Obama: A New Era for US Space Policy?

On Tuesday, Barak Obama was finally sworn in as President of the United States of America. He is taking office at a difficult time, in the midst of an economic downturn, when the U.S. and countries across the world are looking increasingly inward and obviously spending budgets on the necessities, not the extravagances. So, in this climate, where does space technology and exploration fit in? Does it fit in at all?

Over the past 50 years, the USA has been at the leading edge of space technology and exploration, the pinnacle of its achievements obviously being the moon landing of 1969. The Bush Administration set out an ambitious plan for NASA but did not manage to secure the funding to make things happen. So what about President Obama? What kind of agenda has he set for his Administration’s space policy and what will it do for the US economy?

Well, from a practical point of view, Obama has already voiced his concerns about the lack of broadband connectivity across the U.S. He said himself: “It is unacceptable that here, in the country that invented the Internet, we fell to 15th in the world in broadband deployment. When kids in downtown Flint or rural Iowa can't afford or access high-speed Internet, that sets back America's ability to compete. As president, I will set a simple goal: every American should have the highest speed broadband access -- no matter where you live, or how much money you have. We'll connect schools, libraries and hospitals. And we'll take on special interests to unleash the power of wireless spectrum for our safety and connectivity."

This will provide a great opportunity for satellite operators and service providers as they can connect rural areas where cable has, and probably never will, reach. It appears that Obama is well aware that advanced space and aeronautics research will catalyse economic growth and he has promised to encourage public/private space technology partnerships to ensure innovation.

Obama has also highlighted that he understands that access to space is going to be key to America’s success in this field and he has already pledged to work on the development of a successor to the Space Shuttle. In addition, he intends to encourage the extension of operations on the International Space Station beyond 2016 and to encourage international co-operation to get the most out of the station as such a great deal of investment has already been made. By 2020, the Obama Administration believe that it may be possible to send more manned missions to the moon, extending human space exploration past Low Earth Orbit once again. The exploration of Mars and other robotic missions will also be of consideration to the new President.

Moving away from such lofty ambitions, however, the more pressing issues of climate change will mean rapid development of a new global monitoring system that will refresh the satellite constellations that will near the end of their lives between now and 2026. This will be invaluable for agriculture, education, scientific research and governmental use and of course, the economy.

The pursuit of new technologies that will help the U.S. to protect its space assets will be high on the Presidential to-do list. Obama opposes the weaponisation of space and will work with other countries to establish what is acceptable behaviour miles above the earth. Finally, and most importantly, Obama has vowed to encourage the development of new technologies. The space sector plays an integral role in the lives of ordinary Americans and the development of this sector to ensure that America can continue to compete on the international stage amidst emerging space nations such as China and India will be vital. Space plays a key role in the United States economy and it appears that Barak Obama recognises this and intends to make impressive steps forward. If this happens, then there will be a lot of work for the space industry to do, providing the financing is there to enable them to do it.

After the failed promises of the Bush Administration and in a difficult financial climate, it remains to be seen whether these promises can be kept.

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