Civilian Space Program Research Articles

United States Air Force radioisotope material launch approval requirements

National Security Presidential Memorandum #20 [1] recently superseded National Security Council, Presidential Directive #25 [2] both of which require evaluation of risks associated with launch of radioactive sources into space. This evaluation is conducted by the Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Board (INSRB)*⁎The Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Panel (INSRP) consisted of the Department of Defense (DoD), charged with national security and the US Armed Forces; Department of Energy (DOE), concerned with US policies regarding energy and safety in handling and use of nuclear material; Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), responsible for human health and preservation of the environment; National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA), responsible for the civilian space program; and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; (NRC), tasked with protecting public health and safety related to nuclear energy. The INSRP was replaced by the INSRB per NSPM-20 in August, 2019, adding two new organizations to the board, the Department of Transportation (DOT) responsible for transportation safety and the Department of State (DOS) responsible for international agreements.. The Air Force (AF) Chief of Space Safety is a co-chair on the Board representing the Department of Defense. There have historically existed no regulated acceptable risk thresholds within US Government or AF guidance specific to the potential for radioisotope exposure should a launch of this nature fail. To this end, the AF rewrote its existing policy to establish launch safety criteria for use by the AF Launch Decision Authority when approving launches that use radioactive sources. This paper outlines the thought process used while developing launch safety criteria specifically, with regard to when a risk evaluation should be accomplished and what the acceptable risk threshold should be.

South Korea's Space Program: Activities and Ambitions

South Korea's Space Program:Activities and Ambitions Hyoung Joon An (bio) Among spacefaring nations, the Republic of Korea (ROK) is a relatively young player. Despite establishing some infrastructure necessary for space-related activity in the 30 years after the launch of Sputnik, the country truly committed to such activity only in the 1990s. Since then, South Korea's space program has developed rapidly to become a significant presence. In 1992 the launch of KITsat-1 (Korean Institute of Technology Satellite), the first ROK satellite, marked the program's first major achievement, after which the country built up its technological capabilities for space exploration relatively quickly. It has launched 37 satellites into orbit to date and in 2013 developed its first space launch vehicle, the KSLV-1 (also called Naro-1).1 At present, South Korea aims to launch the first wholly Korean-made launch rocket, the KSLV-2 (also called Nuri), by 2021, which will later be used to launch a lunar orbiter and lander as well. This essay examines how South Korea's national framework for space development and scientific and technological activities in the space sector have evolved in recent decades. To understand the country's space-oriented ambitions, the essay reviews the ROK's "Third Basic Plan for the Promotion of Space Development, 2018–2022," which marks the nation's latest comprehensive space policy and includes space launch vehicles, satellites, the Korea Lunar Exploration Program, and the Korean Positioning System (KPS). Historical Background and Institutional Framework The vision of developing space for economic security has provided a strong boost to various ROK space projects since the 1980s. Although the country did not have an adequate infrastructure network for such development, in the 1970s it began outlining a new economic rationale for entering the field of space technology based on developing high-tech [End Page 34] infrastructure and skilled workers trained in the nation's growing defense industry. Because the majority of the country's industries utilized low-cost labor and only became competitive in world markets in the 1980s, the government emphasized space development as a way to reinforce the country's economic security.2 Space development was expected to afford South Korea the opportunity to catch up with advanced industrial nations and withstand fierce international competition in new technologies. In 1985 the government announced the "Long-Term Plan for the Development of Science and Technology toward the 2000s," which emphasized space development as a way to reinforce industrial competitiveness. Furthermore, in 1987 it passed the Aerospace Industry Development and Promotion Act, which provided the first significant funding for a national space program. Both strategies focused on developing satellites and sounding rockets for space launch vehicles expected to follow.3 With the establishment of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) in 1989—which would become the principal actor in South Korea's civilian space program—SaTReC (Satellite Research Center) at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and Korea Telecom emerged as central actors. Although initially relying on technology imported from other countries, South Korea aspired to attain indigenous capabilities for space development. In 1996 the government announced the "First Basic Plan on Mid-to-Long-Term National Space Development." The chief objectives were to join the top ten countries in the space industry and, by 2010, to launch the KSLV-1 from a local launch site with an independently developed satellite. This plan was ultimately replaced by the "Basic Plan for the Promotion of Space Development" in 2007. In addition, the government passed the Space Development Promotion Act in 2005, which stipulates that it must draft a basic plan every five years to address emerging objectives and strategies for national space development. Announced in February 2018, the current "Third Basic Plan for 2018–2022" set the ultimate objective of "improving public safety and quality of life by implementing challenging but reliable space development." To achieve that objective, it identifies four strategies: harmonizing challenges and practicalities, selecting and focusing on strategic sectors, creating new [End Page 35] industries and jobs, and sharing the public vision (Figure 1). These four strategies are accompanied by four goals. First, to establish an indigenous space launch vehicle, South Korea...

