Search

Twenty years later, the present article revisits Robert Kagan's assertion that Americans are from Venus and Europeans are from Mars. The article questions what place is reserved for space in contemporary EU-US relations at the dawn of the third space age. First, describing some of the challenges in transatlantic cooperation on space matters, the article reviews the history of transatlantic dialogue and cooperation on trade, science, and technology. The focus is then shifted to commercialisation's key challenge of space traffic management detailing scholarly work, possible approaches and comparing EU and US attitudes. To conclude, the article argues that pursuing divergent and uncoordinated approaches to address space traffic management will be detrimental to transatlantic relations and a missed opportunity for a positive dynamic in space governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 'planetary park' system has been suggested as a way for Mars to 'preserve' land for a multitude of purposes. These parks would represent a diverse portion of martian terrain and would be regulated to minimize human contamination and prevent excess human intervention. One suggestion is a two-part land-use policy for Mars, i.e. planetary parks and Lockean land for the use of non-park areas, in which non-park areas could be opened up for development and settlement. Others have proposed that this planetary parks concept could be extended to appeal to corporate interests as a compromise between protecting environmental interests and allowing private use of resources on Mars. This empirical study aims to help advance the core discussion of the interplay between future space activities and future preservation plans on Mars. Specifically, this work uses a particular strategic foresight method, the Policy Delphi, as a means to reveal positions on that issue and to explore alternative policy options in advance, through the collective judgment of a panel of experts. It should be noted that the goal was not strictly to promote consensus regarding the topic of interest, but to encourage structured dialogue. Consequently, the stable consensus achieved in specific areas indicated that the panel of experts foresees international cooperation on matters related to preservation plans for Mars, which, in turn, will enhance the overall international space governance. Furthermore, the panel foresees the inclusion of varying actors, both state and non-state ones, in the development of a preservation framework for Mars, especially on a national level. To this end, the panel endorses the inclusion of a diversity of values to be protected via the aforementioned framework, and suggests the advancement of broad global dialogue on this matter including academic, industrial, governmental, and public actors. The preliminary insights revealed in this work may inform relevant international discussions towards the formulation of proactive policies that will contribute to the environmental governance of future activities on Mars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive examination of the current and emerging challenges in the governance of space activities, focusing on promoting safety and security. Key international treaties and resolutions, including those under the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS), are discussed, highlighting their evolution in response to changing geopolitical dynamics and the expansion of space activities across various sectors. The paper addresses several critical challenges: ensuring diverse global voices are heard in space governance, managing the dichotomy of space in terms of its strategic value and dual-use nature, achieving consensus among the rapidly growing number of space-faring nations, defining and delimiting space, adapting to the commercialization of space activities, and confronting the growing problem of space debris. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive examination of the current and emerging challenges in the governance of space activities, focusing on promoting safety and security. Key international treaties and esolutions, including those under the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS), are discussed, highlighting their evolution in response to changing geopolitical dynamics and the expansion of space activities across various sectors. The paper addresses several critical challenges: ensuring diverse global voices are heard in space governance, managing the dichotomy of space in terms of its strategic value and dual-use nature, achieving consensus among the rapidly growing number of space-faring nations, defining and delimiting space, adapting to the commercialization of space activities, and confronting the growing problem of space debris.

Copyright of Annals of Social Sciences / Roczniki Nauk Społecznych is the property of Towarzystwo Naukowe KUL & Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawla II and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The need for the development and adoption of outer space doctrine becomes more and more evident. Daily space operations are conducted in a doctrinal void, and this void makes it difficult to predict how well-regulated space activities will be in current conditions and how sustainable it will be. Moreover, the tragic events of the present (pandemic outbreak) have shown that the world, despite all its adaptability, is not ready for such a scenario. Therefore, the issue of sustainability of all systems is relevant. The sustainability of outer space activities is no exception. Long-term sustainable space activities require a common approach to policy, theory and doctrine. This article describes how to achieve this balance. In spite of novelty of the processes described in this paper, they will be useful for establishing ideas on policy, theory, and doctrine in order to enable a coherent strategy for the development of space activities.

