The Cosmopolitics Edition
Artemis becomes a political platform, astronauts “vote while they float,” and all the other ways space is influencing the upcoming US presidential election.
Hello Celestial Citizens,
Welcome to our first-ever (and maybe our last depending on the comments section) space politics edition of Continuum! Before you dive into some of the topics below, please note that this newsletter is not an endorsement of any candidate or party. We simply thought that our readers might appreciate a pre-election roundup of politically themed space news articles, with a healthy dose of our characteristically quirky hot takes.
MSGA – With the US presidential election fast approaching, a MAGA hat might be one of the most divisive things in the nation right now – but MSGA is a different story. And no, not the tasty chemical compound that got a bad rap for no good reason, we’re talking about the concept of making space great again. Putting other policies aside for a moment, Donald J. Trump's advancement of US space policy in his first term as President did garner wide, bipartisan support – even from the Biden administration, which vowed to uphold the same policy. Trump’s presidency included space milestones such as establishing the National Space Council, launching the Artemis program aimed at returning Americans to the Moon, and creating the United States Space Force. Today, setbacks – particularly related to NASA’s Artemis program – call for experienced leadership to get things back on track. The question is: who will properly captain the ship? Now, that question is divisive. Two SpaceNews authors say that Vice President Harris and her lack of determination while chairing the National Space Council are responsible for letting things slip, and a second Trump administration is the solution that the US desperately needs. And unless you’re a sub-rock dweller, you know that the belle of the space ball industry, Elon Musk, also supports a Trump presidency – going so far as to offer $1 million to people who vote for the man.
A “Space Aficionado” – Of course, not everyone feels the same about Trump being the space savior, and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is one of those people. In her acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination, Vice President Harris emphasized space and artificial intelligence as industries she will prioritize in leading the US ahead of China. While some might be disappointed in her time as National Space Council chair, the position did give her unique access to national security space policy and NASA's Artemis program. From this post, Harris also facilitated international collaboration through the Artemis Accords, which now has 45 signatory countries. Harris is not the only one backing her space promises, though. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson calls Harris a “space aficionado,” and head of space at the Paris Peace Forum, Jérôme Barbier, credits Harris with the successful ban of direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) missiles, which “wasn’t an obvious thing in the beginning of the term.” Former NASA administrator, Sean O’Keefe – a Republican who served under George W. Bush – also endorsed for the VP back in August, characterizing the VP as “a very active candidate for president who supports space objectives to the benefit of all humankind.”
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The US Wears Prada – Regardless of political affiliation, there’s one thing everyone seems to agree on: NASA’s mission to the Moon is in deep sh– er, trouble. And that trouble is to the tune of $100 billion. Now, good things cost money – the $10 billion JWST is evidence of that – but NASA’s 10-times-as-expensive Artemis program, intended to return astronauts to the Moon after a 55-year hiatus, has not actually achieved any crewed launches. Critics chastise Artemis for being overly complex, citing the expendable Space Launch System and the resource-sucking Gateway space station as elements that have added unnecessary layers to the program, siphoning dollars and time away from other science projects. This is accentuated by SpaceX’s more rapid progress, specifically with Starship – which has the capacity to go directly to the Moon without the stopover of Gateway. All of this is to say: whoever the next US president is will have to decide whether to shepherd the US along the existing course of Artemis, or execute an overhaul, a la that of the Mars Sample Return. And yes, he or she will also have to answer to the $1 billion Prada spacesuit.
Humans to Mars – As if there wasn’t enough pressure on the US to get astronauts to space, the Mars Society has come in to double it. And by “double,” we actually mean multiply it by a couple hundred. Even at its closest approach, Mars is roughly 200 times farther than the Moon for us Earthlings, yet the Colorado-founded Mars Society is officially kicking off a Congressional campaign urging NASA to construct a plan to get humans to the Red Planet within the next decade. The nonprofit organization’s draft, called the Mars Exploration Act, is meant to inspire emerging talent and elevate the US agency into a space program “worthy of a nation of pioneers.”
Voting in Space – With the future of space exploration hanging in the balance, you would hope that active astronauts have a say in the upcoming election. Luckily, that hope is a reality, after a 1997 Texas law made it possible for NASA astronauts to vote from space. This year, astronauts like our favorite Starliner duo can cast their votes via a “specially designed, electronic absentee ballot” from a private voting booth on the ISS. The ballot is then transmitted through NASA’s Near Space Network, managed by Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland. Yeah, yeah – let the election interference claims roll in.
Honorable Mentions
Our final (politically-charged) notable nuggets.
Elon overshadowed SpaceX’s recent Starship success with his “political crusade untethered from economics,” in the words of the former head of California’s business development agency.