Space Privatization in China's National Strategy of Military-Civilian Integration: An Appraisal of Critical Legal Challenges

Encouraging private entities to participate in space activities is commonly recognized as a critical goal, and in China, it is now also considered a necessary step to implement its “military-civilian integration” (MCI) strategy, currently promoted at the national level. The legal challenges of this strategy should be assessed. From an international perspective, the absence of a legal framework of space arms control means that the recent developments toward militarization of space cannot be addressed and the danger of a possible arms race in space can currently not be prevented. If such danger materializes, it could also impede the smooth growth of civil space programs in which the nongovernmental sector should play a crucial role. From a Chinese domestic perspective, several regulations related to carrying out the MCI strategy in the area of space have been created in the form of “Opinions” or “Notices.” However, they contain few measures favorable to space privatization. In addition, several rules are restrictive regarding nongovernmental participants in space activities. Therefore, China must further improve its draft proposal of the “Treaty on the Prevention of Placement of Weapons in Outer Space and the Threat or Use of Force against Outer Space Objects” to garner more supporters and to modify national space regulations to implement international obligations. In addition, supportive measures for private participants are recommended to be included in China's future national space law.

Nancy Grace Roman and the Dawn of Space Astronomy

Dear readers: We are sad to report that, soon after submitting her draft manuscript for this prefatory chapter, Nancy Grace Roman passed away on December 25, 2018. This final version of her memoir has been lightly edited but remains very true to the original. However, an Abstract was missing. Rather than trying to synthesize one in Nancy Grace's inimitable style, we take this opportunity to comment briefly on her life and its significance. Nancy Grace Roman was born in 1925 and came of age scientifically in the United States during the 1940s and 1950s. Together with the equally fascinating prefatory by Vera Rubin ( ARAA, Vol. 49), which we also recommend to you, these two memoirs give us intimate insight into the obstacles faced by women astronomers trying to rise in the field during those years. Roman's memoir is bitingly candid, recounting numerous snubs by teachers, insultingly small salaries, and attempts by her thesis advisor to simultaneously exploit her scientific findings and smother her role in them. Discouragement at every turn from doing forefront research is what drove Roman into government service, where she found a niche and blossomed as one of the visionary founders of the US civilian space program. We do not know what impact Roman might have had as a researcher with access to the world's largest telescopes, but we do know that her influence as an enabler of other people's science was vast. Her sobriquet as the “Mother of Hubble,” bestowed by admirer Ed Weiler, is well deserved. Nancy Grace granted an audio interview to Joss Bland-Hawthorn on August 4, 2018, just a few months before her passing. It captures her persona more vividly than mere words on paper, and we recommend the online recording to you at https://www.annualreviews.org/r/nancy-grace-roman-interview .

"Sunshine Activities and Weather/Climatic Variability during the Current Period of 1961 - 2018 Especially Over Indonesia Maritime Continent"

Sunshine could the main source of the energy from the galaxy where the earth could be one of the planets to circulate annually with the sun as the center as part of the revolution of the earth. Measuring the sun’s activities would be applied from the number of solar flares and the sunspot based upon solar cycle which has average period per cycle to be 11.5 years. Based upon the observation, it has been done from the previous observation by the National Aeronautics Space Administration to be the Agency of the United States of America responsible for the civilian space program as well as aeronautics and aerospace since the beginning observation in the 18 century.