The authors investigated the relevance of consequentialism in commercial space exploration as well as in the actively developing space market. The authors conclude that space expansion and colonization of space objects will lead to a revision of the foundational consequentialism provisions. Consequentialism, formed during the history of terrestrial civilization, loses its effectiveness under conditions of space commercialization. The basics of planetary thinking are different from those of cosmic thinking. Therefore, considering the meaning of the terms “cosmic expansion” and “colonization of the cosmos” through the existing theory of consequentialism faces serious contradictions. There is a range of problems that are not explored in modern philosophy and ethics due to the lack of an empirical basis for philosophical analysis.

The authors investigated the relevance of consequentialism in commercial space exploration as well as in the actively developing space market. The authors conclude that space expansion and colonization of space objects will lead to a revision of the foundational consequentialism provisions. Consequentialism, formed during the history of terrestrial civilization, loses its effectiveness under conditions of space commercialization. The basics of planetary thinking are different from those of cosmic thinking. Therefore, considering the meaning of the terms “cosmic expansion” and “colonization of the cosmos” through the existing theory of consequentialism faces serious contradictions. There is a range of problems that are not explored in modern philosophy and ethics due to the lack of an empirical basis for philosophical analysis.

A basic mission of NASA is to use the United States' segment of the International Space Station (ISS), designated a national laboratory, to facilitate the growth of a commercial marketplace in low Earth orbit for scientific research, technology development, observation and communications. Protein crystallization research has long been promoted as a promising commercial application of the ISS for drug development. In this paper we examine the case for microgravity protein crystallization under different private and public investment scenarios. The analysis suggests that sustaining investment is unlikely to come from individual companies alone. Public and private investment must be combined and managed to overcome a number of challenges including the need to integrate microgravity crystallization into the complex system of technologies involved in structure-based drug design. Multiple risks related to transportation costs/frequency, risk for cargo and research crew, and uncertainty about the longevity of the ISS complicate the calculus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of private space actors may soon enable the growth of the novel market segments of space research and exploration, space resources utilization, and human access to space. The interdisciplinary field of Planetary Protection has to keep up with these advances. Planetary Protection is defined as a set of guidelines that aim to prevent the forward contamination of celestial bodies with biological material from Earth and the backward contamination of the terrestrial biosphere with extraterrestrial biological material. As space entrepreneurs acquire and develop the resources and competencies for commercial access to space, significant questions are expected to be raised in the future with respect to potential forward and backward contamination issues, particularly with respect to activities between Earth and Mars. Although such private activities do not seem to pose a serious Planetary Protection threat at the moment, certain preparatory steps need to be taken in order to prudently inform the relevant policy-making procedures. This work describes the application of the Contingent Valuation Method, a useful tool of the environmental economics discipline, with the aim of demonstrating a novel approach to estimate the economic valuation of the external benefits of preventing forward and backward contamination between Earth and Mars. Particularly, via a survey specifically developed for this purpose, a set of questions are used to elicit the perceived economic value that respondents place on the prevention of forward and backward contamination; the survey is administered to a national probability sample in Greece, and the generated data is processed through statistical analysis. The Contingent Valuation Method is a popular and well-established stated preference valuation technique; these techniques are often the more suitable choice for ex-ante valuations of future changes, and are currently the only known approach to capture all the aspects of the economic value of non-market goods. Through an initial proof-of-concept in Greece, the goal of this work is to provide useful insights on the expected external benefits of a national Planetary Protection policy to regulate future private space activities between Earth and Mars, and to encourage a larger-scale application of this tool in other countries around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relevance of the study of trends in the commercialization of space activities is determined by the formation of the new main directions in the field of space exploration (upstream and downstream), shift in the role of the «space club» members and emergence of new players in the world space market. The survey sought to expose the particularities of various countries’ strategies on the commercial use of outer space, generalize foreign experience in the development and application of mechanisms to attract private investment in the space industry, as well as systematize data on commercial launches and marshal new countries participating in space activities into relevant categories based on the analysis of statistical information. The study of these aspects is necessary for subsequent consideration in the development of national legislation to regulate private enterprise in the space sector. The article contains the author’s classification of countries engaged in space research. The leading method of studying the process of commercialization of space activities is a comprehensive analysis of statistical data on spacecraft launches with regard to the indicators of the budget allocated to the space projects and programs in foreign countries, comparative assessment of public approaches to the commercial use of outer space, along with the results of interaction between the private and public sectors in space activities. Within the framework of this article, comparative legal research methods and synthesis were also used. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the evolution of the methodology for studying the processes of space commercialization and the development of the world market of space services. Arising from the investigation, a conclusion that countries, entering the world market for space services for the first time, are developing commercially oriented technologies in priority, including inter alia the production of nano- and microsatellites, elaboration of innovative systems and provision of remote sensing and satellite communications services is formulated. The authors emphasize the significance of private investment for the Russian space industry’s development and point to the need to further expand the commercialization of space activities in connection with its enormous economic potential. The practical significance of the results of this study lies in the possibility of their application in order to hammer out a strategy for the use of outer space for commercial purposes at Russian enterprises of the rocket-and-space industry, including within the framework of public-private partnership. The materials of this article are of interest to students, graduate students, professors, representatives of public authorities interested in the study of issues related to the commercialization of Russian space.

