Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: SpaceX’s Dragon
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Daytona Beach
STATE: FL
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY: Canadian
Norwegian-Canadian * https://www.linkedin.com/in/drerikseedhouse/ * http://www.thespaceshow.com/guest/dr.-erik-seedhouse
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.:
no2008083765
LCCN Permalink:
https://lccn.loc.gov/no2008083765
HEADING:
Seedhouse, Erik
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__ |a Tourists in space, c2008: |b t.p. (Erik Seedhouse)
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__ |a Triathlon the hard way, 2016: |b title page (Erik Seedhouse) preface (born in Tonsberg, Norway on 19th June, 1964; has Canadian passport, but considers himself Norwegian; lived in UK for much of his life, most of it in Cherry Burton; went to Northumbria University to study sport studies, completed studies in 1985; joined the Parachute Regiment) pages 150-151 (moved to Burnaby, Vancouver, Canada and worked at Simon Fraser University between September 1999 and August 2003)
670
__ |a The Space Show broadcast 2746, viewed November 28, 2016 |b (Dr. Erik Seedhouse; Norwegian-Canadian suborbital astronaut; after completing his first degree he joined the 2nd Battalion the Parachute Regiment; returned to world of academia and supported his studies toward a Master’s degree by winning prize money in 100km running races; in 1996, pursued his Ph.D. at the German Space Agency; in 1999 retired from being a pro triathlete and took a research position at Simon Fraser University; in 2005 worked as an astronaut training consultant for Bigelow Aerospace; in 2009 was one of the final 30 candidates in the Canadian Space Agency’s Astronaut Recruitment Campaign; between 2008 and 2013 served as director of Canada’s manned centrifuge and hypobaric operations; works as an Assistant Professor in Commercial Space Operations in Embry Riddle Aeronautical University’s Daytona Beach campus)
670
__ |a Facebook, November 28, 2016 |b (Erik Seedhouse; soldier, February 1987 to August 1990; research scientist, German Space Agency, September 1996 to October 1998; post-doc researcher, Simon Fraser University, September 1999 to September 2003; astronaut instructor, Project Possum, Daytona Beach, Florida; assistant professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide, Daytona Beach, Florida; training director, Astronauts for Hire, 2010 to present; PhD, Virtual reality/Space motion sickness, University of Sheffield, 1999)
PERSONAL
Born June 19, 1964, in Tonsberg, Norway.
EDUCATION:Northumbria University, degree in sport studies, 1985; University of Sheffield, Ph.D., 1999.
ADDRESS
CAREER
European Space Agency, research scientist, 1996-98; Simon Fraser University, 1999-2003; Project Possum, Florida, astronaut instructor; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide, Florida, assistant professor; 2nd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment; Bigelow Aerospace, astronaut training consultant, 2005; Astronauts for Hire, training director, 2010—.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Norwegian-Canadian astronaut living in the United Kingdom, Erik Seedhouse has written numerous books about the space industry. He was a research scientist at the European Space Agency in the 1990s; astronaut instructor at Project Possum in Florida; member of the 2nd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment; and an astronaut training consultant for Bigelow Aerospace. With a Ph.D. from University of Sheffield, he is a training director at Astronauts for Hire.
In 2008, Seedhouse published Tourists in Space: A Practical Guide. Drawing on public opinion of the space tourism industry, he discusses the new technologies, spacecraft capabilities, and launch vehicles needed to make that a reality. Seedhouse discusses the beginning of space tourism with the pioneering work of SpaceshipOne, which won the X Prize in 2004. He also explores the market for space tourism, which types of space planes or rockets are the safest, the enormous fees for space adventurers, space tourism companies, and what to expect on a suborbital flight. Seedhouse devotes nearly half the book to rigid training regimens for potential passengers. Writing in Choice, T. D. Oswalt said: “Seedhouse’s book is an enthusiastic foray into the ‘adventurpreneurial’ world of space tourism.”
Seedhouse’s 2013, SpaceX’s Dragon: America’s Next Generation Spacecraft describes the reusable space vehicle, the Dragon V2, designed by SpaceX, led by CEO Elon Musk. The Dragon V2 can be retrieved, refurbished, and re-launched, essentially saving money on missions. This is a novel approach as equipment costing hundreds of millions of dollars is generally discarded after a single use. Seedhouse delves into the new-edge technology and incredible feats of engineering that went into Dragon V2, how it can transport astronauts to the orbiting International Space Station, go on resupply missions, and someday may reach Mars.
