Plus: A turning point for COPUOS
By Dan Robitzski
Welcome back to our weekly newsletter highlighting the opinions and perspectives of the SpaceNews community.
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Lately, dedicated science missions have been made to take a back seat at NASA, where they're left to "hitchhike" on the back of commercial missions, wrote Casey Dreier, chief of space policy at The Planetary Society.
"If this is to be a true golden age of science and discovery, NASA can’t rely on serendipity; the agency must make active investments in dedicated science projects that address the highest priority questions facing humanity," Dreier wrote.
Dedicated, properly-funded science missions are the only way to ensure NASA continues to be the place where groundbreaking discoveries are made, Dreier argued. And while ride-along missions have a place as low-cost opportunities to spur technological innovation, "ride-along science is a supplement, not a replacement," he wrote.
"Without a dedicated science program, without intentionality, without actively attempting to answer the big questions, future breakthroughs in space science are a function of serendipity," Dreier wrote. "Hitchhiking, after all, rarely takes you exactly where you need to go."
See the full article here.
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The Artemis 2 Orion spacecraft splashes down April 10 in the Pacific Ocean. Credit: NASA
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Artemis 2 was a resounding success for NASA that accomplished all three pillars of the agency's stated goals for sending humans to space: science, public inspiration and fostering American leadership in space, making calls to cut NASA's funding misguided, wrote Bruce Jakosky, a space scientist at the University of Colorado Boulder and University of Washington who was the principal investigator for NASA's Maven spacecraft.
"NASA is doing exactly what federally funded research and development should be doing — investing in areas where there is not a viable business case yet and developing technology that will get significant use in the future," Jakosky wrote.
He added that heeding recent calls to turn NASA's exploration duties over to commercial companies would be a mistake.
"Although many have suggested that we could now turn these activities over to commercial entities like SpaceX or Blue Origins, it’s unlikely that they would make the investments necessary to continue the development needed by the country. It’s hard, for example, to imagine them carrying out science exploration that doesn’t specifically move their own agendas forward."
See the full article online here. |
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The 63rd Session of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), held in February in Vienna, revealed some cracks in the international forum's ability to address and solve issues in a rapidly changing space ecosystem. That's according to a commentary article penned by Fredrick Jenet, David Schuman, Danica Vallone and Paul Wunderl, all members of the National Space Society, along with University of Belgrano professor Cecilia I. Silberberg.
As they wrote, "The space environment has changed dramatically, and the institutions created at the dawn of the space age are under growing pressure to keep pace."
They argue that a forum like COPUOS, with over 100 member states addressing the important issues facing the space community, remains essential. But it's time for the agency to adapt to an era where conversations on space are not only focused on exploration but also on infrastructure, sustained human presences, commercial activity and a truly global space community.
"Meeting that challenge will be essential if the international community is to preserve the value of this unique forum," the authors wrote.
See the full article here.
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