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International Cooperation
Editor's Note: This is the tenth in a series of
essays on exploration by Steven J. Dick.
One
of the benefits of space exploration is international cooperation. Although the
Age of Space began in a fiercely competitive mode, political and funding
realities have now shifted the balance toward cooperation. This is particularly
true in the case of the International Space Station, with its 16 partner
nations. And it promises to be increasingly true with the Vision for Space
Exploration.
The reality of international cooperation was brought home
to me at a recent "International Workshop on Exploration Science," sponsored by
NASA and held at College Park Maryland, March 8-10, 2005. The fourth in a series
of international meetings over the last year, this one was attended by the space
agencies of 21 countries, 13 multinational organizations, and seven U. S.
government organizations. It is not so widely known, but true, that
international cooperation goes beyond the Space Station itself. Participants
pointed out that, for example, fully half of the last 60 space science missions
have had international participation. And in the last ten years NASA has carried
out more than 900 agreements with 68 countries.
From left: Jesco von Puttkamer, space station
senior engineer, Boris Chertok, chronicler of the Russian space program, and
NASA Chief Historian Steven J. Dick toast the new English translation of
Chertok's book "Rockets and People" in Moscow.
Those gathered at
the Maryland meeting were all intensely interested in becoming more involved in
cooperation in exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond. The purpose of the
meeting was to hold detailed discussions on how to enhance this cooperation.
Such cooperation is never easy, as there are competing interests and a variety
of technological and funding capabilities to be weighed. But one can argue that
the very act of negotiation, not to mention the implementation of the subsequent
agreements, enhances international prospects for peace as projects of great
moment for humanity are carried out despite the difficulties.
Another
recent experience brought home to me the fact that space history can also
enhance international understanding. I write this essay having just returned
from Moscow, and impressed by a new role that space history can play. The
occasion for the trip was the publication in the NASA History series of the
English translation of volume 1 of Boris Chertok's Rockets and People.
Chertok participated for six decades in the Soviet and Russian aviation and
space programs, including many years as the Deputy to the founding figure of the
Soviet space program, Chief Designer Sergey Korolev.
At a ceremony at
NASA Headquarters March 14, series editor Asif Siddiqi spoke about the project,
as well as Bill Readdy, Associate Administrator for the Space Operations Mission
Directorate, and Jesco von Puttkamer, space station senior engineer who was
essential in initiating and sustaining the project.
But one person not
present on March 14 was Chertok, who had just turned 93 and was still alive and
well in Moscow. So March 30 found us in Moscow at an even more memorable event
with Chertok himself present. Among the 100 attendees were top management from
Roskosmos (the Russian Federal Space Agency) and RSC Energia (the Russian
equivalent of Lockheed or Boeing), many veteran cosmonauts (including,
Alexandrov, Popovich, Savynikh, and Baturin), and distinguished guests including
Natalia Koroleva, Chair of Surgery at the Moscow Medical Academy, and daughter
of Sergey Korolev.
Among the speakers at the dedication ceremony was the
U. S. Ambassador to Russia, Alexander Vershbow, who pointed to the publication
of Chertok's book in the United States as "more evidence of the growing interest
in Russia's history and enormous expertise in space exploration." After
recalling the history of Soviet/Russian and U. S. cooperation in space,
Ambassador Verhsbow noted that "this longstanding cooperation is based on mutual
respect and admiration for the capabilities brought to the table by the other
side. In this way, we believe that we have forged a true partnership. This has
been most recently demonstrated since the Space Shuttle Columbia accident. While
the Shuttle fleet has been grounded for the last two years, Russia has been
providing the International Space Station with crews and cargo, keeping the
station human-tended and productive. We all look forward to the Shuttle's safe
return to flight in May of this year."
The Ambassador also noted that
"the Vision for U.S. Space Exploration announced by President Bush over a year
ago sets many challenging tasks for NASA. One of the objectives of this
initiative is to promote international cooperation in the exploration of the
moon, Mars and beyond." This was precisely the goal of the Maryland meeting a
few weeks before.
Chertok himself gave a lively address, expressing his
surprise and delight that the Americans were taking such a renewed interest in
Soviet/Russian space history, and called this revelation a "second discovery of
America."
The Chertok event and the attending remarks point to an
important role for the NASA History Division, and one that fits well into its
parent organization, the Office of External Relations, which includes
international relations. By helping to increase understanding of the past,
history can foster good international relations in the present and the future.
The three additional volumes of Chertok's memoirs that will appear over the next
three years will continue to foster good relations. And a variety of other
history projects are possible with Russia and other nations.
My Moscow
visit also provided an opportunity to visit the legendary Star City, home of the
Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, where I sat in a Soyuz simulator, toured the
neutral buoyancy facility, and viewed many historic facilities and artifacts. A
visit to the Russian Mission Control allowed us to see where the Mir space
station had been tracked, and where now the International Space Station is
tracked jointly with Mission Control at Johnson Space Center. Russian Mission
Control is located in a suburb of Moscow, formerly named Kaliningrad, now
appropriately renamed Korolev. Nearby stand the buildings of the Rocket Space
Corporation Energia, production facilities that also house an excellent museum,
including Gagarin's charred capsule.
NASA Chief Historian Steven J. Dick in a Soyuz simulator
at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Russia.
A week later,
at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, I visited the American Mission Control
for the International Space Station, festooned with the flags of the 16
cooperating nations. Despite the critics, one can argue that Space Station
funding has been well-spent simply as an investment in fostering international
cooperation, and for what such cooperation promises to achieve in the future.
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