Online at The Space Review, Jeff Foust though the book needed to go more in-depth despite erroneous and unusual observations. Foust wrote: “There’s very little insight about Dragon beyond what’s already publicly available, and even that information is sometimes wrong.” He added that the book “tells a story about the development and future possibilities of Dragon, but it’s clear there are more Dragon tales to be told.”
Bigelow Aerospace
In 2014, Seedhouse published Bigelow Aerospace: Colonizing Space One Module at a Time, which describes the technology of expandable modules that inflate into space habitats. These modules are more durable than rigid counterparts and are ideal for use in the future development of commercial space stations. On the Universe Today Web site, Mark Mortimer commented that despite the book having “so much in it and so much going for it,” it lacks corporate insight into Bigelow.
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Choice, October 28, 2008, T.D. Oswalt, review of Tourists in Space.
ONLINE
Space Review, http://www.thespacereview.com/ (February 8, 2016), Jeff Foust, review of Space X’s Dragon.
Universe Today, https://www.universetoday.com/ (October 23, 2015) Mark Mortimer, review of Bigelow Aerospace.*
Erik Seedhouse is a Norwegian-Canadian suborbital astronaut. After completing his first degree the author joined the 2nd Battalion the Parachute Regiment. During his time in the ‘Para’s’, Erik spent six months in Belize, where he trained in the art of jungle warfare. Later, he spent many months learning the intricacies of desert warfare in Cyprus. He made more than 30 jumps from a C130, performed more than 200 helicopter abseils and fired more light anti-tank weapons than he cares to remember! Upon returning to the world of academia, the author embarked upon a Master’s degree, supporting his studies by winning prize money in 100km running races. After placing third in the World 100km Championships and setting the North American 100km record, Erik turned to ultra-distance triathlon, winning the World Endurance Triathlon Championships in 1995 and 1996. For good measure, he won the inaugural World Double Ironman Championships in 1995 and the infamous Decatriathlon, an event requiring competitors to swim 38km, cycle 1800km, and run 422km. Non-stop!. In 1996, Erik pursued his Ph.D. at the German Space Agency. While conducting his studies he won Ultraman Hawai’i and the European Ultraman Championships as well as completing the Race Across America bike race. Due to his success as the world’s leading ultra-distance triathlete Erik was featured in dozens of magazine and television interviews. In 1997, GQ magazine nominated him as the ‘Fittest Man in the World’.In 1999, Erik retired from being a pro triathlete and took a research position at Simon Fraser University. In 2005 the author worked as an astronaut training consultant for Bigelow Aerospace and wrote ‘Tourists in Space’, a training manual for spaceflight participants. In 2009 he was one of the final 30 candidates in the Canadian Space Agency’s Astronaut Recruitment Campaign. Between 2008 and 2013 he served as director of Canada’s manned centrifuge and hypobaric operations. Erik works as an Assistant Professor in Commercial Space Operations at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University's Daytona Beach campus. When not enjoying the sun on the Space Coast he spends as much time as possible in Sandefjord, Norway, and Kona, Hawaii.
Erik Seedhouse is a suborbital astronaut whose life-long ambition is to work in space. He works as a spaceflight consultant, triathlon coach and author and is the Training Director for Astronauts for Hire. Between 2008 and 2013 he was director of Canada’s manned centrifuge operations. Erik’s previous books include Ocean Outpost (2010), Trailblazing Medicine (2011), Interplanetary Outpost (2011), and Pulling G. (2012).
Beyond Human is an informative and accessible guide for all those interested in the developing sciences of genetic engineering, bio printing and human cloning. Illustrating the ideas with reference to well-known science fiction films and novels, the author provides a unique insight into and understanding of how genetic manipulation, cloning, and other novel bio-technologies will one day allow us to redesign our species. It also addresses the legitimate concerns about “playing God”, while at the same time embracing the positive aspects of the scientific trajectory that will lead to our transhuman future.
4/12/17, 6)08 PM
Print Marked Items
Beyond Human: Engineering Our Future Evolution
Don Sakers
Analog Science Fiction & Fact.
135.4 (Apr. 2015): p107. From Book Review Index Plus.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Sakers, Don. "Beyond Human: Engineering Our Future Evolution." Analog Science Fiction & Fact, Apr. 2015, p. 107.
PowerSearch, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do? p=GPS&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA403012735&it=r&asid=547523be004a60844373841db1c4454a. Accessed 12 Apr. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A403012735
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4/12/17, 6)08 PM
SpaceX: Making Commercial Spaceflight a Reality
David Brandt-Erichsen
Ad Astra.
