Res Communis

RELEASE : 11-280

Space Agencies Meet To Discuss A Global Exploration Roadmap

WASHINGTON — Senior managers representing 10 space agencies from around the world met in Kyoto, Japan today to advance the Global Exploration Roadmap for coordinated space exploration.

During the past year, the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) has developed a long-range human exploration strategy. It begins with the International Space Station and expands human presence throughout the solar system, leading ultimately to human missions to explore the surface of Mars. The roadmap flows from this strategy and identifies two potential pathways: “Asteroid Next” and “Moon Next.”

Each pathway represents a mission scenario over a 25-year period describing a logical sequence of robotic and human missions. Both pathways were deemed practical approaches addressing common high-level exploration goals developed by the participating agencies, recognizing that individual preferences among participating space agencies may vary regarding these pathways.

The first iteration of the roadmap will inform and focus the planning currently underway in each of the partner agencies in the areas of planetary robotic exploration, advanced technology development and use of the space station in preparation for exploration. It was agreed that during the next few weeks, this initial version of the Global Exploration Roadmap would be finalized and released to the public.

Yoshiyuki Hasagawa of Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency, in his capacity as chairman of the International Space Exploration Coordination Group said, “We are very happy with the progress of the Global Exploration Roadmap to technically coordinate both near and long term space exploration planning, with world space agencies.”

During the meeting, the senior agency managers also reaffirmed the role of the ISECG to facilitate the ability of space agencies to take concrete steps toward partnerships that reflect a globally coordinated exploration effort.

“NASA is confident that the release of this product, and subsequent refinements as circumstances within each space agency evolve, will facilitate the ability of space agencies to form the partnerships that will ensure robust and sustainable human exploration,” said NASA’s Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations and outgoing ISECG chair William Gerstenmaier.

The ISECG was established as a voluntary, non-binding international coordination forum, where the partner agencies that contributed to the Global Exploration Strategy (GES) can exchange information regarding interests, plans, and activities in space exploration.

The GES set forth a shared vision for concerted human and robotic space exploration missions focused on solar system destinations where humans may one day live and work. Another stated goal is to encourage the partners to work together on strengthening both individual exploration programs and collective efforts.

The development of the Global Exploration Roadmap is the second step toward achieving this goal, following the development of the ISECG Reference Architecture for Human Lunar Exploration.

The countries participating in the meeting included in alphabetical order: Canada, Europe, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Russia, United Kingdom, and United States.

For more information about NASA and human exploration visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/home/index.html

The government agency that helped invent the Internet now wants to do the same for travel to the stars.

In what is perhaps the ultimate startup opportunity, Darpa, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, plans to award some lucky, ambitious and star-struck organization roughly $500,000 in seed money to begin studying what it would take — organizationally, technically, sociologically and ethically — to send humans to another star, a challenge of such magnitude that the study alone could take a hundred years.

The awarding of that grant, on Nov. 11 — 11/11/11 — is planned as the culmination of a yearlong Darpa-NASA effort called the 100-Year Starship Study, which started quietly last winter and will include a three-day public symposium in Orlando, Fla., on Sept. 30 on the whys and wherefores of interstellar travel. [Full story]

European Space Governance: the Outlook

Annual Space Conference organized by SWF and IFRI

The conference will provide a snapshot of the current governance of space programs in Europe. The first panel will explore structural issues: the implications of the Lisbon Treaty in terms of policy, the legal context for space activities in Europe and the burning topic of sustainable funding. The second panel will address the perspectives in term of governance of three important programs: Galileo, GMES and MUSIS. The last panel will focus on specific stakeholders of European space policy, addressing the future of national agencies and the space-related activities of the European Defence Agency (EDA) and the European External Action Service (EEAS). Last but not least, a keynote speaker will explain the current diplomatic activity around the adoption of an international Code of Conduct in space. Each panel will be followed by a debate with the audience.

8:30 – Registration and coffee

9:00-9:15 – Introduction: The basics of European space governance

Christophe VENET, Research Associate to the Space Policy Program, Ifri

9:15-11:00 – Panel 1: European space governance after the Lisbon Treaty

The first panel will explore structural issues: the institutional interplay between the various European stakeholders, the implications of the Lisbon Treaty in terms of policy, the place of national actors in the European governance scheme and the burning topic of sustainable funding. Moderator: Agnieszka LUKASZCZYK, Space Policy Consultant, Secure World Foundation.

“Policy implications of the Lisbon Treaty and governance evolutions”

Gaëlle MICHELIER, Policy Officer, Space Policy & Coordination Unit, Enterprise and Industry DG, European Commission

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“The legal framework of space activities in Europe”

Tanja MASSON-ZWAAN, Deputy Director, International Institute of Air & Space Law, Leiden University.

“How to make space systems financially sustainable?” 


Maria BUZDUGAN, Legal Officer, EU satellite navigation programs: Legal, Financial and Institutional Aspects, Enterprise and Industry DG, European Commission.

“Procurement rules: towards a third way?” 
Rik HANSEN, Research Fellow, Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies, Leuven Catholic University

11:00-11:30 – Coffee break 

11:30-13:00 – Panel 2: Governance issues for specific programs

The second panel will address the future governance perspectives of three important programs: Galileo, GMES and MUSIS.

Moderator: Katarzyna CHAJEC,  Second Secretary from the Polish Permanent Mission to the EU (TBD)
   
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“EGNOS and Galileo: which governance for the operational phase?”

Gérard BRACHET, Consultant in space policy, Vice-President of the International Astronautical Federation 
 
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“GMES: which governance scheme after 2013?”

Josef ASCHBACHER, Head, GMES Space Office, European Space Agency.  

“MUSIS: The promises and limitations of multilateral cooperation endeavors”

Olivier JEHIN, Editor of Europe Diplomacy and Defence
 
13:00-14:00 – Buffet lunch

14:00-14:30 – Keynote speech on the Code of Conduct for outer space activities

How is the international community warming up to the EU proposal?
Pierre-Louis LEMPEREUR, CODUN SPACE Chair, Non-proliferation and disarmament directorate, European Union External Action Service

14:30-16:00 – Panel 3: Entities and agencies in the wider European framework

The last panel will focus on specific stakeholders of European space policy, addressing both the space-related activities of the European Defence Agency (EDA) and the European Action Service (EEAS), and the future of national agencies.

Moderator: Laurence NARDON, Head of the Space Policy Program, Ifri
 
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“What is the future role for national space agencies?” 
Jan KOLAR, Director, Czech Space Office

“A growing role for EDA in space”

Denis TRIOULAIRE, Capability Manager Knowledge, European Defence Agency
  
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“How can space support the EU external actions?” 
TBD

16:00-16h30 – Wrap up of the day 
Michael SIMPSON, Senior Program Manager, Secure World Foundation

Lieu : Conseil Central de l’Economie, avenue de la Joyeuse Entrée 17-21, Brussels
Organisateurs : contact: breux@ifri.org