Category: Space

Introduction

For several decades, the human race has been pursuing space exploration for varied reasons. Since the arms race during the cold war, several accomplishments have been made by countries such as the United States, Russia, China, and other emerging powers in Europe and Asia. The growing focus on space has been connected with the notion that there could be commercial benefits to be reaped. For this reason, countries across the world have had to develop major rules governing space exploration. According to Pershing (2019), the laws are set to achieve a balance between economic efficiency and equitable access. In other words, certain rules have been developed to make sure that no country can claim sovereignty of the celestial bodies.

As mentioned above, the UAE is among the latest countries in the world to pursue space exploration. The initiatives include Emirates Lunar Mission 2024 where the country hopes to create a lunar rover and launch it to the Moon by 2024 (“Emirates Lunar Mission” – 2024, 2020). The mission purposes to study the thermal properties of the lunar surface and other scientific objectives such as the components and formation of lunar soil. The creation of the UAE Space Agency has been accompanied by a national space policy that has helped several pioneer programs. The UAE has been launching satellites since 2009 with the latest launched in 2017 (“Emirates Lunar Mission” – 2024, 2020). The focus, however, is on the legal aspects of the country’s space exploration. Through the space policy, legal aspects governing the country’s space activities can be observed. However, space exploration is a matter of international concern governed not only by domestic activities but also international laws.

The law that governs the UAE space sector is the UA space law developed in 2019. It is called Federal Law No. 12 of 2019 on the Regulation of the Space Sector. The rule seeks to stimulate investments in the space sector, including encouraging the private sector to get involved (“Emirates Lunar Mission – 2024”, 2020). The focus of this paper is to examine the extent to which the UAE space law clarifies the functional, personal, and physical scope of the application of the UN space treaties. For this paper, the functional scope entails the activities and objects regulated by the law. The personal scope entails the interpretation of the term ‘national space activity, while the physical scope focuses on how outer space is defined and delimited. Personal views regarding these aspects of the paper will be presented alongside legal and theoretical arguments.

Background to UAE Federal Law No. 12 of 2019

The Federal Law No. 12 of 2019 on the Regulation of the Space Sector (UAE space law) was issued on December 19, 2019, as an abrogation of the Federal Decree-Law No. 1/2014 dated August 6, 2014. The law supports the UAE’s commitments to the provisions of the international treaties and conventions relating to outer space. Therefore, some of the articles and clauses contained in this law will be based on these international treaties and conventions. Additionally, the law pursues UAE’s national space policy which offers guidelines on the national functions, commercial sector, and science, technology, and exploration. The latest document on the UAE National Space Policy was published in 2016 clarifying the ultimate objectives of the country’s space exploration. This goal includes the creation of a robust and viable space sector supporting and protecting vital industries and national interests (UAE Government, 2016). Additionally, the policy hopes to help diversify and grow the economy and develop technological capabilities within the UAE.

The UAE space law comprises 9 chapters each describing specific legal issues. For this background section, chapter one is the most important one laying the foundation for other sections that follow. The first chapter provides the general provisions, including the definitions in Article 1, objectives of the law and scope of application in articles 2 and 3 respectively (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). The definitions of key terms include the state, which refers to the United Arab Emirates. The state’s territory is defined as the land, territorial sea, and airspace above. Additionally, a provision for free zones or any areas of special economic status to the country is also regarded as the state’s territory.

Other important definitions offered in Article 1 include a specified area, which is any area above 80 kilometers or more than the average sea level. High altitude activities are those above the range of air traffic control and lower than the specified area (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). Space data, incidents, accidents, space debris, space resources, and meteorites are also vividly defined. Lastly, outer space is that area above the Earth’s atmosphere. It is important to note that these are only a selection of terms that are important in the discussion. Several other terms critical to the law itself have been defined to specify the scope of the law or what the law seeks to regulate.

The second and third articles of the UAE space law define the objectives and the scope of application. In terms of the objective, the law is intended to offer a legislative framework that regulates the country’s space sector (also defined in Article 1). This is in the pursuit of a regulatory environment geared towards the achievement of the national space policy (referenced above). The law serves three major purposes as defined in Article 2. First, it stimulates investment and encourages the private and academic sectors to participate in the space sectors and related initiatives. Second, it supports the implementation of safety, environmental, and security measure to ensure long-run stability and sustainability of the country’s apace and related activities. Third, the law supports the commitment to transparency of the UAE in the implementation of the provisions of the international treaties and conventions governing outer space. This purpose is critical for the discussion presented in this paper because it offers a glimpse of how compliant the UAE is to the UN space treaties discussed below.

Lastly, it is important to summarize the scope of the application of the UAE space law. The legal document clarifies that the law and its provisions apply to all activities involving space. That is to say, commercial or other activity undertaken by persons (as defined in Article 1) and agencies belonging to the UAE. The conduct of these activities has also been outlined by the law. This includes activities from the state’s territory or its establishments outside the state and from ships or aircraft registered with the state or space objects registered by the state. Additionally, the activities by persons of UAE nationality or companies headquartered in the UAE are also bound by the UAE space law.

Background to UN Space Treaties

The objective of this paper is to determine how the UAE apace law implements the provisions of the UN space treaties. Background to these laws, therefore, offers a set of expectations and benchmarks to make the comparisons. The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs has published the UN apace treaties and principles on outer space. The publication should offer a set of expectations from any country that is a party to the rule. One of the most recent treaties and principles was published by the UN in 2002 and another publication in 2008 that updates on the resolutions adopted by the general assembly (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). There are five treaties enforced by the UN whose focus is on issues such as arms control, liability for damage, freedom of exploration, safety and rescue of astronauts and spacecraft, and the non-appropriation of outer space.

There are five treaties published by the United Nations on outer space activities. The first agreement is the Outer Space Treaty which was established in 1967 and entered into force the same year (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). This s one of the most important treaties for any country engaging in space exploration because it offers a governing framework for all activities conducted by the states in outer space. This includes the Moon and other celestial bodies that have been targeted for exploration. The guidelines of this treaty include that space exploration shall be performed to benefit humankind and all nations. The provisions include that any state is free to explore interstellar space, weapons of mass destruction cannot be placed in outer space, and no country shall claim sovereignty, including by means of use. Additionally, utilization of celestial bodies shall be for peaceful purposes, states are to be held liable for damage or harm caused by their space objects, and astronauts are to be considered envoys.

The second UN space treaty is called the Rescue Agreement. It was established in 1968 to offer further provisions on Articles 5 and 8 of the Outer Space Treaty (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). These rules include immediate notifications to launching authorities regarding the accident, injury or conditions of distress among spacecraft personnel (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). In addition, the new law requires informing the relevant launching authority and the Secretary-General of the UN when a space object or its parts have returned to Earth. Lastly, the states are to initiate steps towards rescuing spacecraft personnel and offer necessary assistance of which should be reported to the Secretary-General of the UN.

The third treaty is the Liability Convention which was established in 1972. It was created to offer further provisions to Article 7 of the Outer Space Treaty (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). The treaty provides that a launching country is completely liable for all destruction resulting from its space objects. This means damaged space objects on the Earth’s surface or aircraft in flight will have to be paid for. The Registration Convention of 1975, which came into force in 1976, helps states identify and classify space objects (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). It requires the maintenance of a register with open access to the states and international organizations. Article 4 of this convention provides a register containing information such as the name(s) of the launching state(s), location of state and launch, key orbital parameters, and the designator of the space object or registration number. Lastly, the Moon Agreement of 1979 restricts activities on the moon and other celestial bodies (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020). The provisions of this agreement are similar to those of the Liability Convention in that they prohibit and penalize activities that harm the Moon, Earth, personnel, or spacecraft among other man-made objects. Additionally, the agreement contains provisions that prohibit the environmental degradation of the Moon.