An Interview with William A. Barnett

An Interview with William A. Barnett

“Star Wars, Eh?”: Canadian Aerospace Policy and the Militarization of Outer Space

Canadians rightly pride themselves on their technological achievements in outer space. Heralded as a pioneer with several “firsts” in space exploration, public perception is that Canada explores the “final frontier” in the name of peace. This is the myth perpetuated by scientists and politicians alike, distorting clear evidence to the contrary. This study aims to rectify this fallacy by demonstrating that Canadian space initiatives were a product of Cold War relations, a need for domestic and international security against the threat of nuclear war. Contextualized within the paradigm of a bipolar world, an ostensibly civilian space program only thinly veiled military objectives. Consulting military, political and scientific sources from the end of the Second World War to contemporary conflicts, what emerges is a complex relationship between civilian and military initiatives. Balancing demands from the United States for hemispheric security against the increasing threat of the Soviet Union whilst maintaining sovereignty over Canadian territory presented immense challenges to government leaders. Coupled with a shrinking defence budget, space research fulfilled specific niche roles in Canadian‐American relations. Deconstructing the objectives of prominent satellite programs, Canada‐U.S. (CANUS) agreements, and concomitant government sponsored defence research into theoretical space programs reveals policy marked by the vestiges of war. Peaceful orientations toward outer space perpetuated in historical literature sets a dangerous precedent. Future conflicts will not always pit technologically advanced societies against underdeveloped armies, and ignoring the military advantages of outer space could prove a fatal mistake in confrontations that will assuredly come.Defence in

The Moon as an enabling asset for spaceflight

A consequence of the rocket equation is that significant quantities of mass can be lifted into orbit from the bottom of the deepest gravity well in the inner Solar System (Earth's surface) but only at enormous cost. After fifty years of experience and despite technical advances, launch costs continue to make up a major fraction of the cost of space exploration. One-off satellites e launched on expendable vehicles e are still the norm in today's spaceflight paradigm, the same template we have used for the past fifty years. We cannot make what we need in space because we lack both the infrastructure and resources to fabricate our needs at the various places in space where they are needed. The current lack of strategic direction in the American civil space program is at least partly a consequence of this dilemma. Because we must launch everything we need from the surface of the Earth, spaceflight e especially the human variety e is difficult and costly. This high cost makes justifying human missions into low Earth orbit and beyond difficult and thus, we engage in lengthy debates about appropriate destinations and activities. It is hard to come up with mission goals important enough to merit the spending of significant fractions of national wealth. Debates about mission objectives become mired exercises in scientific mythmaking (e.g., the quest for extraterrestrial life) or appeals to emotion involving “inspiration” or national prestige. Spaceflight is both useful and important for a wide variety of scientific, economic and national security needs. Satellites make up a critical part of the infrastructure of modern technical civilization. What is needed is the ability to move freely throughout space with a variety of capabilities, where various satellite assets reside, to upgrade, maintain and construct large distributed systems of greater potential and speed. As most satellites reside above low Earth orbit, in cislunar space (i.e., between Earth and Moon), the freedom to move throughout this region would enable us to not only access all of these space assets, but also to travel at will beyond low Earth orbit. However, the problem of the rocket equation remains e we arrive in LEO with empty fuel tanks and to travel farther, we must carry additional fuel and equipment with us. If we could instead provision ourselves once in space, virtually unlimited horizons would beckon. Fortunately, a source of materials and energy exists nearby that can be tapped to create new space faring capability. Unique among accessible space destinations beyond low Earth orbit, the Moon possesses material and energy resources in usable form to supply a space-based transportation infrastructure, thereby allowing us to establish a permanent presence in space. After nearly a decade of intensive robotic exploration,we nowhave a detailed understanding of the environment and deposits of the poles of the Moon. Because theMoon's spin axis obliquity is low (1.5! inclination), portions of the terrain near the poles are in either near-permanent sunlight or in permanent darkness. Areas in sunlight can support the generation of electrical power via the emplacement of solar photovoltaic arrays. Infrequent and brief periods of solar eclipse can be bridged through the use of rechargeable fuel cells, which generate electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen into water. During the periods of solar illumination, solar arrays can then decompose the water back into its component gases, creating a completely reversible process. In addition to its benefits for power generation, illuminated zones near the lunar poles are characterized by constantly grazing incidence of sunlight, which keeps the surface at a nearly uniform temperature of about 220 K (50 !C). Thus, these polar areas of near-permanent illumination permit extended presence on the Moon, with both constant available power and a benign thermal environment. Surfaces within the permanently dark areas near the poles of the Moon have extremely low temperatures (25e40 K or 247! to 233 !C) and as a result, act as “cold traps” to collect and retain volatile materials, such as water. Although water is rare on the Moon, its surface is constantly bombarded by water-bearing objects, such as asteroids and comets. This water, vaporized on impact, is mostly lost to space, but it can be preserved if it gets into E-mail address: Spudis@lpi.usra.edu.