Space Agencies are increasingly interested in stimulating non-traditional players to participate more broadly in the space enterprise. Historically, high barriers to entry in the space market have included challenges of working with the government customer and high technical and financial risks associated with the complexity of space exploration. More recently, agencies have used inducements (e.g., new contracting mechanisms, access to testing facilities) to mitigate these barriers. While these efforts mainly focused on reducing barriers to participation in existing exploration architectures, this paper explores the viability of an alternative strategy. Instead of providing inducements, which essentially subsidize participation, we propose a new strategy for space agencies to treat "commercial suitability" as another "-ility" and make it an explicit criterion of the initial architecture selection. This can be an effective option when multiple equivalent architectures (as evaluated against traditional cost, schedule, and performance measures) differ on their "commercial suitability." As a proof-of-concept for this strategy, we develop a case study with lunar in-situ resource utilization plant systems as a basis for comparing the architectures with dedicated mass-wise optimal design (selected using traditional architecting strategies) vs. standardized mass-produced modular ISRU (selected using commercially-suitable strategies). The results show that architecture selection that considers commercial suitability upfront can achieve increased commercial participation without compromising cost performance compared with the baseline architecture. This serves as an existence proof for the potential value of this new strategy. • Commercial players are facing high barriers to entry into space market. • Agencies lower barriers to induce commercial players into entering space market. • Architecting for commercial suitability is proposed as a new stimulating strategy. • A proof-of-concept example is shown using lunar resource infrastructure case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need for the development and adoption of outer space doctrine is becoming more and more evident. Daily space operations are conducted in a doctrinal void, and this void makes it difficult to predict how well-regulated space activities will be in current conditions and how sustainable it will be. Moreover, the tragic events of the present (pandemic outbreak) have shown that the world, despite all its adaptability, is not ready for such a scenario. Therefore, the issue of sustainability of all systems is relevant. The sustainability of outer space activities is no exception. Long-term sustainable space activities require a common approach to policy, theory and doctrine. This article describes how to achieve this balance. In spite of novelty of the processes described in this paper, they will be useful for establishing ideas on policy, theory, and doctrine in order to enable a coherent strategy for the development of space activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors investigated the relevance of consequentialism in commercial space exploration as well as in the actively developing space market. The authors conclude that space expansion and colonization of space objects will lead to a revision of the foundational consequentialism provisions. Consequentialism, formed during the history of terrestrial civilization, loses its effectiveness under conditions of space commercialization. The basics of planetary thinking are different from those of cosmic thinking. Therefore, considering the meaning of the terms "cosmic expansion" and "colonization of the cosmos" through the existing theory of consequentialism faces serious contradictions. There is a range of problems that are not explored in modern philosophy and ethics due to the lack of an empirical basis for philosophical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors investigated the relevance of consequentialism in commercial space exploration as well as in the actively developing space market. The authors conclude that space expansion and colonization of space objects will lead to a revision of the foundational consequentialism provisions. Consequentialism, formed during the history of terrestrial civilization, loses its effectiveness under conditions of space commercialization. The basics of planetary thinking are different from those of cosmic thinking. Therefore, considering the meaning of the terms "cosmic expansion" and "colonization of the cosmos" through the existing theory of consequentialism faces serious contradictions. There is a range of problems that are not explored in modern philosophy and ethics due to the lack of an empirical basis for philosophical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If we find life on another world, it will be an extremely important discovery and we will have to take great care not to do anything that might endanger that life. If the life we find is sentient we will have moral obligations to that life. Whether it is sentient or not, we have a duty to ourselves to preserve it as a study object, and also because it would be commonly seen as valuable in its own right. In addition to this we would also have a duty to our fellow humans and other earthly life forms not to expose them to danger by advertently or inadvertently exposing them to potentially harmful space organisms. When space