With these five treaties, it can be seen that each party to the treaty must undertake actions that in consideration of the interests of other party states. They provide a legal framework for domestic laws to be developed. A discussion of the principles may reveal further details regarding the legal implications for a member state. However, it is the treaties that determine how countries define the personal, function, and physical scope of their domestic space laws.

Functional Scope

The UAE has become a space-faring nation that needs to abide by the governance guidelines. According to Beauvois and Thirion (2020), the exploration of new planetary objects and utilization of resources found there requires a governance model that offers medium-term objectives for sustainable space infrastructure. The question of how international collaboration can be fostered in activities such as Moon exploration, asteroid mining, and Mars settlement can be answered by considering the international legal frameworks and compliance by the individual states. As such, the examination of the functional scope focuses on the activities and objects regulated by the UAE space law and how this scope complies with the provisions of the UN treaties discussed above.

In terms of the functional scope, the definition of terms can help explain the application of UN space treaties. The activities regulated by Federal Law No. 12 of 2019 (2019) on the Regulation of the Space Sector are outlined in Chapter 1 Article 4 under the heading Regulated Activities. This article outlines space undertakings, including launch, re-entry, removing or disposing of a space object from space, space navigation, Earth observation, and remote sensing, satellite communication, and operation of space objects. Additionally, operation of the launch or re-entry sites, exploitation and extraction of resources, use of space resources for commercial, scientific, or other purposes, and space awareness activities are all regulated by this law. Others include manned spaceflights, logistical support services, manufacture, assembly, development, testing, storage, transportation, trade, or disposal of space technologies, and any other activity defined through a cabinet decision after a proposal by the Board of Directors.

Further clarifications regarding the actions regulated are provided by the rule. Other space sector-related activities include space supporting flights and other high-altitude activities not regulated by Federal Law No. (20) of 1991 (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). These undertakings are conducted by the state’s territory or through the participation of a flying aircraft or space object registered in the UAE. Space data management, for example, receiving, distributing, archiving, storing, or disposing of data regarding space also fall under this category. This sub-category also outlines deeds involving the collection of and trade in meteorites falling in the state’s territory, the creation of specialized training programs by non-governmental agencies, and any other established by the cabinet through the proposal of the board of directors.

It can be seen that these activities are standard and which any space-faring country would engage in. The essence of space exploration is to find resources that can be exploited for commercial purposes, including scientific experiments and trade-in space resources. The UAE space law does not reiterate how the activities clarify the functional scope of the UN space treaties. As mentioned above, the UN space treaties focus on major areas such as non-appropriation, liability, freedom, rescue, and arms control. The absence of an expressed statement in Article 4 that explains how the country observes international conventions can raise serious questions regarding the country’s compliance. However, these commitments will be explored by focusing on other areas of the law that might offer a clue.

The objects regulated by the UAE space law are not expressly stated. Chapter 5 Article focuses on the registration of space objects. The term space object has been defined in Chapter 1 Article 1 as an object made, lunched, or aimed to be launched by a person into or from the specified area. These are either manned or unmanned, including launching vehicles, component parts of a space object, and parts of a launch vehicle, including those that do not reach the specified area. It is this definition that gives a clue regarding which items are regulated, but the discussion of how they are regulated is lacking.

In compliance with the UN treaties and conventions, these activities and objects have to meet the provisions of all five treaties. The main treaty is the Outer Space Treaty from which several other treaties are derived. The UAE space does not clarify that the activities excluded are prohibited by this treaty, including launching weapons of mass destruction and claiming sovereignty of outer space. The country focuses only on the exploitation and trade in the resources without stating that these activities are to be done for the benefit of all states. However, the UAE space law outlines its liabilities as provided by the Outer Space Treaty. In Articles 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24, the UAE defines the liabilities of the parties involved in the space sector activities defined by the UAE law (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). These include damages on the Earth’s surface, liability for damages by spacecraft outside the state territory, and hitting other space objects. Therefore, the UAE law may not offer a complete clarification of the functional scope, but compliance with the UN space treaties is provided for in the law.

Personal Scope

The personal scope discussed in this section will focus on how the UAE space law interprets the term ‘national’ space activity and how this interpretation clarifies the commitment and application of the UN space treaties. Firstly, it is important to clarify that the term ‘national space activity’ has not been used in the law. The usage of the word ‘national’ has been with regards to aspects such as national space policy, national space programs, national talents, and national initiatives for sustainable outer space environment among others. Rather, the term ‘state’ has been used to refer to the geographical jurisdiction within which the space activities are regulated by the law. The definition of the terms ‘state’ and ‘state’s territory’ is what offers an interpretation of the national space activity. The term state has been used to mean the United Arab Emirates, while State territory has been defined as the lands, territorial seas, and airspace above the state, including the free zones or other areas of special economic status to the state.

The above definitions in Article 1 delimit the geographical jurisdiction under the regulation of the state. It can be argued that in line with the UN space treaties, specifically the Outer Space Treaty, the UAE has refrained from claiming ownership of outer space and any celestial body. In other words, the law fails to express any exclusive interests in outer space. However, the clause “free zones or any areas of a special economic interest” have not been effectively defined and could pose legal questions as to what free zones and special economic interests are. It is argued here that as long as this clause does not in any way refer to the space activity, resources, or territory then compliance to the Outer Space Treaty is manifested through the confinement of these definitions to territories and spaces on the earth’s surface, water, and atmosphere.

The term national space activity can be used to mean space activities undertaken by the state itself or private or corporate individuals within the state. These are critical components of the personal scope and should be properly defined. Article 1 defined the various parties that are involved in national space activities. These include government entities such as public authorities, institutions, and federal and local governments of the state. The agency responsible is the Emirates Space Agency and the individuals who run it. Lastly, the term person defines who is regulated by the law, and this includes a juristic or physical person. With these definitions, it can be seen that the UAE space law describes its jurisdictions when it comes to space activities. Further clarification is made in Article 3 where the scope of the national space activities is described. Further details regarding the interpretation of national space activities in chapter 3 regarding the operation of the agency.

It can be argued here that UAE’s interpretation emanates from a need to provide clear boundaries because the UN space treaties do not define the term ‘national space activities.’ At this point, therefore, the UAE space law goes beyond the provisions of the UN to clarify its own understanding of the terms state, national, and territory that have all been used in the wording of the law. The UN space treaties mention countries and state mainly on the assumption that there is a universal definition of these terms. From a legal perspective, however, it would have served better to offer a standard definition that should be applied by all countries. However, the UAE can be seen as taking the initiative to clarify what it considers to be a country, state, and territory.

The most important point to note, however, is the fact that the UAE has taken responsibility for all space activities within its juristic confines as required by the provisions of the UN space treaties. This is considered particularly important because of matters of liabilities for damage where each country is also required to compensate all the damages its space activities and objects cause on the earth’s surface or to other space objects belonging to other countries. Interpreting its national space activities as those undertaken by people of UAE nationality and by companies headquartered in the UAE allows the country to define what it can be held liable for by other countries and the UN.

Physical Scope

The physical scope discussed here is related to how the UAE space law defines and delimits outer space and how this definition and delimitation applies to the UN space treaties. The term outer space as used in the UN space treaties entails the area above the Earth’s atmosphere, the orbit, and the celestial bodies found there. The UAE law uses the term outer space on multiple occasions, but it does not offer a specific definition of the term. However, the term ‘specified area’ has been defined as any area above 80 kilometers or more than the average sea level. In this case, it can be presumed that the UAE apace law delimits outer space as any area above 80 kilometers into and beyond the atmosphere, including the Earth’s orbit (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). However, the distance between the Earth and space is about 100 kilometers which leads to the question of whether the Earth’s orbit is included.