Exploring the Final Frontier: An Empirical Analysis of Global Civil Space Proliferation

While space capabilities were once concentrated among a handful of leading powers, an increasingly large number of states have gained access to them. As of 2007, 58 countries possessed dedicated civil space programs, 44 countries had placed nationally owned satellites into orbit, and 9 countries had achieved domestic space launch capabilities. To date, however, no systematic inquiries have ever been conducted into which countries acquire space capabilities and why. Within this paper, I develop an explanatory account that explores the capacity-based factors and political motivations that influence countries' acquisition of space capabilities. I test my hypotheses via a quantitative analysis of the factors affecting 143 countries' acquisition of civil space programs, satellite capabilities, and space launch capabilities from 1950 to 2002. My findings shed new light on the primary causes of the proliferation of civil space capabilities and yield a number of important policy implications.

Improved cost monitoring and control through the Earned Value Management System

As economic pressure and competition for budget among federal agencies has increased, there has been an increasing need for more granular data and robust management information systems. This is especially true for the execution of major civilian space programs. This need has resulted in new program management requirements being implemented in an attempt to limit cost and schedule growth. In particular, NASA Procedural Requirements (NPR) 7120.5D requires the implementation of an Earned Value Management System (EVMS) compliant with the requirements of American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/Electronic Industries Alliance Standard 748-B. The Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) program management team at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) made a decision to implement an EVMS on RBSP during Phase B—a year earlier than specified in the contractual Phase C reporting requirement as defined in the NPR. This decision was made so that the project would have the benefit of 12 months of training and hands-on implementation during Phase B. Although there were a number of technical and process hurdles encountered during Phase B and into Phase C, the system was working well when the Integrated Baseline Review (IBR) was held in August 2009. The IBR was a success because it met the review requirements. It was also clear to all IBR participants that the EVMS was providing value to the project management team. Although the IBR pointed out some areas of concern regarding process and ANSI compliance, the system had markedly improved the project's ability to monitor cost and schedule. This, in turn, allowed the project team to foresee problems in advance, formulate corrective actions, and implement course corrections without causing significant adverse impact to the project. Opponents of EVMS systems often communicate the unfavorable opinion that EVMS systems create unnecessary cost and administration. Although it is undeniable that EVMS implementation does not occur without cost, the cost is minimal in comparison to the benefits of successful implementation. This paper will focus on the implementation of EVMS on the RBSP project, explain EV processes and the implementation's cost, and analyze the benefits of EVMS to provide insight into cost/benefit considerations for other projects considering EVMS implementation. This paper will do this by focusing on the following points: (1) RBSP is the first full-up implementation of earned value management (EVM) at JHU/APL; (2) RBSP EVM started in Phase B; (3) RBSP EVM implementation has been working well in Phase C/D; (4) RBSP EVM implementation has been recognized by Goddard Space Flight Center and NASA Headquarters as successful; and (5) an assessment of the benefits of EVMS to the project management team and sponsor shows that the system's benefits outweigh the cost of implementation.

