Age. Findings indicate that the type of cross-disciplinary research approach adopted brings with it discernible costs and benefits, as well as palpable differences in the nature and extent of the contribution made to space research, space policy, and space exploration. Conclusions inform both public policy and university research policy, the literature on research collaboration between disciplines, and the effectiveness of cross-disciplinarity in the context of advancing the space sector.

The recent uncrewed Artemis I mission marked humanity’s return to the active exploration of cislunar space and beyond. The human crews of upcoming long-haul missions will experience extended periods during which they are confined to the built environments of their orbital vehicles and surface facilities. The resulting absence of nature during these extended missions lasting from weeks to years could prove detrimental to the achievement of mission objectives. Incorporating elements of nature into mission design has the potential to measurably promote cognitive functioning among human crews. Specifically, the use of audio–visual equipment already onboard the current and future crewed vehicles would provide a ready set of opportunities to leverage biophilic design in support of mission success and without presenting a significant load on the power dynamics of the relevant craft or the need to remove to a virtual reality environment.

The on-going space settlement debate has raised questions whether it is possible to settle other planets, and if it was, is it something humans should do. The problem with this space ethical discussion is that it can easily become too vague. To avoid this problem, we suggest a framework for identifying relevant variables that affect the feasibility constraints and desirability factors of establishing space settlements. The variables we focus on include the settlement stage, scale and time frame. Based on the relevant literature, we take mission cost, survival, habitation, water, in situ resources for food, oxygen and fuel energy and dependence on Earth as feasibility constraints that are relevant for the framework. None of them are hard constraints, but rather soft feasibility constraints that make it difficult to establish a permanent human settlement on Mars in the near- to medium-term future. However, in the past, humanity has achieved goals that first seemed infeasible. To justify the costs and effort, the goal must be highly morally desirable. We discuss five different desirability factors that could help justify the effort but as each framework has unique feasibility constraints, not all of these factors are sufficient or necessary to justify this effort. We argue that some of the desirability factors prominent in space ethical literature are not sufficient or necessary in our framework, and thus, we conclude that the normative grounds for establishing a permanent Mars settlement in the foreseeable future are weak.

With the expansion of the space industry, debris congestion has become a serious problem. When space debris collides with satellites in orbit, it may damage the satellites or, in the worst case, cause an explosion. While economic activity influences debris congestion, debris can also influence the economy. To what extent does debris affect the economy? Furthermore, what would be the optimal path of debris emission considering the economy and space environment? This study aims to quantify the severity of the problem. We simulate the damage caused by the environmental problem of orbital debris using a standard economic growth model in macroeconomics, augmented with a satellite sector and collision possibility. In the model, launching satellites means two things: more factors of production and more orbital objects. A newly launched satellite provides satellite services to the economy and increases production capacity. At the same time, by being placed in orbit, a satellite increases the risk of collisions. Our results show that debris will cause negative damage of approximately 1.95% of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the long term if no debris is remediated at all.

China views promoting space exports as a key national priority and is devoting considerable energy toward boosting its market share in the global space economy. This is yielding dividends, helping China become a major space exporter of satellites, launch services, and space data. This paper will examine the strategic rationale for China's expanding sales of satellites, space launch services, and space data, an understudied element of Chinese foreign policy. It will conclude that Beijing's sale of space products is strengthening China's national power by building technical dependencies, bolstering international prestige and cultural influence, accelerating the global adoption of Chinese technology, and proliferating space systems that China can sometimes access.

With the evolution of space travel to more frequently include civilian space travelers, there is an emerging need for behavioral health skills training for longer missions. There may be utility in using the analog of military deployments. One such model is Families OverComing Under Stress (FOCUS), a family-centered evidence-based resilience training program that has been implemented at military installations for the last fifteen years. FOCUS is designed to enhance family cohesion and strengthen parent–child, marital, and co-parenting relationships and improve emotion regulation, communication, problem-solving, and goal-setting skills across the family. Research results reveal that both parents and children from military families participating in FOCUS demonstrate significant improvement in emotional and behavioral adjustment, reducing their risk of developing anxiety, depression, or other behavioral disturbances by half. It has also demonstrated efficacy in the tele-delivery model, allowing for implementation for families who are separated due to trainings and missions.