It is important to acknowledge that despite its definition of the term specified area, the UAE space law used the term outer space severally implying that it conforms to the general usage of the term or that used in the treaties. This, however, can only be an assumption, especially considering how the term orbit has been used. Therefore, the UAE space law considers outer space to be the area above the earth’s orbit. The objectives of the law in Article 2 of the law states that the UAE intends to use the law to support the principle of transparency and to commit to the implementation of the provisions of the international treaties and conventions regarding outer space exploration for which the UAE is a party (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). This statement does not only clarify compliance with the UN space laws but also expresses that it adopts the same usage of the term as in the UN space laws.

In the UN publications regarding these treaties mentioned above, the term outer space has not been expressly defined but its delimitation can be derived from its usage. The publications have constantly used the expression “outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies” (“Space law treaties and principles”, 2020), which can only mean that any region outside the Earth and its orbit is part of the outer space. The only clarification present in the UAE space law, therefore, is that regarding the specified area and the fact that the law expressly states commitment and compliance with the UN space treaties. However, it is still not clear what the country considers to be part of space using the definition of the specified area. The argument made here is argued that the country’s space law delimits considers any area above 80 kilometers as space. This delimitation means that there will be a part of the Earth’s atmosphere included in this definition (Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, 2019). The UAE law can be seen as presenting a further ambiguity regarding what is generally as space in the UAE.

It is argued here that it is hard to judge the shortcomings of the UAE space law in failing to offer a better delimitation of outer space. Therefore, assumptions and derivations of meanings from the usage of the word remain the only means of understanding what the UAE deems to be part of space. The confidence from these assumptions and derivations is given by the fact that the UAE states expressly that it intends to adhere to the UN outer space laws.

Conclusion

The Federal Law No. 12 of 2019 on the Regulation of the Space Sector defines the functional, personal, and physical scope of application of the law. The UAE is pursuing a space exploration policy with the hope of exploiting space resources for commercial, scientific, and other purposes. To do so, however, will require the country to abide by the UN space policies for which the country is a party. The legal document states that the country commits to these laws. The UAE space law, as explained in this paper, largely focuses on delimiting its geographical jurisdiction within which the law applies and liabilities can be claimed.

The paper has focused on how the UAE space law clarifies the functional, personal, and physical scope of the application of the UN space policies. Regarding the functional scope, it has been established that the UAE law defines activities governed by the law and the definition largely complies with the UN space laws. Regarding the objects, however, there are too few details to determine the extent of the application of the UN space laws. The personal scope focuses on the interpretation of national space activities where the geographical jurisdiction is defined. Without a clear definition of the state, nation, or territory in the UN space laws, it has been argued that the UAE delimits the regions it deems as falling within its jurisdiction. Lastly, the physical scope focuses on the definition and delimitation of outer space. In this case, it has been argued that the UAE adopts the same usage of the word as the UN space treaties despite defining a different term, that is, specified area.

References

Beauvois, E., & Thirion, G. (2020). Partial ownership for outer space resources. Advances in Astronautics Science and Technology, 3, 29-36. Web.

Emirates Lunar Mission – 2024. (2020). Web.

Federal Law No. 12 of 2019, Regulation of the Space Sector. Web.

Pershing, A. (2019). Interpreting the outer space treaty’s non-appropriation principle: Customary international law from 1967 to today. The Yale Journal of International Law, 44(1), 149-178. Web.

Space law treaties and principles. (2020). Web.

UAE Government. (2016). UAE National Space Policy [PDF document). Web.

The occurrence of white color crimes and the inability of the society to protect itself from their adverse effects have led to the government coming up with laws to protect the society and deal with perpetrators of these crimes. Various law enforcement agencies have been given the mandate to investigate and act accordingly upon identifying these crimes. In some instances, the available laws have been effective in controlling white color crimes while there are cases where the available laws have not been adequate enough to deal with crime perpetrators. This paper is aimed at looking at the effectiveness of legal guardianship provided on savings and loan violation, the effectiveness of laws in the case of the Space Shuttle Challenger Explosion as well as whether more criminal laws would have helped in preventing security violation and compliance.

For the government to identify and prosecute white color crimes conducted in savings and loans in the banking industry, it calls for the government to conduct a thorough investigation. In most cases, people who have committed the crime may not be identified. There are other cases where people may commit the crime unconsciously and end up suffering the consequences. In addressing these problems, the legal advice offered can prove to be adequate in ensuring that such crimes are never committed. Deciding to dispose of assets from those institutions identified to have embezzled money would not prove effective in eliminating these crimes. This is the reason why the act needs to be reconsidered and Berne’s actions are taken in the future. Disposing of these assets through the public market would give an opportunity for people who embezzled money to use their ill-gotten money to buy these assets (Schlegle & Weisburd, 1992, pp. 195-208). This would encourage more people to indulge in the act due to the benefits accrued by the culprits of the crime.

The law did not serve well in controlling and regulating behaviors and activities that were exhibited in the Space Shuttle Challenge Explosion. No rules were implemented to regulate tfor conduct of the people responsible of developing and launching the shuttle. Their main objective was to see that they have managed to fly the shuttle regardless of the effects it had. The team was well aware of the effects of using a faulty O-ring but did not take measures to ensure that they had repaired or replaced the ring. This can be attributed due to the lack of laws that governed their operations. They were not held liable to any problem that would arise as a result of their ignorance. This made level III officials make the decision of launching the shuttle despite them being aware that cold weather would be detrimental to the shuttle due to its faulty ring. The tendency of people in the National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) staffs to hind all negative issues that occurred in their organization led to the officials not communicating the matter to higher-level officials (Schlegle & Weisburd, 1992, pp. 214-233). Holding these staff accountable for any tragic incident that would have occurred due to their negligence would have helped in evading the explosion of the shuttle.

To ensure that every employee has complied and ensured security, organizations come up with various civil laws. These are laws that are used within the organization to govern the conduct of all employees. Such civil laws include the establishment of protocol to be followed when disclosing organization information and assigning boundaries to the authority given to each employee. However, these laws have not effectively ensured that every person complies with the security measures. Introducing more formal criminal laws such as incarceration and fining of those who violate security rules would facilitate in reducing security violation and compliance as people would fear being jailed or facing charges (Schlegle & Weisburd, 1992, pp. 245-257).

References

Schlegle, K., & Weisburd, D. (1992). White-Collar Crime Reconsidered. London: Northeastern University Press.

Today’s research on the matter of global health tendencies cannot be considered exhaustive if technological advancements are not successfully integrated into the examination process. Thus, the article presented by Dietrich et al. (2018) dwells on the specifics of using space technology in the field of global health. Although at the beginning it may be challenging to understand the interrelation between the two concepts, researchers present a clear research question by presenting the idea of four different domains of space technology that might be used in public health, including:

• Remote sensing, or collecting data from satellite or aircraft;
• Global navigation satellite system, which helps precisely identify the patterns of communicable disease vectors;
• Satellite connection as a major telemedicine contributor;
• Human space flight, which accounts for the ability to provide health care in space (Dietrich et al., 2018).

In order to define the extent to which the aforementioned domains were relevant, researchers defined scoping review to be the most efficient way to collect data on the matter, as it helped make the inclusion criteria more expansive. Another goal of the authors was to identify the major stakeholders in the “space technology – global health” paradigm. Thus, Dietrich et. (2018) estimated that stakeholders included thematic journals, entities fostering data availability, national space institutes, and UN entities. The results of the research demonstrated that there indeed was a connection between the use of space technology and global health tendencies. Moreover, the implementation of the aforementioned technology would have a positive impact on public health policies. The major issue, however, concerned the fact that there was no exhaustive knowledge of the actual potential of such an endeavor. Thus, it may be concluded that despite the limitations of the study, such as its broadness and lack of empirical ground, the article provides recipients with quality data on commencing further investigations in the sphere.

