Refocusing European missile defence

The 11th RUSI Missile Defence Conference was held in London, 26-27 May 2010. Anders Hansson reports on some of the main themes to emerge, including the fact that the fields of space and nuclear missiles are becoming more closely entwined, the need for China to be more involved in discussions on missile defence, the need to distinguish capabilities from intent, and the fact that the all-too-short window for formulating new rules for orbital management must be opened now.     

A third age in space? RUSI's ‘New Directions in Missile Defence’ conference

The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) held its 10th missile defence conference in London, 28–29 May 2009. While the emphasis was on terrestrial military activity, it was clear that space had become integral to such activity and that, beyond whatever moral objections might be made, the question of missile defence poses additional risks in terms of debris proliferation and traffic disruption. This report discusses the general issue with reference to conference speakers' presentations.     

Space, security and resilience: Reflections on the debate

The RUSI Space and UK National Security Conference was held in London, 14 June 2011. Alixe Buckerfield de la Roche reports on some of the key themes discussed, including the increasing merger of space and cyber, the growing urgency in calling for development of robust and effective regulatory frameworks for orbital management, and the challenges surrounding national resilience achieved through space situational awareness. At RUSI’s 12th Missile Defence Conference held the same week Secretary General Rasmussen gave an address on NATO’s missile policy—focusing on partnerships and collaboration. His comments intersect aptly with the Space and UK National Security conference themes and are therefore included here.     

Space for defence: A European vision

A common European defence policy is still at a very preliminary stage, and although some limited progress has recently been made, it is a politically sensitive issue. In contrast to scientific research or large industrial ventures such as aircraft development, where Europe has moved forward rather well, obstacles to further integration in defence and security matters are numerous. Space systems could be used to facilitate such integration as their duplication is costly and so much remains to be done in Europe in this field. A common European ‘vision’ for the role of space systems in security and defence thus needs to be developed. This article reviews the role of space in security and defence missions, the technology and industrial base Europe needs, and its capability and autonomy in achieving access to space. Space system vulnerability and the means of minimizing it are addressed, including measures to prevent the weaponization of space. The possible role of ESA in support of the European Defence Agency for defence space systems development is identified, along with the need for ad hoc organizations for operational exploitation. Ten recommendations are made that would permit progress at the European level, following the path already successfully achieved in the civilian domain.     

The merger of two global commons: The need for new governance

The RUSI ‘Space and UK National Security’ conference was held in London on 2 October 2012 and, with the ‘Cyber Alliances: Strategy Partnerships in Cyber Space’ conference’ of 14–15 November 2012, brought together space and cyberspace specialists from more than 15 countries, across four continents. Alixe Buckerfield de la Roche reports on key points discussed across both conferences: (1) space as a shared domain, and building resilience; (2) governance; (3) national responses to space security; (4) partnerships and alliances, space situational awareness, space debris, and new initiatives; (5) the space–cyberspace merger; and (6) commercial and military sectors. Consensus on critical areas for further action emerged, and for that reason the conjunction of the two conferences was significant.     

Military uses of space-ballistic missile defence

Air Vice-Marshal Menaul argues that the creation of a ballistic missile defence (BMD) system — now within the state of the art — would add immeasurably to the concept of deterrence to war at any level. The reality is that space is already an arena for military operations. Through a review of the technological components and capabilities of a layered defence system as envisaged by the US Fletcher Commission, Air Vice-Marshal Menaul argues for Western support to be given to President Reagan's Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI) and for Europe to begin researching the requirements for a European-based system.     

Moving Europe towards a more effective procurement of space-based assets

It has become essential for European states to consider a more coherent strategy in the procurement of future space assets in order to safeguard European industrial competitiveness. Space-related research programmes remain uncoordinated and separated between civil, military and commercial applications. This paper explores the present European institutional environment and the interaction between different actors involved in space procurement. New developments are underway with the establishment of the European Defence Agency and the attempt to federate existing groups and actions. Institutional users of space systems, including defence customers, often rely on the same technology. The article considers space procurement from a widespread perspective, which goes beyond sectoral boundaries. The establishment of a permanent advisory forum is suggested in order to centralise various requirements at European level and procure space assets more efficiently.     