25.4 (Winter 2013): p48. From Book Review Index Plus.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Brandt-Erichsen, David. "SpaceX: Making Commercial Spaceflight a Reality." Ad Astra, Winter 2013, p. 48.
PowerSearch, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do? p=GPS&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA354890050&it=r&asid=c6287320950ed4baebac8512f063cff8. Accessed 12 Apr. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A354890050
about:blank Page 2 of 2
SpaceX’s Dragon: America’s Next Generation Spacecraft
by Erik Seedhouse
Springer, 2015
paperback, 188 pp., illus.
ISBN 978-3-319-21514-3
US$29.95
Late last week, NASA released the source selection statement for the Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS-2) contracts it awarded last month to Orbital ATK, Sierra Nevada Corporation, and SpaceX. That document provided more details on NASA’s evaluation of the CRS-2 proposals it received and why it selected the three companies. The document showed that SpaceX stood out from a technical standpoint, with the highest score for “mission suitability” among the three winning companies. Interestingly, though, the document indicated that SpaceX had the highest, albeit unspecified, price of the three, at least in terms of the cost of carrying pressurized cargo up to the International Space Station—the one capability that all three have in common.
Dragon is, in many respects, no less important to SpaceX than its launch vehicles.
As with its current CRS contract, SpaceX offered to use its Dragon spacecraft for CRS-2; the new contract will include the option of having the spacecraft actively dock with the station rather than be grappled and berthed by the station’s robotic arm, as it is today. The cargo Dragon will be similar to the crew version of Dragon SpaceX is actively developing; the NASA document noted that one reason for SpaceX’s higher price was in part because of “two separate vehicles with separate production lines.”
While much of the attention SpaceX has received, particularly recently, focused on its launch vehicles and efforts to make them reusable, Dragon is, in many respects, no less important to SpaceX. Space Act Agreements and later contracts with NASA, first for cargo and later for crew, provided SpaceX with significant financial and technical support to develop Dragon, not to mention a large anchor customer. And Dragon, particularly its crewed version, will be important for SpaceX, and founder Elon Musk’s, ambitions to make humanity multiplanetary.
Given that important role Dragon plays, its development is worthy of a book. Unfortunately, it probably deserves a better book than SpaceX’s Dragon: America’s Next Generation Spacecraft. Erik Seedhouse offers a history of Dragon’s development for cargo and crew missions, and its potential future on missions to Mars, but there’s very little insight about Dragon beyond what’s already publicly available, and even that information is sometimes wrong.
Seedhouse takes the reader through an introduction to SpaceX and then NASA’s commercial crew program, before going back to Dragon itself and its development for NASA’s earlier commercial cargo program. He provides summaries of all of the Dragon missions to date (including a brief discussion of the Falcon 9 launch failure on its seventh CRS mission last June), then discusses commercial crew development and potential future uses of Dragon, including missions to Mars.
Those discussions rely very heavily on publicly available information, without much additional insight. Some of the discussions of CRS missions to the station read like Wikipedia entries, with lots of technical information, but little else beyond a quote or two from NASA or SpaceX officials. There are, for example, no behind-the-scenes accounts of the development of Dragon or its missions. (Seedhouse at one point refers to an unnamed “colleague” who works at SpaceX, but the only insider info that person offers is that “Elon Musk could be a very difficult boss to work for,” hardly a novel assessment.)
He devotes an entire chapter to SpaceX’s proposed DragonLab free-flyer missions, but only in the chapter’s final paragraph addresses its biggest question: when, if ever, those long-delayed missions will fly.
This creates some missed opportunities. For example, on SpaceX’s second CRS mission in early 2013, the Dragon went out of control shortly after reaching orbit, resulting in hours of drama and fears the mission would be lost until ground controllers were able to correct the problem with a thruster valve. That incident, arguably the biggest in-flight problem that Dragon has experienced to date, is covered in just one paragraph in the book.
Coupled with that limited insight are errors or other unusual observations. The first Dragon mission to the ISS, known as COTS 2/3 or COTS 2+, is mentioned a couple times in the text as CRS 2/3. A photo of that launch in the book shows a Falcon 9 lifting off in daytime, but that mission in fact launched in the pre-dawn hours. On the commercial crew side, he suggests SpaceX’s Crew Dragon and Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner will allow the station’s partners to increase the crew size to 14. NASA is instead considering increasing the crew only by one, to seven people; it’s unlikely the station in its current form could comfortably accommodate 14 people for extended periods. He also devotes an entire chapter to SpaceX’s proposed DragonLab free-flyer missions, but only in the chapter’s final paragraph addresses the biggest question about DragonLab: when, if ever, those long-delayed missions will fly.