Reference

Dietrich, D., Dekova, R., Davy, S., Fahrni, G., & Geissbühler, A. (2018). Applications of space technologies to global health: Scoping review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(6). Web.

Have you ever thought about space? I mean not this abstract notion that is used when people speak about planets, stars, and the Universe, but try to imagine it and make it less abstract? To understand these giant distances, empty and cold, but, at the same time, full of planets, stars, and unknown things? Myriads of words that are not available for us, innumerable places that cannot be achieved but exist somewhere in space and have their unique secrets? Is it even possible to imagine something eternal, primal, and endless? These questions amaze and puzzle, they deprive you of sleep and inspire you at the same time. For me, space is not just a term, but it is one of the greatest mysteries of our world that can hardly be discovered and cognized by us, but that is why it remains so attractive.

Thinking about space means thinking about the mystery. At least, it works for me as lying in bed and looking in the window, I start cogitating about distant stars with their own worlds. I have heard the idea that many of the sparks we can see in the sky at night do not exist anymore, but space is so giant that light from them continues its travel, and that is why we can still see it. I do not know whether it is true or not; however, I often think about the path light has to travel to achieve solar system and meet with our eyes. It means that we are surrounded by millions of worlds that remain unknown to us, and all we can see is a small light in the sky when it is dark. It is a great mystery of space. It can be full of life and other creatures, but we can never get to know about it because of its size and inability to leave our own system and travel to other galaxies.

We are bound to our star. Sun is the center of our life, its source, and its master. The Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and other planets of our system move around the big gaseous sphere that flares and generates heat sufficient enough to give life. Abstracting away, it might seem absurd and ridiculous, but it is one of the main laws of the Universe as stars are centers of their systems, and their death means the collapse of all other planets surrounding it. It means that our existence will end with the death of the Sun, which sounds symbolic as our appearance was also preconditioned by it. This giant master of our system seems eternal, but scientists are sure that its time will come one day, and it will enter a new phase resulting in the destruction of life and radical changes in the structure of our system. It will happen in several milliards years, and the numbers impress. For me, it means eternity, but for space, it is just one small event peculiar to its existence.

Of course, we have some achievements in discovering the Universe. We send people and satellites in space, we use telescopes and other machines to cognize it, and we even landed on the Moon, which is definitely one of the greatest successes demonstrating the power of human thought and science. Since ancient times, Moon has been attracting the attention of human beings because of its significant role in the life of the Earth and its close position. No wonder that it was chosen for the first attempt to move to other planets. I often think about astronauts’ feelings when they made their first steps on the Moon. Were they scared? Were they happy? What did they feel? I am sure that they saw the Earth and had some special emotions about it. They made the first step towards discovering space, and for humanity, it was a giant success. At the same time, I think that regarding space and its size, it is a tiny and insignificant achievement that does not make us closer to the final goal.

We now plan to fly to Mars. I am sure it is a great plan that will provide us with new experiences and information about the solar system, the new planet, its landscape, atmosphere, and other details. We can even find some pieces of evidence showing that Mars once had water, which is often taken as the basic condition for the appearance and development of life. I often dream that I am one of the people who included in the team that would first step on a new planet. How would it look? What will I feel? I do not know, but thinking about space, the visions of distant worlds and planets are inevitable, and they come to my mind.

At the same time, I feel some sadness when thinking about space. I am astonished by the pressure of giant and enormous spaces that cannot be even imagined. Our Sun is a big star, but it is small if compare with other ones in the Universe. Scientists say that there are myriads of galaxies, and the number of planets cannot be counted. Moreover, the Universe continues to expand, which means that new worlds appear, but they are so far that no one can even imagine that they exist. Under these conditions, distance becomes our main enemy in cognizing space and discovering it. Looking in the sky at night, I might feel lonely, even surrounded by several milliards of people living on the Earth. We are trapped on this planet, which can be taken as a tiny island of solitude, so insignificant for space, that it might even disregard it.

I am sure that we will never be able to travel to distant areas of space, into that world of darkness, cold, and mystery. In the areas that are so far that people cannot imagine that such spaces exist. We know nothing about them as even the most innovative technologies do not provide investigators with an opportunity to explore such places and realize if the physics that is normal for us functions there. Space is endless and incognizable, and these two features are scary and inspire people at the same time.

It is not a surprise that space motifs are often used in horror movies. Aliens, doors to other worlds, black holes, and new horizons might pose a threat to human beings as no one knows what they hide. Uncertainty always scares people as they do not know what to expect and how to react. Considering the giant spaces peculiar to our Universe, there is a comparatively high chance that hostile aliens from the known movie really exist and wait for their time to make contact with us. For this reason, space also remains scary for people. We are not sure alone in the Universe as the existence of millions of other planets presupposes the appearance of life on them; however, what if it would be better for us to be alone? Or, at least, safer.

However, regardless of all fears and depressing distances, space is one of the most inspiring things in the world. It has always been a source of creativity for artists, architects, painters, poets, and scientists. Looking at far stars, people thought about some eternal aspects and worlds that lie beyond their cognition. I feel strange emotions when thinking about it. Anxiety, frustration, and misery are combined with joy, desire for discoveries, and the wish for knowledge. These feelings inspire and make you believe that regardless of all rational explanations and logic, one day, we will leave our system and move to new stars.

Altogether, as it is said in the iconic phrase from Star Trek, space is the final frontier as it separates us from places where no one has gone before. The giant distances hide billions of stars and worlds around them. It scares and inspires at the same time. Thinking about space, I cannot stop admiring its unique and incognizable nature. Even accepting the fact that humanity will hardly be able to move to other galaxies, it still attracts our thoughts and attention as uncertainty is scary, but, at the same time, it promotes curiosity and stimulates discoveries, which is vital for the emergence of attempts to move forward and beyond.

Introduction

There are several approaches that have been used from time to time in planetary missions. These approaches have either been market based or non-market based approaches. Market based approach is what we seek to address and discuss in our paper. This paper seeks to discuss different projects that have been carried out, identify problems that might have been encountered, give an analysis of each of this project, its schedule and the risks involved.

In essence, the paper discusses and analyses the processes of management applied on NASA’s Cassini mission to Saturn. Cassini was first launched in October 15, 1997 as an international mission to explore planet Saturn. This mission was unique in the sense that the science team was allocated a whole science instrument resource (Randii and Porter, 245).

The market based approach system majorly uses currency as a way of showing demand for a limited resource. The currency is used in exchange for a desired commodity. This approach has been preferred for ages. Its first successful venture was done in 1992. It was tried out on the Cassini mission to Saturn. The market based approach system involves creating an economy by defining 3 quantities (Arrow, 944).

These quantities are:

1. Currency and its use.
2. Resources to be allocated.
3. The rules for making and keeping track of trades Background

Instrument development for planetary missions begins with the acceptance of proposals from many investigators to build and operate instruments for a specific mission. Companies and organizations running projects assign resources like data rate, mass, power, and money to the identified investigating organisations and groups depending on whether their missions are approved based on their proposals.

These supporting officials also have to take into consideration the mission constraints. They do it by going into details of previous missions, their successes and failures. However, most previous missions had a recurring trend of going past their resource allocation. This creates a burden and a constraint on the officials when it comes to allocating resources to new ventures and investigators.

Initially, missions were organized by committee driven processes in carrying out their scientific planning. These were also referred to as serial dictator processes. In this approach, there is the introduction of an impartial third party who is brought in to help allocate resources among the different users. This was done in order to ensure full impartiality.