exploration turns into exploitation it will therefore be important to be able to show that a world that is up for exploitation is uninhabited before the exploitation starts. Showing that a world is uninhabited is, however, a different kind of task than showing that it is inhabited. The latter task can be accomplished through one positive finding but it is not clear how to go about the former task. In this paper I suggest that it is a gradual process asymptotically approaching certainty rather than a discovery in the traditional sense of the word. It has to be handled in two steps. The first is to connect degree of certainty with research setup. The second is to decide how certain we need to be. The first step is about the number, diversity and quality of observations. The second step is a decision we have to make based on the purpose of the investigation. The purpose and therefore the degree of certainty needed to establish that a world is uninhabited will be different for a world that is up for exploitation than for a world that is not. In the latter case it is only a matter of epistemic values. In the former case also ethical values have to be considered.

China's manned space station project was officially approved in September 2010. Under a space development strategy at the state-level, an unmanned modular space station, Tiangong-1, was launched on September 29, 2011 and Tiangong-2 is scheduled to be launched in 2016. According to the China National Space Administration (CNSA), China is targeting 2022 for the orbiting of its space station, which will establish China as the third country that has independently constructed and operated a space station. In this article, the feasibility of different models of jurisdiction for this space station is examined, namely the Soviet Salyut, Sino-ISS, European Space Agency (ESA), and China-led models, which take into account the various factors that are not only limited to legal issues. After exploring the advantages and limitations of these models of jurisdiction, it is argued that due to legal, political, financial and technological reasons, a model of jurisdiction that is led by China is the ideal model for the impending space cooperations of China. Based on the above proposition, it is concluded in this article that China should be pragmatic towards space legislation in terms of space commercialization, and the most critical legal issues need to be given prior consideration, i.e. intellectual property protection, export control and dispute resolution mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If we find life on another world, it will be an extremely important discovery and we will have to take great care not to do anything that might endanger that life. If the life we find is sentient we will have moral obligations to that life. Whether it is sentient or not, we have a duty to ourselves to preserve it as a study object, and also because it would be commonly seen as valuable in its own right. In addition to this we would also have a duty to our fellow humans and other earthly life forms not to expose them to danger by advertently or inadvertently exposing them to potentially harmful space organisms. When space exploration turns into exploitation it will therefore be important to be able to show that a world that is up for exploitation is uninhabited before the exploitation starts. Showing that a world is uninhabited is, however, a different kind of task than showing that it is inhabited. The latter task can be accomplished through one positive finding but it is not clear how to go about the former task. In this paper I suggest that it is a gradual process asymptotically approaching certainty rather than a discovery in the traditional sense of the word. It has to be handled in two steps. The first is to connect degree of certainty with research setup. The second is to decide how certain we need to be. The first step is about the number, diversity and quality of observations. The second step is a decision we have to make based on the purpose of the investigation. The purpose and therefore the degree of certainty needed to establish that a world is uninhabited will be different for a world that is up for exploitation than for a world that is not. In the latter case it is only a matter of epistemic values. In the former case also ethical values have to be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space tourism is going beyond the borders of people's actual perception on the topic of human mass transportation from one place on the Earth to another, crossing different jurisdictions. A suborbital flight from London to Sydney will last 4 hours instead of taking 23 hours as it lasts today when traveling by airplane. Point to point suborbital flights (P2P flights) offer a new mode of worldwide mass transportation. Consequently, they should be legally regulated at an international level. The article analyzes selected safety concerns which can create obstacles to the development of a global legal framework regulating the safety of P2P flights. The selected provisions of the US Commercial Space Launch Amendment Act of2004 are reviewed in order to analyze mistakes and avoid the same mistakes at the international level. The article specifies four main threats to safety which need to be resolved internationally: the lack of a definition for the term space passenger, the lack of unified spaceport safety standards, the growing amount of space