In the book’s final chapter, Seedhouse speculates about Dragon’s future, including missions to Mars. Here he is, ironically, on firmer ground, simply because SpaceX has disclosed few details about those plans (Musk recently said he would finally lay out those plans in greater detail this September at the International Astronautical Congress in Mexico.) SpaceX’s Dragon: America’s Next Generation Spacecraft tells a story about the development and future possibilities of Dragon, but it’s clear there are more Dragon tales to be told.
Jeff Foust (jeff@thespacereview.com) is the editor and publisher of The Space Review, and a senior staff writer with SpaceNews. He also operates the Spacetoday.net web site. Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author alone.
REVIEW: “BIGELOW AEROSPACE: COLONIZING SPACE ONE MODULE AT A TIME”
Article Updated: 23 Dec , 2015
by Mark Mortimer
You’ve had a busy day wandering around a faraway part of our solar system. It’s time to put your head down for a nap. Where do you place it? According to Erik Seedhouse in his book “Bigelow Aerospace: Colonizing Space One Module at a Time“, you easily slip into a space module, doff your all-purpose space suit and enjoy the pleasures of a safe secure environment. Know of a better way to get over that stressful day?
Now what can you write about a space module? You can try to present all sorts of details and specifications, but that makes for a rather dry read. You can try to present imaginative different uses and configurations, but they’d be only pipe dreams. Or, you can bring both together and add lots of recent history, and you’d come up with something like what Seedhouse provides.
In his book, he shows that while Bigelow Aerospace has something ready for the International Space Station this year, it derives from a NASA concept many years ago. In particular, he sets the direct precursor as NASA’s TransHab that resulted from copious design work and intensive testing. Actually, a good part of the first part of the book is all about the NASA studies; sometimes reading as if the information came direct from NASA technical sheets. The nice thing about this is that the detail is quite involved. For example, are you interested in knowing the relative stress and strain qualities of phenylene benzobisoxazole? Or that early balloons were made of polyethylene terephthalate film? On the imaginative side, the book has many great diagrams and pictures of hypothetical inflatable modules, whether for journeying to Mars, visiting an asteroid or just hanging around in a centrifuge. These serve well to describe the intended usage by NASA as well as the ideas that Bigelow Aerospace is contemplating for the future of space modules.
While the details on space modules fill most of the book, there’s more. The book begins with a slight biography of Robert Bigelow. While these facts are interesting, their only relevance seems to be with Bigelow’s purchase of the eight TransHab rights and with his keen interest and support of many things related to aliens and UFOs. Towards the book’s end, Seedhouse spreads his topic to include a discussion on the launcher industry. Here, he rightfully cautions that the success of private industry space modules comes directly from the success of private industry launchers. And we know how well this is going so far! Seedhouse’s last chapter imagines how a space module can be used on the Moon but then he also warns that other countries, such as China, may claim that world beforehand.
Yes, this book seems to have so much in it and so much going for it. Somehow though, it misses the mark. With a title screaming out ‘Bigelow’, I would have expected lots of corporate insights. Yet, it seems that the author’s sole direct knowledge source is one interview with Robert Bigelow. The book’s data reads almost as if straight from a NASA data sheet or a Bigelow Aerospace advertisement. Yes, this smallish book does have lots in it, but nothing that pushes the boundary forward. Equally the near xenophobic rant toward the end detracts from an otherwise sound technical review. Still, once the Bigelow Expandable Space Module becomes part of the International Space station at least the book’s subject will have made a great step forward.
The technical review is the strength of this book by Erik Seedhouse. In “Bigelow Aerospace – Colonizing Space One Module at a Time” we get the feel for a technology that has showed a lot of promise and is on the verge of becoming a player in space. In many ways, the book is homage to a person that’s taken a waylaid government idea and turned it into a corporate product. As the book implies, go industry, go!
The book is available at Amazon. Find out more about Eric Seedhouse at the Astronauts4Hire website. Learn more about Bigelow Aerospace here.
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By Mark Mortimer -
Mr. Mortimer is the president and CEO for the Lunar Colony Fund. He is leading this registered non-profit organization to be the focus for those people worldwide who want to support a human capability beyond the cradle of Earth. Mr. Mortimer has had an extensive career across many fields including government, defence contractor, telecommunications, institutions, environmental agencies and fundraisers. He's written reviews for space related publications as well as written a book on the attribution of civilization's progress to the availability of energy. By establishing a singularly focused fund, he will resolve the single most challenging aspect of space; the monies needed to enable our reach to the stars.