Projects

There are two major projects outlined:

a) The Light SAR science planning project.

b) Space shuttle manifests of secondary payloads. Even though the Cassini project was successful, it had its share of problems and shortfalls just like any other venture. It lacked connection between the development and the operational phase of the mission. Due to the limited allocation of resources with no reserves, if any instrument developed a problem while the rest of the system’s instruments were already built, there were no attractions or incentives for other investigators to assist the constrained investigation.

This was because LOA had put guidelines that remaining resources would be ploughed back into the investigation after the delivery by the flight model, which more often than not was too late to be of any use to the failed investigation. This has however been addressed and there has been a recommendation that in any future missions using the same system, a mechanism has to be put in place that combines the development and operational phases of the mission.

Project’s success

Despite a few problems, the Cassini project was immensely successful and had a great influence and change on the resource used by science instrument teams (Ruskin, 46). The trends in trade changed dramatically as many of them were able to save on instruments.

There was also caution on the management of mass unlike in previous phases where people had reserves and yet didn’t have any left-over’s. Two factors that brought about this were that the investigators were more cautious in managing their mass allocation and also the official also did a good job in managing the spacecraft’s mass(Satterthwaite and Sonnenschein, 184).This new method also encouraged sharing of resources between different investigators. This resulted in saving time and resources. Risks Involved

One of the greatest risks involved was going into the mission without the usual resource reserves like many earlier investigations. They did so because there is no one time a spacecraft was launched and came back without using all its reserves, meaning that all of them developed problems while on tour and required extra resources hence using all the reserves (Tullock et al, 123).

In our context, there is allocation of minimum resources and one can only be careful as to manage them properly and ensure that there are no problems. Mitigation

One of the most notable methods of mitigation in Cassini’s market based approach was that the duration of investigation was recommended to the minimum time required rather than the maximum time that the investigators deemed enough to accomplish a given investigation. This reduced the risks of developing problems while in the investigation by taking longer durations.

Works Cited

Arrow, K.Uncertainty and The Welfare Economics of Medical Care.USA: American Economic Review, 1963.Print.

Randii, W. and Porter, D. Management Approach for Allocating Instrument Development Resources. USA: Space Policy, August, 1998.Print.

Ruskin, A.What Every Engineer Should Know About Project Management. New York, USA: M Dekker, 1982.Print.

Satterthwaite, M. and Sonnenschein H.Strategy-Proof Allocation Mechanism Differential Points.USA: Review of Economic Studies, 1981.Print.

Tullock et al.Efficient Rent Seeking In. Toward a Theory of the Rent-Seeking Society. College Station, Texas, USA: A&M Univ. Press, 1980.Print.

As the most prolific work of architecture, the National Air and Space Museum is considered to be one of Washington DC’s most important displays of the current modern architecture. It was designed by Gyo Obata and the building comprises four tubes that connect to three atriums.

The museum was designed as four plain travertine-encased cubes that contain both smaller and highly theoretical exhibits that are connected by three steel as well as glass atriums which are highly spacious. The three atriums house larger exhibits like missiles, spacecraft and airplanes.

The museum houses various important vestiges of air as well as space flight. It includes a model of Pioneer 10 which is the first space probe to depart the solar system. This was the novel Spirit of St. Louis plane that took Charles Lindbergh across the larger Atlantic. There is also the original Flayer, which is one of the planes that started it all by taking the Wright brothers into the air at Kitty Hawk. There is even a flight simulator in case one is in position to perform barrel rolls within the simulated fighters of World War II. (Moeller & Weeks 2001).

Thematic Exhibition Galleries

There are twenty three thematic exhibition galleries divisions within the museum that have names such as Pioneer Flight, Milestones of Flight, Space Race and Aviation in WWII. There are also interactive exhibits together with a 230-seat planetarium of Albert Einstein as well as the Langley IMAX Theater where one can be able to watch movies that involve breathtaking on a five stored screen. The museum also comprises a larger annex which is the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center that is located close to Dulles Airport. It was opened in December 15, 2003.

The flight milestones such as Write 1903 Flyer Earhart’s Lockheed Vega, the craft that took the astronauts into space and the Bell X-1 Glamorous Glennis are all available here. There exist other lesser known but very important workhorses of both commercial as well as aviation military for instance Douglas DC-3, the Piper J-3 Cub and the North American P-51 Mustang.

The Air and Space Museum is the most popular in the whole world. The building is reasonably dignified and certainly imposing. It is laudable mainly for being out of the way. It allows the inspiring artifacts of the museum to articulate for themselves. The issue of hanging many of the airplanes from the trusses is due to the fact that there was innovative design move that was employed at a significant scale.

The exterior of the museum has it own level of attraction. Architect Gyo Obata managed to designed north façade as a sequence of analytical and recessed bays. The pattern of the bays was geometrically supported by the National Gallery. It is a kind of a version that is abstracted of the yin together with yang. There is sharing of the typical Tennessee marble between the two buildings. The dark horizontal recesses at the top of the museum’s blocks have a similar slit in the Hirshhorn that is in the next door (Moeller & Weeks, 2001).

In the year 1988, a restaurant which was glassy was appended towards the east of the building. It has a sloping roof which offsets the insistently chunky nature of the main structure. The Smithsonian managed to open a subdivision of the museum adjacent to the airport. He named it Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. The facility has some of the institution’s largest and most important items. Some of the items include a prototype of the Enterprise space shuttle. There is also the beautiful SR-71 Blackbird spy plane. The building displays several aircrafts and space craft that were initially stored at Garber. Some of them were never seen before in any given museum setting. The center is likely to become the primary artifact restoration of the museum.

Reference

Moeller, M & Weeks C. (2001). AIA Guide to the Architecture of Washington, DC. Washington. DC. Prentice Hall Publishers.

An increase in the technological application is necessitating the need for further exploration of the world. Nations are focusing on creating a better future by exploring other worlds to understand their own. This has driven the second space race between China and India, each country desiring to be ahead of the other. The case has not been easy for India, which has dedicated enormous resources to venture into a race with China. The case is similar to that of the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1990s. It is time for India to cease investing their money in the space race for a while and begin investing in other sectors of the economy. This may include infrastructural construction and the provision of better services to the people. Currently, the country’s rupee is flaky to operate in (Mumbai, 2013). The flakiness remains an indication of the high inflation facing the country.

India needs to consider other factors driving its economy. According to Udas (2014), in this year’s general election with more than 788 million people estimated to partake, voters will focus on five key sectors; cases of corruption in the country, the youth and availability of employment opportunities, religious violence, and the rising cases of inflation will be significant. Lastly, people will be keen on considering the rise of states and regional parties. The leaders should consider investments to ensure the peaceful coexistence of people due to the lack of basic resources demanded by the population. This will safeguard the economy from declining further because of violence due to unethical resource competition.

India GDP figures released in August for the quarter to June revealed a negative growth in the country’s economy. The industrial condition in the country is terrible. The country’s income is being lost to government officials and politicians who are engaging in corrupt activities. These people are enhancing government red tapes that are derailing the economy. The leaders’ wealth is being invested in neighboring countries. This is highly affecting the economic maturity of the country. Advancing the country from a developing to a developed one will require a huge investment in government institutions mandated with the responsibility of regulating the country’s economic growth. Investing in the space project is necessary but untimely. This can allude to a case where a person attempts to climb a ladder from the top. The country’s expenditure, talent, and zeal should be invested in other developmental projects (Hume, 2013). India should consider investing the $73 million approximated for the project in other sectors of the economy (Magnier, 2013). This will ensure supporting the sustainability of the country, rather than neglecting the people to languish in poverty.

