Opinion
Opinion section includes op-eds, columns, commentaries and editorials on all things related to the global space business enterprise.
The Future is Here Again
Space has become a business, where companies big and small are investing billions of dollars. They are investing in cheaper and more reliable ways to go there and come back. In technologies to survive in places far from the air and warmth and light of Earth.
Op-ed | FAA streamlining effort empowers U.S. launch industry
The FAA’s rapid success in creating updated launch and reentry rules reflects its leadership’s measured look at the current regulations and willingness to build on what they have learned from the commercial launch community.
Op-ed | Unleashing America’s commercial space industry
The FAA's recently updated commercial space launch and reentry licensing requirements "will simplify the licensing process, allow more room for innovation, and reduce costs — all without sacrificing safety," writes U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
Op-ed | Space system cybersecurity: Challenges ahead translating policy to practice
A recent White House memo on Space Policy Directive-5 is a step right direction, but we have a long road ahead.
Op-ed | To get to Mars, first develop the moon
America’s future in space depends on lunar industrial development. It is the prerequisite for human exploration and settlement of Mars.
Op-ed | Securing cislunar space: A vision for U.S. leadership
Protecting U.S. and allied activities in cislunar space presents significant technological challenges that must be surmounted to ensure U.S. preeminence in the cislunar regime.
News Analysis | Telesat’s deliberate pace to LEO broadband
Compared to the rapid-fire tempo of SpaceX Starlink and OneWeb’s upcoming return to launch operations in December, Telesat’s pace to build a global LEO broadband constellation is glacial.
Op-ed | 20 years in space: Lessons in cooperation from the International Space Station
The International Space Station's first two decades of continuous occupation has made clear that when we open space to more people, countries and industries, opportunity and innovation flourishes.
Op-ed | Orbital debris and the threat to industry investment
Just as governments closely scrutinize medical vaccines before approving them to mitigate the risks of broad harm, they must also carefully scrutinize strategies to mitigate orbital debris risk from the upcoming increase in launch activity, particularly in LEO.
Foust Forward | The limits of space cooperation between the U.S. and Russia
On the morning of Oct. 14, a Soyuz spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome from Kazakhstan, both the first and last of its kind. It was the first to use a new “ultra-fast” two-orbit approach to the International Space Station, allowin…
On National Security | How the military buys satellites may have reached a turning point
The idea that DoD can save time, money and make space systems more resilient by moving to proliferated systems has been talked about for years. But many reform efforts could not overcome bureaucratic inertia.
Op-ed | Space Force should break the mold in recruiting and retaining talent
The U.S. Space Force now has the perfect opportunity to revolutionize the military personnel system.
Op-ed | Commitment to space exploration should be on the ballot
With less than a month to go in this election cycle, the public is awash in big issues, COVID and healthcare to national defense and economic recovery. Lest we forget, an issue also on the ballot is space – with national unity, security, and economic implications in tow.
Op-ed | Can SpaceX profit on certain Starlink launches?
It is no longer a surprise to industry observers that partial reusability, economies of scale and vertical integration have enabled SpaceX to achieve extremely low Falcon 9 launch costs. It may however remain a surprise to some that SpaceX will further reduce the Starlink launch capex by manifesting paying customers as rideshare payloads on some Starlink launches.
Op-ed | China’s Arctic gambit a concern for U.S. air and space forces
The United States must work with long-time Arctic partners to increase vigilance in this increasingly vital region.
Op-ed | Social distancing, self-isolation, and … space debris?
In addition to better preparing us for the next pandemic, or teaching us how to prevent it altogether, reflection also reveals lessons we can apply to other issues we face as a collective society, writes Mike Lindsay.