US presidents and the militarization of space, 1946-1967

In the clash of ideologies represented by the Cold War, even the heavens were not immune to militarization. Satellites and space programs became critical elements among the national security objectives of both the United States and the Soviet Union. According to US Presidents and the Militarization of Space, 1946-1967 , three American presidents in succession shared a fundamental objective of preserving space as a weapons-free frontier for the benefit of all humanity. Between 1953 and 1967 Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson all saw nonaggressive military satellite development, as well as the civilian space program, as means to favorably shape the international community's opinion of the scientific, technological, and military capabilities of the United States. Sean N. Kalic's reinterpretation of the development of US space policy, based on documents declassified in the past decade, demonstrates that a single vision for the appropriate uses of space characterized American strategies across parties and administrations during this period. Significantly, Kalic's findings contradict the popular opinion that the United States sought to weaponize space and calls into question the traditional interpretation of the space race as a simple action/reaction paradigm. Indeed, beyond serving as a symbol and ambassador of US technological capability, its satellite program provided the United States with advanced, nonaggressive military intelligence-gathering platforms that proved critical in assessing the strategic nuclear balance between the United States and the Soviet Union. It also aided the three administrations in countering the Soviet Union's increasing international prestige after its series of space firsts, beginning with the launch of Sputnik in 1957. | In the clash of ideologies represented by the Cold War, even the heavens were not immune to militarization. Satellites and space programs became critical elements among the national security objectives of both the United States and the Soviet Union. According to US Presidents and the Militarization of Space, 1946-1967 , three American presidents in succession shared a fundamental objective of preserving space as a weapons-free frontier for the benefit of all humanity. Between 1953 and 1967 Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson all saw nonaggressive military satellite development, as well as the civilian space program, as means to favorably shape the international community's opinion of the scientific, technological, and military capabilities of the United States. Sean N. Kalic's reinterpretation of the development of US space policy, based on documents declassified in the past decade, demonstrates that a single vision for the appropriate uses of space characterized American strategies across parties and administrations during this period. Significantly, Kalic's findings contradict the popular opinion that the United States sought to weaponize space and calls into question the traditional interpretation of the space race as a simple action/reaction paradigm. Indeed, beyond serving as a symbol and ambassador of US technological capability, its satellite program provided the United States with advanced, nonaggressive military intelligence-gathering platforms that proved critical in assessing the strategic nuclear balance between the United States and the Soviet Union. It also aided the three administrations in countering the Soviet Union's increasing international prestige after its series of space firsts, beginning with the launch of Sputnik in 1957.

Indian Armed Forces and Space Technology

The Indian space program, which was started with a modest mandate in the early 1960s, has today become a leader in the developing world. India's space program is civilian in orientation and has a major socioeconomic developmental focus. India also has an interest in lunar and planetary exploration missions: it has already successfully undertaken its first Moon mission. Nuclear India's growing international stature gives it strategic relevance, both regionally and globally. Satellite technology, being inherently dual-use, has applicability for strategic purposes too. Modern-day military preparation demands dependence on space assets for communication, navigation and reconnaissance. This article attempts to understand how India is trying to factor space into its overall security calculus. With changing threat perceptions, it is becoming important for the Indian armed forces to increase its dependence on space assets. Currently, the mandate for the state's civilian space program, cost considerations, technology transfer and other geopolitical concerns are limiting India's foray into the military space arena. India's position as regards conducting an anti-satellite test has also not yet been clearly articulated.

Exploring the Final Frontier: An Empirical Analysis of Global Civil Space Proliferation

While space capabilities were once concentrated among a handful of leading powers, an increasingly large number of states have gained access to them. As of 2007, 58 countries possessed dedicated civil space programs, 44 countries had placed nationally-owned satellites into orbit, and 9 countries had achieved domestic space launch capabilities. To date, however, no systematic inquiries have ever been conducted into which countries acquire space capabilities and why. Within this paper, I develop an explanatory account that explores both the capacity-based factors and political motivations that influence countries’ acquisition of space capabilities. I test my hypotheses via a quantitative analysis of the factors affecting 143 countries’ acquisition of civil space programs, satellite capabilities, and space launch capabilities from 1950-2002, which I augment with a case study of Israel’s space program. My findings shed new light on the primary causes of global space proliferation and have a number of important policy implications.

An Emerging Concept for the Medium of Space

The economic growth of Eastern states is leading to exceedingly consequential developments for their respective military and civilian space programs. The Chinese space program in particular is developing at a rapid pace, which is commensurate with China's economic growth. Accordingly, if the United States is to retain its quantitative and qualitative edges in space it must recover the dynamism with which to further its economic and technological development. In this regard, inflatable designs for space solar power (SSP) are emerging whose economic impact can power the development of American space capabilities in the twenty-first century. With these platforms the United States can rejoin the space race with immense resources.

THE SPACE CAPABILITY OF RUSSIA IS A STRATEGIC INSTRUMENT

Russia has a unique rocket and space capability. However, the Russian space industry is currently being restructured to address new strategic tasks. What are those tasks, and what are the difficulties Russia is facing in developing and manufacturing new space technology? What is the balance between the military and civilian space programs? Can we at last expect a manned mission to Mars with Russian participation any time soon? We have put these questions to the Deputy Head of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos) Sergey Ponomarev.