The economy of India has dropped, and the currency wobbled (Einhorn, 2013). This has been a challenge for the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The state opposition leader Narendra Modi has been taking advantage of the situation politically. He is currently the favorite of the people and is likely to replace Singh. The replacement is likely to take place in the first nationwide election, in the first half of 2014. This situation dictates the need for the government to concentrate further on other significant sectors of the economy to ensure the growth and stability of the currency. The country has had success with the launching of a Mars Orbiter, which positions the country at the farthest aim. The rising race is highly criticized, especially from the fact that the economies investing their precious resource in space exploration are still developing. The countries, especially India, are facing adverse poverty back home. For instance, when India announced about sending a rocket to Mars, people were expectant. The same week, the announcement was met by the worst-ever power cut. This means that the country is still lagging behind its investment in infrastructure, thus the need to rethink this issue (Hayes, 2013).

There is no need for a country to live beyond its means by exploring the space, yet back at home, people are suffering. Jean Dreze, a Belgian economist, argues that there is no point in the Mars mission when half of the children in India are undernourished (Hayes, 2013). He insists that half of the people of India lack decent sanitation. The whole process seems to be an exploitation of the Indian people for superpower status that might not benefit the people at all in the end. The country should focus on providing people with a pleasurable working environment. This will increase their productivity and cooperation as the space race. As things stand now, the majority of people in India are not supporting the move, especially the middle and lower classes, which are left on the suffering end. The development is causing them more harm than benefit. A former head of ISRO, Dr. G Madhavan Nair, also criticizes the move saying it is half-baked, very expensive for the economy, and poorly conceived (Hume, 2013).

Despite the effort by India to ensure the country remains ahead in space exploration, there is a need to challenge the leaders. The leaders should be challenged on the survival of humanity if basic resources remain sacrificed to benefit future generations. This case argues against the view suggested by the lead scientist on the Mars mission in India. The scientist Jitendra Goswami, when confronted by the BBC reporter concerning the move despite the poverty level, said that the move would inspire different groups in the country to engage in innovative activities better than the current. The same will boost the morale of the children in the future when they look in the sky and catch a glimpse of the red glimmer of Mars and realize their country has been there (Hayes, 2013). The question remains how the children will have other activities to exploit when they do not have basic learning institutions to attend. Their sanitation is poor, and poverty levels cannot allow them an opportunity to learn well. They remain at the mercy of the government who is concerned with other sectors not directly relevant to them now.

Exploiting Space indeed broadens the horizons of the children in the country. The same inspires people to solve problems and look beyond the earthbound concerns. The project remains untimely when the child is denied the basic needs to survive. The future is to ensure consistency of innovations made. To propel India to its rightful place there is a need for fulfillment of social, political, and economic goals in the context of a rapid and modernizing society. This will ensure the relevance of the communist ideology and acceptance by the whole population. As a result, the country will experience a robust space program that will be supported and followed without a critical eye by all the nationals and international communities. It, therefore, calls for the country to consider reviewing its priorities to ensure they are well ordered.

References

Einhorn, B. (2013). India and China Move Ahead in the Asian Space Race.

Hayes, P. (2013). 2013: The space race goes East.

Hume, T. (2013). Is India’s Mars mission the latest escalation in Asia’s space race?

Magnier, M. (2013). India set to launch Mars mission, provoking criticism over cost.

Mumbai, P. (2013). A five-star Problem.

Udas, S. (2014). India elections 2014: A look forward.

Executive Summary

Emirates Institution for Advanced Science & Technology (EIAST) is involved in the development of technological solutions for space exploration. Many opportunities exist for advanced technology developing institutions, especially in relation to space programs. EIAST can exploit the space tourism market to enhance its future growth. In this report, the possibility of space tourism is identified through idea generation and concept development techniques. The service is in the developmental stages since adequate technologies are yet to be developed.

In this paper, the financial analysis of the venture (sales forecasting) is performed in relation to the opportunity identified. The analysis is based on results of a survey conducted by Futron Corporation. In conclusion, the opportunity is regarded as a lucrative venture for EIAST. The institution has the technical and technological capabilities to achieve the objective. In addition, the industry forecasts indicate a growing demand for space tourism in the future.

Introduction: Company Profile

Emirates Institution for Advanced Science & Technology (EIAST) was established by the Government of Dubai in 2006 (Emirates Institution for Advanced Science & Technology [EIAST] 1). It is a strategic initiative by the Dubai and UAE governments. The entity aims at inspiring scientific innovation in the region and enhancing technological development. Another major objective of this firm is to facilitate sustainable development in the region. The institution also promotes scientific research and technological innovation in the UAE (EIAST 1).

EIAST provides a wide range of services to clients in this sector. Some of the services include satellite imaging, ground station support, antenna leasing, outreach and education, as well as joint development projects for mutual benefits (EIAST 1). In addition, the organisation offers a wide range of value-added services. They include, among others, civil development and construction, infrastructure, and change detection technological services. Environmental survey and monitoring, emergency responses, and disaster management are other services offered by the institution.

The current report is an analysis of space tourism, a new product that EIAST plans to launch in the market. Among others, the report reviews the current market trends and provides a sales forecast for the venture.

EIAST Product Innovation Charter

A product innovation charter entails a set of policies guiding the development of a new service. EIAST charter can be described as the strategic initiative to inspire scientific innovation in the Emirates. The major driving objective of the organisation includes advancing sustainable technology in the UAE. EIAST possesses the core competencies (technical and expertise) needed to achieve this objective.

Market Trend Analysis

According to Seymour (34), the quest for adventure saw the onset of the space race. Humans left the earth for the first time in the 1960s. The cold war also facilitated the growth of this industry as countries competed to display their technological might. Today, capitalism is the major driver behind the development of advanced technologies (Seymour, 34). Led by the US, the global community is exploring and developing markets in this industry. The Middle East has not been left behind.

Abu Dhabi is developing the Gulf Earth Observation Space Centre [GEOC] (Seymour 35). Saudi Arabia’s King Abdul-Aziz City for Science and Technology launched a remote sensing satellite in 2004. It intends to launch 18 additional satellites in future (Seymour 35). Earlier in 2010, Iran also launched its own satellite with the intention of spreading monotheism, justice, and peace (Dillingham 19). EIAST has made its contribution to this race by launching two satellites recently. The two are Dubai Sat 1 and Dubai Sat 2 (EIAST 1).

The Middle-East’s advanced technology market is poised for phenomenal growth, considering the recent investments made in this sector. Other factors that fuel the demand for these services in the region include the rising affluence of the Middle East consumers and increasing demand for sophisticated satellites by businesses. As such, EIAST can exploit this opportunity to expand its services to other sectors in the industry.

According to Dillingham (1), the commercial space launch industry has recently experienced massive growth. Previously, the focus has been on delivery of payloads, including satellites, into the orbit. The delivery was achieved through the use of spacecraft that remained in space. However, such launches have reduced. The industry is now concentrating on space tourism (Dillingham 1). In the US alone, there is a marked growth in the development of technologies aimed at enhancing global tourism. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is anticipating increased commercial launches in the near future (Dillingham 16). Figure 1 below shows the trend in relation to commercial launches in the US between 1997 and 2010:

Market Opportunity Identification

Space tourism is a developing industry. According to Seymour (34), the market is relatively lucrative. For instance, the first space tourist paid $20 million to the Russians. The tourist, Dennis Tito (an American billionaire), spent less than eight days in space. A number of space tourism companies have been established, with the UAE hosting some of them. Examples of these companies include the Abu Dhabi Aabar Investments and the Virgin Galactic (Seymour 35). The former has paid $28 million for a 32% stake in Virgin Galactic. On its part, Virgin Galactic is selling tickets for $20000 each. It has already sold vouchers worth $40 million in deposits.