Two space agencies prove the power of international cooperation with the launch of Europa Clipper, officially kicking off the space probe’s journey to Jupiter’s icy moon. NASA’s spacecraft will work in conjunction with ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE), which was launched in April 2023 and is set to arrive at Jupiter in July 2031.
The US Space Force, the nation’s space-based military defense branch, just started testing an innovative “aerobraking” maneuver with its X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV-7). If all goes well, the new technique should be able to change a spacecraft’s orbit with minimal fuel.
Space debris mitigation was a hot topic at this year’s International Astronautical Conference (IAC) in Milan, categorized as an issue with no simple solution. Surely, we can expect evolving policy around international space sustainability in the coming years.
To support the growing space economy, the US Department of Commerce just changed export control rules for space technologies. The changes – which include reclassifying certain technologies as commercial rather than military – should allow for easier sales of satellites to allied countries, while maintaining national security safeguards against adversaries like China and Russia.
The JWST Download
This month, Webb captured a “super star cluster” – the largest in our galaxy – which astronomers anticipate will experience over 1,500 supernovae in the next 40 million years. Considering the cluster has stars that shine 1 million times brighter than our sun, those supernovas are about to go crazy.
As part of the JWST Advanced Extragalactic Survey (JADES) collaboration, astronomers recently relied on Webb to confirm suspicions around an early galaxy’s “inside-out” star formation. If this “inside-out” business is anything like the beloved Pixar franchise, these researchers were crying their eyes out during this discovery (RIP Bing Bong).
This edition of Continuum is supported by the Open Lunar Foundation. Open Lunar's work sets precedents, creates pathways, and builds projects that enable a peaceful, cooperative lunar presence. Learn more about Open Lunar's work by joining their upcoming events.
A Global Space
Dominican Republic – In what feels like a final push from the US administration before the election, NASA scored another couple signatures on the US-led Artemis Accords this month. First, the Dominican Republic became the 44th signatory on October 4th, represented by ambassador Sonia Guzmán. The Dominican Republic also participated in a meeting between the Artemis Accords signatories which took place during the IAC on October 14th. Guzman commended the agreement for “expanding the opportunities particularly for our young Dominicans in science, education, and economic development.”
Estonia – Following the Dominican Republic was the northern European country of Estonia, which became the 45th Artemis Accords signatory ahead of the IAC kick-off. Representing Estonia for the signing was Erkki Keldo, the nation’s minister of economy and industry, who promised Estonia would contribute its proficient “e-governance” to the global space community. Chile is expected to follow as the next Artemis Accords signatory, at a signing ceremony scheduled for this Friday, October 25th.
UAE – Further solidifying its international cooperation with Japan and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), the United Arab Emirates announced it would fly an asteroid-focused mission on an H3 rocket in early 2028. The Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt (EMA) will explore the main belt from 2030 to 2034, including flybys of six asteroids and a rendezvous with a seventh, Justitia, where a lander will be deployed. The announcement follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the UAE Space Agency and JAXA in August, the goal of which was to strengthen cooperation between the two national space agencies.
China – While the UAE and Japan run off into the sunset, former sandbox pals China and Russia appear distant. At the Italy-hosted IAC, which notably excluded Russia, China showcased a lunar sample from its recent Chang’e 6 mission. Of course, this was no ordinary chunk of rock – China’s Chang’e 6 sample is the first exploit from the Moon’s far side. Also on display at the venue was NASA’s OSIRIS-REx samples collected from asteroid Bennu last year. With the shifting geopolitical environment, Russia might be starved of a piece of the Bennu and rare lunar regolith pie.
France – Last month, France’s nominee for European commissioner Thierry Breton suddenly resigned and was replaced by Stéphane Séjourné, the outgoing French Minister of Foreign Affairs. The whole thing was dramatic, which was on brand for Breton, who regularly went to war with Musk over content regulation for X (a war which he waged on X). While Breton may have been a divisive leader, he is responsible, at least in large part, for putting in motion IRIS2, the EU’s internet constellation to compete with Musk’s Starlink. But given Breton’s history with Musk, we have to wonder if the IRIS initiative came from a passion for the space industry, or an axe to grind with Elon. Either way, the project is nearly a reality, regardless of Breton’s untimely exit.
And that’s a wrap on this special Cosmopolitics Edition! A big thank you to Tess Ryan for writing this edition and for keeping up with the cosmos! We hope you enjoyed reading Continuum this week. And if you really, really like us, then consider making it official and becoming a paid subscriber or spreading the space gospel and gifting a subscription.
Keep it celestial people,
Britt
CEO of Celestial Citizen & Creator of Continuum
i liked that space had no boundaries, no religion and no political beliefs, and yet, here we are being spoon fed biased opinions..