Aerospace Medicine at Brooks AFB, TX: Hail and Farewell

With the impending termination of USAF operations at Brooks Air Force Base (AFB) in San Antonio, TX, it is time to consider its historic role in Aerospace Medicine. The base was established in 1917 as a flight training center for the U.S. Army Air Service and in 1926 became home to its School of Aviation Medicine. The school moved to San Antonio's Randolph Field in 1931, but in 1959 it returned to Brooks where it occupied new facilities to support its role as a national center for U.S. Air Force aerospace medicine, including teaching, clinical medicine, and research. The mission was then expanded to encompass support of U.S. military and civilian space programs. With the abrupt termination of the military space program in 1969, research at Brooks focused on clinical aviation medicine and support of advanced military aircraft while continuing close cooperation with NASA in support of orbital spaceflight and the journey to the Moon. Reorganization in the 1990s assigned all research functions at Brooks to the Human Systems Division and its successors, leaving to USAFSAM the missions related to clinical work and teaching. In 2002 the USAF and the city of San Antonio implemented shared operation of Brooks as a "City-Base" in the hope of deflecting threatened closure. Nevertheless, under continuing pressure to consolidate military facilities in the United States, the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Commission ordered Brooks closed by 2011, with its aerospace medicine functions relocated to new facilities at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, OH.

South Africa's Space Program

This article analyzes South Africa's space program, which can be divided into three chronological periods. First, was the age of amateurs that took place from 1947–1962. Second, from 1963–1993, South Africa's apartheid regime started various missile projects, including a secret military space launch program aimed at orbiting reconnaissance satellites. Under U.S. Government pressure, this was canceled before the first democratically-elected government came to power in South Africa, and the facilities for manufacturing and static testing the space launch vehicle were destroyed. But, South Africa maintains a nucleus of space heritage infrastructure, including a space launch range with telemetry capabilities, satellite testing, and integration facilities, and aerospace and software industrial sectors. Third, South Africa became a democracy in 1994, and established the legal and institutional infrastructure for a civil space program. Since then, South Africa has started to shape a new space policy, this time with greater public transparency.

Perspectives on Sino-US cooperation in civil space programs

Abstract China is one of the few countries with a space launch capability and it is now becoming more and more visible as a major player in the human access to and exploration of space. The USA is the only space superpower, as demonstrated by its wider range of missions, richer experiences and the highest budget devoted to space. There are currently no governmental bilateral space cooperation activities between the USA and China for many reasons. This paper presents an analysis of the positive and negative postures of both countries, while focusing on the ways in which the USA may benefit from space cooperation with China, starting in civil space programs. A feasible cooperative route for space collaboration between the two countries is proposed.

Sputnik Reconsidered: Image and Reality in the Early Space Age

Abstract: Chroniclers regularly affirm that Russia's Sputniks produced popular crisis. More nuanced explanations argue that a preliminary “media riot” made cosmic space races an essential counterpart of earthly missile races in the public mind. Widespread public interest and political support for the US civilian space program during its formative years is presumed, as is the concept that space explorations were a key global determinant of US Cold War prestige. Such ideas are overdrawn. Contemporary analysts often studied to confirm what they already knew. Unattractive official findings were censored or ignored. Surveying all formerly secret and other opinion data about civilian space exploration from Sputnik 1 to the end of the Mercury program shows how space exploration advocates helped create elite panic regarding the Sputniks via selective reporting, while wider publics generally stayed indifferent to lunar and planetary missions. Elite panic, not mass panic, impelled the priorities and programs of the early space age.

Race, Gender, and Space Exploration: A Chapter in the Social History of the Space Age

An era of space explorations and an era of expanded civil rights for racial minorities and women began simultaneously in the United States. But such important social changes are very rarely discussed in relation to each other. Four recent books on how the US astronaut program finally opened to women and minorities in 1978 address a key part of this connection, without discussing the struggles that compelled the ending of traditional race and gender exclusions. This essay examines the organizational and political dynamics of how civil rights in employment came to the US civilian space program in the decades after 1970.