Space tourism is a very lucrative opportunity for EIAST in the recent future. As more and more people are assured of the safety of these trips, the industry will become an important area of investment. The advanced space technologies developed at EIAST can also be put into more profitable ventures.

The entry of private investors into the space flight control sector has led to the rapid development of this form of tourism. For instance, plans are underway to launch circumlunar tourist flights and establish space hotels (Beard and Starzyk 44). Further developments are expected to make these trips more affordable to attract additional customers.

Idea Generation

Idea generation constitutes a very critical aspect of the design and marketing of new products. It is also essential in marketing strategy development and establishment of effective advertising copies. As such, the process is crucial in the identification of the proposed service venture. According to Ulrich and Eppinger (23), there are numerous techniques of idea generation. They include brainstorming, attribute listing, ‘brainwriting’, lateral thinking, and product checklists.

One of the idea generation techniques used in the identification of space tourism for EIAST includes brainstorming. The technique entailed group creativity, where members of the organisation shared ideas spontaneously (Ulrich and Eppinger 24). The groups consisted of six individuals. The target was the identification of more opportunities for EIAST.

Attribute listing was another technique used to identify the proposed service. The approach entails listing key attributes of products and modifying them to improve the results (Ulrich and Eppinger 26). In the case of EIAST, the various aspects of the services offered by the institution were listed. Consequently, it became apparent that the institution can benefit from widening the scope of these services to incorporate the emerging space tourism market.

The third and final idea generation technique used was the visioning style of guided visualisation. The model involved generating ideas based on imagining concrete and ideal scenes of the desired future. The future application of advanced technologies is on space tourism. The venture is also very lucrative.

Service Concept Development

Concept development is one of the most critical steps in the development of a new product. Ulrich and Eppinger (42) provide a working definition of a concept in this context. Ulrich and Eppinger view it as an approximate description of the required technology, working principles, and product form.

The figure below illustrates the concept development process:

For EIAST to remain competitive, the management must encourage more innovation. It should set the stage for the generation of revolutionary ideas. A concept development flowchart provides an efficient, structured approach to addressing an issue. Three major steps are involved in this process. They include problem definition, concept generation, and concept evaluation or selection (Ulrich and Eppinger 54).

Based on the development process flowchart, the following concept statements were developed in line with the service opportunity identified for EIAST:

1. EIAST, a leader in the development of advanced technologies in the Emirates, will deliver a revolutionary additional exciting service to humans. Many people dream of going to space. However, since most of them are not astronauts, the thought seems impossible.
2. Current methods, machinery, and equipment have not been very supportive of manned space flights. EIAST intends to be at the forefront of the development of space tourism.
3. Given the current success of manned flights, the development of spacecraft capable of carrying tourists to space is a possibility. EIAST will partner with like-minded organisations to make space tourism attainable in the near future.
4. Offering space tourism services is a very lucrative venture, although expensive to some. Future developments will make the services more affordable, opening the industry to more consumers and increased profitability.
5. Space tourism is not a highly developed enterprise. The complex nature of this enterprise requires intellectual and technical partnerships to enhance the commercialisation of the endeavour.

Best Service Concept Evaluation: Full-Screen Technique

Full-screen evaluation of the proposed concept for EIAST will determine whether or not technical resources should be devoted to the development of the space tourism idea. Full-screen technique alternatives range from mathematical models to simple checklists, managerial opinions, and judgments (Ulrich and Eppinger 71). The current report relies on managerial judgments and checklists to determine the feasibility of the venture and the ability of EIAST to invest in this sector. The company has the necessary financial and technical resources to venture into this industry. The management team has experience in the advanced technology industry. As such, it will offer support to this venture.

The best concept for EIAST will be the development of spacecraft capable of taking tourists to space. The organisation should also partner with other entities sharing the same dream to make space tourism attainable in the near future.

Sales Forecast Analysis for the Venture

To enhance the affordability of any commercial venture, a demonstrable cost model is needed. The model is used to predict whether substantial or reasonable returns on the original investment are needed or not. Providing space tourism services is a lucrative venture, albeit very expensive. As a result, it is essential to determine the financial resources needed for investment and projected returns. In addition, since this is a relatively new venture, actual costs and expected returns cannot be established. The company can only work with estimates.

Two types of services will be offered for public space tourism. The first is the suborbital orbits. It involves short pleasure trips beyond the earth’s atmosphere and back. The second is orbital flights, which includes trips to low earth orbit. According to Beard and Starzyk (12), the cost of orbital space travel is not likely to go below US$50 million in the next 20 years. The current price is US$20 million. However, suborbital travel prices are expected to drop from the current US$ 100000.

Futron Corporation conducted a survey on individuals that can afford space tourism at the present rates. It was found that the majority of these consumers were interested in taking the trips. The following figure illustrates these findings:

A substantial number of individuals are ready to spend a significant amount of money on space tourism. Around 21%-54% were willing to spend on both orbital and suborbital flights at the current prices.

The table below indicates the demographic attributes of individuals surveyed by Futron for orbital and suborbital flights:

Most of the respondents were willing to pay for both space flights if accorded the chance. The figure below sums up the overall discretionary spending patterns for respondents interested in space tourism in the Futron survey:

From the figures above, Beard and Starzyk (12) forecast that by 2021, suborbital space travel would attract more than 15000 passengers annually. The figure represents US$700 million in revenues. On the other hand, orbital space travels would host around 60 passengers annually. The number translates to more than US$300 million in revenues by 2021.

Space Tourism Product Protocol

Product protocol is regarded as a document put together to coordinate the activities of a multidisciplinary product development team (Ulrich and Eppinger 84). The space tourism service protocol can be described using the target market, product positioning, augmentation dimensions, competitive comparisons, regulatory requirements, and timing. Currently, this venture is a product for the rich. However, this is expected to change in the future. Regulations of this industry are also in the development phase. Competition to actualise the service is relatively new. However, developing a product should begin immediately.

Product Launch Planning

EIAST has the technical, financial, and expert capabilities to explore the space tourism industry. All the institution requires is to designate facilities, experts, and other relevant resources to this venture.

Conclusion

Space tourism is not very popular with consumers today. However, the projected future returns from the venture make it lucrative for EIAST. As the industry grows and competition takes root, the market will attract more consumers. It is expected that advanced technological development will reduce the cost of space trips. EIAST stands to gain by offering space tourism.

Works Cited

Beard, Suzette, and Janice Starzyk 2002, Space Tourism Market Study: Orbital Space Travel & Destinations with Suborbital Space Travel. Web.

Dillingham, Gerald 2012, Commercial Space Transportation: Industry Trends, Government Challenges, and International Competitiveness Issues. Web.

Emirates Institution for Advanced Science & Technology 2014, Explore EIAST. Web.

Seymour, Richard. “The Space Race.” Middle East 407.1 (2010), 34-35. Print.

Ulrich, Karl, and Steven Eppinger. Product Design and Development, New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print.

Concept of CRM

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) applies a Continuous Risk Management (CRM) to manage qualitative risk processes since the 1990s. According to CRM used by NASA, risk is composed by the following triplet: the scenario of “degraded performance” (for example, fatality, cost overruns, and others), the likelihood of the scenario, and the consequences expressed in the severity of results (NASA risk management handbook, 2011, p. 4). At that, CRM aims at the attainment of established performance requirements. This method can be applied at any level of NASA following the requirements identified on this particular level. Also, CRM processes “are applicable to formulation activities, such as technology development, involving the achievement of specific objectives within defined cost and schedule constraints” (NASA risk management handbook, 2011, p. 6). Furthermore, CRM controls all the stages of the requirements’ implementation to ensure high-quality performance. CRM is also to show the inefficiency of some processes or expectations, if required.