debris and weaponization of outer space. Main international space treaties are analyzed as to their suitability for P2P flights. The fictional scenario provided in the article involves a claim for damages for death as a result of vehicle crash due to pilot error, which is used as an illustration of the applicability of one of the conventions: the Montreal Convention of 1999 (air law regime) or the Liability Convention of1972 (space law regime). Liability regime created by the Liability Convention of 1972 is entirely focused on State-to State liability, thus, the state, as opposed to passengers or their relatives and third parties, is eligible for the compensation. In the same pattern, the state of origin will pay the compensation as opposed to the manufacturer or operator of the aerospace vehicle used in the suborbital flight .It seems that it is more reasonable for the point-to-point suborbital flights to fall under the passenger-oriented Montreal Convention of 1999. It is too remote to assess whether the Liability Convention of 1972 can be amended. In the last chapter of the article, there are some suggestions regarding comprehensive legal framework regulating the safety of P2P flights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A major challenge that new space commercialization companies are facing is the qualification of their space-based payloads for electromagnetic compatibility during launch operations. Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) qualification is typically a lengthy and expensive procedure from the point of view of alternative launch providers, who typically lack the dedicated expertise as well as historical and often proprietary databases of legacy vehicles. When a payload is completed, it is usually submitted for EMC qualification to a testing laboratory that provides a report stating whether or not the payload complies with required standards. A negative result typically provides little insight to the alternate launch provide in terms of what corrective measures and design modifications are required to make the payload pass the EMC tests on a subsequent iteration. For this reason, it is of great value to a customer to have better insight into the EMC qualification procedure. The roadmap for EMC qualification presented in this study is intended to help guide an alternative launch provider through the payload design and qualification process. Furthermore, the roadmap presented here will show options for performing preliminary tests and how to iterate the payload design to increase the likelihood of successful EMC compliance testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to recent changes in the structure of the aerospace sector and its relationship to government, the landscape of the space industry is now experiencing the emergence of a commercialization paradigm. Private space endeavors may soon be able to target the novel market segments of space research and exploration, space resources utilization, and human access to space and to further stimulate the growth of a new space economy. Thus, the interdisciplinary field of planetary protection has to keep abreast of these advances to avoid unnecessary complications that might hinder the useful reinvigoration of economic interest in the space sector. Planetary protection is defined as a set of guidelines that aim to prevent the forward contamination of celestial bodies with biological material from Earth and the backward contamination of the terrestrial biosphere with extraterrestrial biological material. The possession of the technical capabilities for access to space by more than one private entity is now formulating the public perception of a so-called "Mars Race" that raises significant questions with respect to potential forward and backward contamination issues. This work outlines an environmental economics approach to backward contamination. Specifically, the commercial activities on Mars that may pose backward contamination risks are those that require the return of people, material, vehicles, or other equipment back to Earth, such as the potential business cases of Mars tourism and commercial sample return. Although these activities do not seem to pose a realistic planetary protection risk at present, it would be prudent to consider them during policy-making. Earth-return missions from Mars are expected to generate vigorous public interest worldwide in the environmental, health, and safety risks related to a potential backward contamination incident. As these kinds of missions also involve a post-reentry phase on Earth for the recovery, transfer, reception, and distribution of the samples and for the handling of returned people and equipment, quarantine issues that have not been raised since the Apollo era may become relevant again. In the case of this kind of post-reentry commercial activities, various jurisdictions and laws pertain to the matter. However, public perception will play a key role, as it has done in other industrial development projects with a need for social responsibility. Drawing from terrestrial analogies of siting noxious facilities and other development cases with strong environmental justice characteristics, this work will explore the application of environmental economics as an approach to equitably balance the benefits and costs of future commercial space endeavors with a backward contamination risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]