Turning space tourism into commercial reality

On 7 June 2006 the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) hosted a one-day conference entitled ‘Space Tourism: From Lofty Dreams to Commercial Reality’ in London. The conference brought together parties interested in the future of passenger flights into space, presenting perspectives on the evolution of the private spaceflight industry over the next decade, with the goal of stimulating enthusiasm for the creation of a profitable industry and affordable space travel for a mass, global market. The conference chairman reports on its outcomes.     

Commercial space development

A panel session on ‘Creative approaches to commercial joint ventures in space’ took place at the American Society of Public Administration National Conference, 28 March 1 April 1987. This report highlights the comments made by the panelists¹ on the steps NASA and US industry can take together to ensure US space leadership.     

The origins of the “Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities” initiative at UN COPUOS

The success of space-based systems worldwide, providing services to society and satisfying defence and security needs, has led to a situation where outer space is increasingly crowded. In addition, the rapid proliferation of space debris threatens the safe utilization of outer space on the most commonly used orbits. Beyond the mitigation of the orbital debris threat, additional measures will be needed to ensure the safety and security of activities in outer space for the long-term. This article describes the initiative to introduce a new agenda item in the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), first presented to COPUOS delegations in 2007, which led to a formal decision in 2009. This in turn led to the establishment of a dedicated Working Group of the Scientific and Technical Sub-Committee in 2010, with a work plan leading to a report and associated recommendations in 2014. Some references are made to other initiatives affecting space security, such as the Russia–China draft treaty (PPWT) tabled at the Conference on Disarmament and the EU-proposed Code of Conduct.     

European thoughts on the new US defence strategy: A major repositioning in a difficult budgetary context

The USA adopted a new defence strategy in 2012 which responds to the changing geopolitical landscape and straightened economic circumstances. The emphasis is on leaner, more flexible and diversified operations, while priority areas have shifted from Europe to the Asia-Pacific (in acknowledgement of China's growing military might) and the Middle East. This will have consequences for Europe, which is now expected to take a greater share of the strategic burden. The major developments in the strategy – such as eschewing the pursuit of lengthy engagements on more than one front, and using the military to complement diplomatic and economic initiatives – are discussed. Europe is urged to respond by maintaining its national strategic and industrial autonomy, including in access to space and missile defence.     

Space debris and the need for space traffic control

This report summarises the presentations which took place at the ‘Space Traffic Control – Is the Space Debris Problem Solvable?’ conference hosted by the Royal Aeronautical Society on the 2nd July 2013. The conference sought to promote discussion over methods to deal with the issue of space debris in particular and speakers included representatives from the European Space Agency, the United Kingdom Space Agency, practitioners and academia. Themes which emerged during the conference included the urgency of the problem of space debris, the need for short-term and long-term solutions, the necessity for the development and implementation of space debris remediation technologies to complement existing mitigation efforts and, last but not least, the wider applications of space traffic control. Regarding the sub-title of the conference, ‘is the space debris problem solvable?’, it would appear from the presentations that while there is the potential for future management of the issue through debris remediation and harmonised mitigation efforts, no comprehensive solutions exist at the time of writing.     

US Military space policy 1945–92

This article uses space power theory to analyse the military space policy of the United States during the Cold War period up to the demise of the Soviet Union. It examines the consensus that emerged during this period which sought to prevent the weaponization of space. This consensus was called into question during the latter period with the announcement of the Strategic Defence Initiative and its subsequent orientation to Global Protection Against Limited Strikes system.     

The European Defence Agency and EU military space policy: Whose space odyssey?

This paper analyses the growing involvement of the European Defence Agency (EA) in the field of space, suggesting that this is symptomatic of the greater importance now being placed on military space by the European Union. It charts the history of the agency in general and its role in space in particular, delineating the many synergetic relations it has with other space-related institutions at EU level. It argues that EDA is as much a response to socioeconomic as strategic considerations, and that it acts to protect European competitiveness in the arms field, thereby highlighting the rising significance of EU military space policy for European security and military institutions.     