Publications
8-2008
Book Review: Tourists in Space: A Practical Guide T. D. Oswalt
Florida Institute of Technology, oswal 1@erau.edu
Follow this and additional works at: h p://commons.erau.edu/publication
Part of the Aeronautical Vehicles Commons, Science and Technology Studies Commons, Space
Vehicles Commons, and the Tourism Commons Scholarly Commons Citation
Oswalt, T. D. (2008). Book Review: Tourists in Space: A Practical Guide. Choice Reviews, 45(12). h p://doi.org/10.5860/ CHOICE.45-6762
Reprinted with permission from CHOICE www.choicereviews.org, copyright by the American Library Association.
is Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by E U Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Publications by an authorized administrator of E U Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact commons@erau.edu.
Tourists in space : a practical guide Seedhouse, Erik. Springer/Praxis, 2008
314p, 9780387746432 $34.95 LC Call Number: TL1489
Seedhouse's book is an enthusiastic foray into the "adventurpreneurial" world of space tourism. Today, about a dozen companies are vying to be the first profitable commercial "spaceline." As during the barnstorming airplane days of a century ago, the sky's the limit, and technology is advancing faster than governing standards can be worked out. The book begins with an exciting account of the flight of SpaceshipOne, the X Prize-winning 2004 flight that ignited the current frenzy of private space ventures. Subsequent chapters provide fairly technical discussions of factors a would-be space tourist should consider before plunking down $200,000 or more for the adventure of a lifetime. Topics include current space tourism companies, which types of space planes or rockets are likely to be safest, the variety of training regimens that may be required, and what to expect during suborbital and orbital flights. Seedhouse is a self-proclaimed astronaut wannabe. This, his personal operator's manual, will interest anyone with the money and aspiration to join the elite club of fewer than 500 humans who have soared above an altitude of 100 kilometers. It is a good read for armchair astronauts, too.
Summing Up: Recommended. All readers/libraries.
Reviewer: T. D. Oswalt, Florida Institute of Technology
Recommendation: Recommended
Readership Level: All Readership Levels, General Readers, Lower-division Undergraduates, Upper- division Undergraduates, Graduate Students, Researchers/Faculty, Two-Year Technical Program Students, Professionals/Practitioners
Interdisciplinary Subjects:
Subject: Science & Technology - Astronautics & Astronomy
Choice Issue: aug 2008 vol. 45 no. 12
Choice Review #: 45-6762
Choice Reviews | Review
http://www.choicereviews.org/review/10.5860/CHOICE.45-6762[9/30/2016 4:26:48 PM]
Book Reviews
Erik Seedhouse, The New Space Race: China vs. the United States, 2010, Chichester: Praxis Publishing Ltd.
Rukmani Gupta*
In wake of the increasing attention received by China’s space programme, it has been posited by some that a new space race, akin to the space race between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, has already begun between China and the US. Erik Seedhouse in his book explores the various elements of the space programmes of both countries with a view to assess the possibility of a space race between them.
Divided into four sections, the book begins with a historical review of China’s space programme. The ideological impetus behind China’s investment in a space programme right from the time of Mao Zedong to the current leadership is examined and the important figures that shaped China’s endeavours in space are identified. Seedhouse believes that despite the enormous financial costs and the dangers, by pursuing a manned spaceflight programme China hopes to “boost domestic pride, gain international prestige, increase economic development and reap all the benefits that the US acquired through the Apollo and Space Shuttle programmes” (p. 5). Nationalism and threat perceptions vis-à-vis the US are seen as having played an important role in the formulation of China’s space programme. It is asserted that China’s space programme has continued to be strongly military-oriented, right from the time of its inception (p. 13). Assessments of Chinese technological progress that has been instrumental in facilitating its space programme are made. The author documents the setbacks faced by China’s commercial space programme with a series of failed launches and the subsequent investigations into these which included US satellite manufacturers, and ultimately enabled China’s access to information with dual-use capabilities. An in-depth
White Paper on China’s Space Activities in 2006 are
analysis of the space policies of both, China and the US, is made in Chapter two. The US space policy document of 2006 is compared with that of 1996 and its emphasis on national security along with the de-emphasis of international cooperation and
the sources utilised arms control is seen as indicative of American
to glean information about China’s space policy.
concerns of space security. China’s Five-Year Plans and the White Paper on China’s Space Activities in 2006 are the sources utilised to glean information about China’s space policy. Despite the rhetoric by
* Rukmani Gupta is an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis (IDSA), New Delhi.
