Space advocacy
Template:Globalise/USA Space advocacy can be described as the general position supporting, pleading or arguing for[1] the idea or cause of space exploration and settlements. It is a form of advocacy that specifically includes support for private space initiatives and is also a political position that favors the exploration, utilization, and colonization of outer space.
There are many different individuals and organizations dedicated to space advocacy. They are usually active in educating the public[2] on space related subjects, lobbying governments[3][4] for increased funding in space-related activities or supporting private space activities[5]. They also recruit members, fund projects, and provide information for their membership and interested visitors. They are sub-divided into three categories depending on their primary work: practice, advocacy, and theory.
History
Historians[weasel words] agree that space flight and especially manned space flight was not inevitable, but rather that society was convinced of the need for it by a few revolutionaries. These “revolutionaries” were primarily members of the Russian[6][7], American[8], British[9], and German[10][11] science communities and starting in the 1930s began to share their individual plans for a future in space to their respective governments and the public[12].
Influential books and other media began to emerge which included works containing illustrations by Chesley Bonestell (based on Wernher von Braun's designs) such as The Conquest of Space (1949)and magazine articles including the "Man Will Conquer Space Soon!" series of article in Colliers magazine between 1952 and 1954. Television shows included Walt Disney's Man in Space and Man and the Moon in 1955, and Mars and Beyond in 1957.
Advocacy organisations
Organizations that focus mainly on space advocacy, education, and lobbying activities.
| Organisation | Founded | Purpose and goals | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| SETI Institute | link | ||
| The Planetary Society | link | ||
| National Space Society | formed from a merger of the National Space Institute, founded by Wernher von Braun, and the L5 Society, founded by Gerard O'Neill | an organization with the vision of "people living and working in thriving communities beyond the Earth." | link |
| Space Frontier Foundation | promotes strong free market, capitalist views about space development. | link | |
| British Interplanetary Society | 1933 and once led by Arthur C. Clarke, is the world's longest established space society. | link | |
| Students for the Exploration and Development of Space | 1980 at MIT and Princeton | link | |
| Canadian Space Society | founded in 1983 | in addition to carrying on its own space-advocacy activities, it acts as an umbrella organization for various other Canadian pro-space groups | link |
| Mars Society | founded by Robert Zubrin | to forward humanity in exploring and colonizing Mars | link |
| Marsdrive | a small group dedicated toward further promotion and development of ideas relating to a Manned mission to Mars. It differs slightly in that it advocates the 'if we want to go - then we have to pay' approach. | link | |
| The Mars Foundation | through its Mars Homestead Project, is developing a unified plan for building the first habitat on Mars by exploiting local materials. | link | |
| SpaceVidcast | a multimedia, internet based broadcaster dedicated to "...getting all of planet Earth excited about space flight and living amongst the stars." |
Focus on advocating a theory for space exploration or colonization.
| Organisation | Founded | Purpose and goals | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alliance to Rescue Civilization | plans to establish backups of human civilization on the Moon and other locations away from Earth. | link | |
| Artemis Project | plans to set up a private lunar surface station | link | |
| Living Universe Foundation | has a detailed plan in which the entire galaxy is colonized. | link | |
| Red Colony | strives to collect and develop theories in Mars colonization and terraformation via contributions and debate from the general public. | link |
References
- ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
- ^ The Solar System Ambassadors Program
- ^ http://chapters.marssociety.org/usa/dc/pdfSRC/MarsSociTest2003.pdf
- ^ Technical Societies Call for Increase to NASA Budget
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Tourism_Society
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konstantin_Tsiolkovsky
- ^ Korolev
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_H._Goddard
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Interplanetary_Society
- ^ Biography of Wernher Von Braun
- ^ German Civilian Rocketry
- ^ HobbySpace - Space Activism - History