Evaluating research for disruptive innovation in the space sector

Many governmental space activities need to be planned with a time horizon that extends beyond the comfort zone of reliable technology development assessments and predictions. In an environment of accelerating technological change, a methodological approach to addressing non-core technology trends and potentially disruptive, game-changing developments not yet linked to the space sector is increasingly important to complement efforts in core technology R&D planning.Various models and organisational setups aimed at fulfilling this purpose are in existence. These include, with varying levels of relevance to space, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC, operational form 1998 to 2007 and recently re-established), the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency of the US Department of Defence, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Medialab, the early versions of Starlab, the Lockheed Skunk Works and the European Space Agency's Advanced Concepts Team.Some of these organisations have been reviewed and assessed individually, though systematic comparison of their methods, approaches and results have not been published. This may be due in part to the relatively sparse scientific literature on organisational parameters for enabling disruptive innovation as well as to the lack of commonly agreed indicators for the evaluation of their performance. Furthermore, innovation support systems in the space sector are organised differently than in traditional, open competitive markets, which serve as the basis for most scholarly literature on the organisation of innovation. The present paper is intended to advance and stimulate discussion on the organisation of disruptive innovation mechanisms specifically for the space sector. It uses the examples of the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts and the ESA Advanced Concepts Team, analyses their respective approaches and compares their results, leading to the proposal of measures for the analysis and eventual evaluation of research for disruptive innovation in the space sector.     

US national missile defence and international security: blessing or blight?

With the revival of the US national missile defence, there is a danger of jeopardising not only the existing arms control and disarmament process, but also some of the measures that are on the table in the United Nations for negotiations. Examples of these are the prevention of an arms race in outer space and the nuclear fissile materials cut-off agreement. In this paper, the missile defence issues are examined. It is suggested that, if the US builds a missile defence system that is allowed by the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty between the USA and Russia, it could achieve its goal of defending itself against a limited missile attack. With this kind of approach, it may be possible to save many of the long-standing bilateral and multilateral treaties and prevent the beginning of a new and much wider nuclear arms race.     

卫星与深空动态场景实时仿真系统

卫星与深空动态场景的实时仿真对于航空航天、军事国防等领域有着重要意义。现提出了一个深空动态场景的绘制方法，该方法综合了计算机图形学和天文学的知识，建立了基于天文学星表的深空场景模型，计算出卫星及各星体的运行轨迹，实现了卫星目标和深空场景的真实感合成，并采用一系列加速绘制技术，最终实现了深宅动态场景的实时生成和交互式虚拟漫游。     

How shall we live in space? Culture, law and ethics in spacefaring society

The US civilian space program is focused on planning for a new round of human missions beyond Earth orbit, to realize a ‘vision’ for exploration articulated by President George W. Bush. It is important to examine this ‘vision’ in the broader context of the global enterprise of 21st century space exploration. How will extending a human presence into the Solar System affect terrestrial society and culture? What legal, ethical and other value systems should govern human activities in space? This paper will describe the current environment for space policy making and possible frameworks for future space law, ethics and culture. It also proposes establishment of a World Space Conference to aid deliberations on the above.     

Outer space,Geneva and the Conference on Disarmament: Future directions

Global dependence on the space sector is increasing rapidly. However, the growing challenges outer space poses to international security have not, as yet, been effectively addressed in the United Nations Conference on Disarmament (CD) or in other multilateral fora. This paper briefly reviews the current state of affairs of international security and outer space and explores the challenges the international community faces in building international agreements for improved space security and global stability. It examines some of the hurdles that are faced in tackling space security issues are and provides some thinking on ways to overcome them. The paper concludes that there is a potential role for the disarmament community and the CD in particular. As potential conflicts in outer space emerge, having invested bodies and communities such as the CD and a strong cadre of disarmament diplomats and NGOs to act as an informed hub on space and disarmament issues is essential.     

Defining a European space research policy: The role of the European Space Science Committee

The willingness of the European Union (EU) to acquire an important position by defining a well articulated space policy for Europe requires a redefinition of the roles of the various actors of this policy. This has been demonstrated at the last ESA Ministerial Conference despite the financial difficulties encountered by all spacefaring European countries. The European Space Science Committee (ESSC), an associated Committee of the European Science Foundation (ESF), actively participated in the elaboration of such a policy by presenting the point of view of the space scientific community and making recommendations to ensure that scientific space research is appropriately accounted for in overall European space policy. The ESSC is briefly described along with its activities and contributions to the definition of a European space policy.