Policies Shouldn’t Discourage Commercial Involvement in National Space Missions, Space Experts Say
The use of services in the private sector is critical to national space missions, and policies and frameworks are needed to allow commercial involvement to thrive, satellite executives and government officials said Friday. At the National Space Society’s International Space Development Conference in Washington, NASA’s chief and executives said having companies participate in government efforts is good for both stakeholders. Policies should be multi-generational to encourage the investments in the commercial space and satellite markets, said Steve Cook, director of space technologies at Dynetics.
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Private industry control of access to low earth orbit is rapidly becoming a reality, said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. The agency is making progress on the heavy lift rocket to take astronauts to deep space, and it’s progressing in earth and space science missions with the help of the private sector, he said. For FY 2013, NASA “plans for at least three flights delivering research and logistics hardware to the International Space Station,” he said. The proposed budget of $17.7 billion provides funding needed “to bring our human space launches back home to the U.S,” he said.
The agency also is considering proposals “for our commercial crew integrated capabilities,” Bolden said. It’s asking the private industry to design a fully-integrated commercial crew exploration system, which includes spacecraft, a launch vehicle and mission control, he added. Commercial programs are, by necessity, faster-paced and the private and government sectors can learn from each other, Cook said. Private industry can take advantage of systems developed under contract to NASA, he said. A stable long-term, national exploration strategy and policy “can provide the environment for commercial endeavors to thrive,” Cook said: Such policy is absolutely critical and “should transcend policies, administrations and Congresses.” It also would “lay out a clear environment to which the market can respond,” he added.
Reform of export controls can strengthen the space industry base, satellite and export policy experts said during another panel. Recent developments around satellite export control includes House passage of the National Defense Authorization Act, with an amendment authorizing the president to remove types of satellites and their components from the conditions of the U.S. Munitions List (CD May 21 p3). There’s a bill pending in the Senate that calls for similar reforms. The effect that the tougher restrictions have on the space and satellite industries prompted the legislative activity, said Patricia Cooper, president of the Satellite Industry Association. There’s concern in the industry that “U.S. companies have been investing less [and] exporting less as a result of export controls that required that everything … be treated as a munition,” she said. There also is concern that such controls weaken the supply chain for the military and space industrial base, she said.
Last year, when the secretary of defense approved the National Security Space Strategy, it was recognized that export control systems needed to be addressed to help energize the space industrial base, said Ashley Bander, an analyst in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy. The drafters of the policy “wanted to modify those controls on satellites and related items that were widely available to allow our industry to compete for the sale of those items,” she said. An advantage of moving the items to the Commerce Control List “is that it’s a more flexible system of control,” she said: The CCL allows authorities “to tailor the controls to the sensitivity of the transfer.”