It is important to note that CRM could have the potential deficiencies. For example, uncertainty factor that always exists in risk management can be quite difficult to evaluate. It can involve uniqueness or cross-cutting culture, for instance. The human factor is another issue that can be regarded as a potential deficiency. In particular, team communication and collaboration failure can be a serious obstacle in managing CRM.

Four Key Areas of NASA Risk Management

Speaking of applicability of NASA risk management, one might distinguish the following key areas: determination of top-level objectives, the flowdown of the above objectives expressed in requirements, decision-making related to the selection of the best approach to meet requirements, and implementation of the chosen approach. At that, all the areas are performed in the context of systems engineering framework. The principal goal of these areas is to meet the core requirements and objectives stated by the units of the organization.

Safety, technical equipment, schedule, and cost are the paramount domains NASA takes into account when doing risk management. The first domain of safety embraces such issues as management of professional safety and health, information security, and others. The technical equipment domain is covered in the context of NASA Systems Engineering Process and Requirements. It is also essential for NASA to focus on cost requirements providing cost-effective decisions. In turn, schedule domain refers to the timely implementation of the suggested risk procedures. According to Smith and Merritt (2002), time component is “associated with every project risk is a time when it no longer exists, either you have suffered the loss or the risk has been resolved to the point that you are comfortable” (p. 7). This clearly shows that schedule is an integral part of the risk processes. Thus, all the mentioned domains are embraced by NASA risk management to meet the stakeholders’ expectations.

RM / RIDM and CRM

Risk Management (RM) involves Risk-Informed Decision Making (RIDM) and CRM that are directly connected due to NASA Procedural Requirements (NPR) document NPR 8000.4A. In particular, this document supposes the integration of the two key components of the mentioned processes. RIDM provides a risk-informed choice of decisions to guarantee effective performance and achievement of goals set by the organization. It focuses on reallocation, design, source selection, and several other procurements as well as processes. RIDM can be used at any stage and level of the organization presenting high applicability within NASA systems engineering. As a rule, RIDM includes one or more characteristics enumerated below: complexity, high stakes, multiple attributes, uncertainty, and diversity of stakeholders. These factors require detailed analysis and extra attention to select the proper decision. However, it should be stressed that the implementation of this characteristics is not a condition for using RIDM. Nevertheless, the increase of these points enhances the need for RIDM.

In turn, CRM, as it was stated before, is responsible for the implementation of the chosen alternatives. It should be emphasized that “each organizational unit within NASA negotiates with the unit(s) at the subsequent lower level in the organizational hierarchy about a set of objectives, resources, and schedules” (NASA risk management handbook, 2011, p. 3). This helps to clearly and specifically identify objectives to be performed by units. After that, each unit applies CRM to evaluate risks against the established requirements reporting to the higher levels of the organization. The described flowdown of performance requirements recognized by NASA promotes close correspondence to its strategic goals. The integrated use of CRM and RIDM ensures the fact that risk solutions are appropriately informed by their influence on goals at every level of NASA.

Cost Effective Method to Implement Risk Management

The cost-effective manner used to institute NASA risk management means that it is essential to take into account a range of financial issues while introducing a cost to a project or a program. With this in mind, it is necessary to conduct a thorough analysis of costs to optimize the processes. As a result, the organization would accomplish considerable savings achieved due to the resolution of risks at their initial stage, in particular, before they become a serious problem. Moreover, risks should not exceed the cost of the project implementation in the context of the cost-effective manner.

References

NASA risk management handbook. (2011). Washington, D.C.: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Smith, P. G., & Merritt, G. M. (2002). Proactive risk management. New York, NY: Productivity Press.

NASA’s Use of CRM and Its Possible Deficiencies

NASA has been using the principles of Continuous Risk Management (CRM) extensively due to the flexibility that they offer. Particularly, the opportunities for extending the project life cycle need to be mentioned as the primary reason for the organization to deploy the identified approach: “Since their introduction and until recently, NASA RM processes have been based on CRM, which stresses the management of risk during the Implementation phase of the NASA Program/Project Life Cycle” (NASA, 2011, p. xv). The incorporation of the CRM into the organizational framework allows coordinating the essential procedures, with a close supervision of the factors that have the greatest effect on the core processes.

The company has created a set of performance commitments that helps it improve the quality of the staff’s performance and make sure that the essential tasks are completed in a timely and efficient manner. Furthermore, the organization has introduced the concept of risk tolerance into its operational design so that the crucial processes could be carried out on a risk-normalized basis: “In this way, stakeholders and decision-makers can deliberate the performance differences between alternatives at common levels of risk, instead of having to choose between complex combinations of performance and risk” (NASA, 2011, p. 12). Thus, a solid foundation for the decision-making process is created.

Four Areas of Risk Management: NASA’s Perspective

In order to address the identified risks successfully, one must map their areas carefully so that the path to continuous RM could be created. Furthermore, quantifying the threats that the project is facing should be viewed as a necessary step toward facilitating safety: “We prefer to use quantitative scales because they are straightforward in generating numbers, especially if you have been successful in calculating or translating all of your impacts to a single quantity” (Smith & Merritt, 2002, p. 89). Therefore, locating the areas of potential risk management strategies is a crucial step toward mitigating the dangers. At NASA, four areas are typically defined. According to the organization’s statement, these four aspects include “time to completion, project cost, data volume, and planetary contamination” (NASA, 2011, p. 77). Although the idea of narrowing the number of areas to be included in the design of a risk management strategy may affect the success of the process, it helps organize the procedure. As a result, the outcomes of the RM turn out to be quite positive. Meeting the goals that were set sat the beginning of the project, the tools used by the organization create prerequisites for a detailed analysis of the key factors and the further mitigation of the threats.

RM/RIDM and CRM: Definitions and Relations

It should be borne in mind, though, that the approach designed by NASA allows not only creating a unique framework for risk management but also sets prerequisites for the further enhancement of the staff members’ performance. For these purposes, the concepts of RM/RIDM and CRM were coined. By definition, RM/RIDM (Risk Management and Risk-Informed Decision-Making) implies that the processes of addressing the existing threats to the wellbeing of the project should serve as the foundation for making choices regarding the further course of its development. It would be wrong to claim that the identified concepts restrict the participants to a set of options that must be selected in order to maintain the viability of the project. Instead, the factors that the decision-making process at NASA hinges on should be interpreted as the means of controlling the quality of the staff’s performance. CRM, in its turn, can be viewed as Continuous Risk Management, and it implies that addressing the threats that emerge on a regular basis must be carried out as a consistent and unceasing process. Therefore, in a certain way, CRM can be considered the tool for measuring the performance of the staff since it helps define the extent to which the risk management strategies are followed in the organization.

Cost-Efficient Risk Management: Definition

The process of addressing the existing risks implies using all resources available to prevent the major threats. However, to design the strategy that will help manage every factor possible, one is likely to need a large number of resources, including the financial ones. As a result, the sustainability of the project that needs to be protected from the risks will become questionable.

To remove the threats to the project’s existence and at the same time make sure that the rest of the issues could be handled in an adequate manner, one will have to check that the resources at hand should be distributed in a sensible fashion. In other words, the principles of sustainability must be introduced into the project. At this point, cost-efficient management needs to be brought up.

By definition, cost-efficient management implies that the expenses for the project should be reduced to a minimum. Therefore, by stating that there must be a cost efficient strategy deployed when instituting risk management, one means that the RM tools should consume a reasonable number of resources. Furthermore, the amount of waste produced in the process of the project implementation should also be cut significantly so that the project could remain sustainable.

References

NASA. (2011). NASA risk management handbook. Web.

Smith, P. G., & Merritt, G. M. (2002). Proactive risk management. New York, NY: Productivity Press.