The American Space Exploration Narrative from the Cold War Through the Obama Administration

Abstract

We document how the narrative and the policies of space exploration in the United States have changed from the Eisenhower through the Obama administrations. We first examine the history of U.S. space exploration and also assess 3 current conditions of the field of space exploration including (1) the increasing role of the private sector, (2) the influence of global politics and specifically the emergence of China as a global space power, and (3) the focus on a human mission to Mars. To further understand the narrative of U.S. space exploration, we identify 5 rhetorical themes: competition, prestige, collaboration, leadership, and “a new paradigm.” These themes are then used to analyze the content of 40 documents over the course of space exploration history in the U.S. from 8 U.S. presidential administrations. The historical narrative and content analysis together suggest that space exploration has developed from a discourse about a bipolar world comprised of the United States and the Soviet Union into a complicated field that encompasses many new players in the national to the industrial realms. The results also suggest that the United States was at a crossroads in 2017 on the issues of how it participates in this changing field of space exploration. From this, we make 3 observations regarding recent U.S. space policy: (1) there is a disconnect between stated policy goals in American space exploration efforts and the implementation of those goals, (2) the United States communicates mixed messages regarding its intent to be both the dominant leader in the field of space exploration and also committed as a participant in international collaboration, and (3) the United States cannot remain a true pioneer of space exploration if it does not embrace the realities of globalization and the changing dynamics within the field of space exploration. We conclude with 3 suggestions: (1) the U.S. government and NASA should critically examine space exploration priorities and commit to implementing a program that will further realistic and robust stated policy and goals, (2) the U.S. should reexamine its intention to play a dominant leadership role in space exploration and consider emphasizing a commitment toward active participation in international collaboration in space, and (3) the U.S. should fully embrace the new paradigm of space exploration by lowering barriers such as International Traffic in Arms Regulations that hinder the competitiveness of the American space industry. The U.S. should review the challenges and advantages of collaborative endeavors with rising spacefaring nations such as China and abandon Cold War era thinking, thus paving the way to Mars by encouraging the participation of many nations and space agencies on future human missions.