Vol 4. No 4. October 2010 138
Erik Seedhouse, The New Space Race: China vs. the United States, 2010, Chichester: Praxis Publishing Ltd.
China’s officials on the peaceful exploration of space and China’s participation in activities organised by the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, its ASAT test of 2007 and the control that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) exercises over the entire programme has strengthened the belief that China’s space programme is essentially military in nature (p. 46).
Section two of the book reflects on the threats posed by China to US space superiority. The space capabilities and military assets of both countries are listed and assessed. China is believed to view space as any other battle field and considers superiority in space as essential for winning battles on land. China is expected to enhance its targeting capabilities and communications systems, China’s pursuit of counter-space capabilities since the 1991 Gulf War is also emphasised (p. 86). The author contends that the US believes the deployment of space weapons works as a deterrent by reducing the confidence in the success of any attack (p. 104). In the near future the US is expected to continue deploying assets to improve real-time information on space assets and stealth capabilities. Advancement in interceptor technology could enable the US to overcome the use of high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) by China to disrupt electronic systems. Although reduced interest in science and engineering among students in the US, along with increasing numbers of Chinese graduates in these fields, can be expected to impact the sustained superiority of the US in the realm of space technology, the author
The most important consequence of a conflict between China and the US over superiority
believes that the US’ counter space capabilities are currently no match for China (p. 113). The most important consequence of a conflict between China and the US over superiority in space would be the death of any agreement banning the deployment of space weapons.
in space would be the death of any agreement banning the deployment of space weapons.
The third section of the book titled the “Second Space Race” examines the Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) launched by the Bush Administration in 2004. This identifies the long term tasks set by NASA, including manned missions to Mars, and the hardware necessary to achieve these goals. The drivers identified for a mission by NASA to return to the moon are science, technology, exploration
and exploitation (p. 139). These are drivers that can be common to many other missions planned by NASA. A review of China’s manned space flight programme, from the completion of the Long March launch vehicle to the planned lunar base in 2020 is undertaken. Although China is developing the Long-March 5 launch vehicle (expected to be completed by 2014) and its Shenzhou-7 mission of 2008 showcased its Extravehicular Activity (EVA) capabilities, since China’s Manned Lunar Programme and lunar base programme are not part of any existing state plan it is unclear how they will be realized (p. 146).
Vol 4. No 4. October 2010 139
Rukmani Gupta
The final section of the book reasons why cooperation between the US and China in space exploration and exploitation is unlikely and why the space race between the two is all but inevitable. The moral di erences between the US and China and the lack of transparency in the Chinese system are identified as the two main barriers to cooperation between the US and China (p 212-13). China is not part of the consortium of states participating in the International Space Station venture. This is not only because until recently China was not believed to have the monetary or technological wherewithal to contribute to the venture, but also because of China’s questionable human rights record. China’s ASAT test, the lack of political trust, the role of the PLA in China’s space programme and also lack of avenues that necessitate collaboration, are all impediments to greater cooperation between the US and China. China’s pursuit of soft
power and the perception that manned spaceflight
is an expression of leadership, pursuit of high-
tech war capabilities and determinacy to acquire
superiority in space in the face of US unwillingness
to abrogate its leadership position, are all seen as
reasons for the inevitability of a space race between is an expression of the US and China.
The linkages between American space superiority
and US economic and military pre-eminence are
well explained. The book provides an exhaustive are all seen as catalogue of the hardware and space assets of both
countries along with documenting their space
command and control facilities, enabling quicker
assessment of comparative capabilities. The threat
perception of each vis-à-vis the other outlined in the US and China.
the book help to contextualise the policy decisions
made. For anyone interested in understanding the development of China’s space technology, its probable aims and the future course of space exploration and exploitation, this book will indeed prove valuable.
China’s pursuit of soft power and the perception that manned spaceflight
This book is exceptional for bringing together a vast
amount of information on the space programmes
of both the US and China in a single volume.
Although an exploration of domestic dynamics that
shape decisions on space policy and investment in
China as well as the US could have been more in-
depth, the author does provide the basic rationale of US unwillingness driving the space programmes of each country.
leadership, pursuit of high-tech war capabilities and determinacy to acquire superiority in space in the face
to abrogate its
leadership position,
reasons for the inevitability of a space race between
140 Journal of Defence Studies