It has been 35 years since the United States won the race to the moon with the Soviet Union. The effort ate up billions of dollars and took many years to accomplish. The Soviet Union led the way into space and the U.S. played catchup for years, as U.S. rockets exploded either on the launch pads or in the sky. When all was said and done, what did we get for the tremendous amount of money that was spent? Well, we got some rocks, some prestige and a dangerous vehicle, as witnessed by the amount of shuttle explosions.

Well the world is a different place now. The once mighty space power, the U.S. is facing much competition and the problem is this competition may be able to do things much cheaper than us. The space shuttle was supposed to be a reusable space vehicle that would cut costs and be able to launch payloads cheaper than a rocket. Nothing could be further from the truth. The best rocket motor we have is Russian. Yes Russian, we bought it from them. It seems we are not able to build a better one ourselves. The European Union is using the Ariane Rocket to launch satellites, and they can do it at a much cheaper price that we can. They are also using Soyuz Launch Vehicles which are even cheaper. The Soyuz is a tried and true launch vehicle.

But it is not only the Europeans who have decided to enter space. You have the Indians, Chinese, Japanese, and Canadians and of course the Russians. The U.N. now has has an Office For Outer Space Affairs. There are other countries that could get into the space race anytime they wanted to, but have yet to do so. Many countries have rockets with sufficient range and power to launch a satellite.

Gemini Titan Rocket

Canada has been involved in space for quite a while and holds the distension of being the FIRST nation in the world to deploy geostationary satellites for communications. Canada has eight astronauts and they work with the U.S. Government.

The Russians have a long and glorious space tradition. As we all know they were the first to launch a satellite and the first to send a man into space. They had several space stations and have more experience on space stations than anyone else. They build some very good space vehicles, so good that two of them are used for escape on the International Space Station (ISS). You remember that station, don't you, it is the project that together with the shuttle, eats up almost the entire budget of NASA and gives very little, if anything, in return. Right now NASA makes political decisions rather than scientific ones. A base on the moon would be a lot more useful than the ISS. The moon would come in very handy for launching vehicles to other planets because of its lack of atmosphere and low gravity. You could build factories right on the moon to construct vehicles that could travel into space. There would be no limit to the amount of personnel on the moon as there is in the ISS. We should go to the moon first, establish a base or bases then strike out into space from there.

India has ancient stories of space battles and has always been interested in space. The Indian Space Commission has existed since 1972. In 1967 the Indian Government was launching sounding rockets. The entire Indian Space Program has a budget of only 450 million dollars per year. NASA admits to a budget of 15.5 Billion Dollars. But India has managed to launch 13 satellites into orbit and some of them are classified as the best remote imaging satellites in the world. Could we learn something here? If India ever decides to throw themselves into the space race with a full commitment we could never compete price wise. What I am really saying is that we might still win but at what cost?

Let's not forget the Chinese. Last year China launched a man into space, a feat only accomplished by the Soviet Union and the United States. They have started an astronaut corps. They are predicting that by the year 2010 they will have their own space shuttle, have reached and explored the moon and built a space station. These people might get to the moon before we are able to get back there. China has an economy that is growing stronger every day thus giving them more money to spend on space exploration. China launched their first satellite in 1970.

Japan has its own version of NASA, it is called NASDA. Japan is a dynamic powerhouse of technology. Yet this powerhouse has a lot of failures. So many rockets failed that John Logsdon, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University was prompted to say that they were in deep trouble.If Japan approaches their space program, in the same manner that they approach manufacturing then they will eventually be a force to be reckoned with. It may take them a few years but they usually come through in the end.

But is there another route for the American Space Program? Must everything be done through NASA? Private companies are just starting to get into the space race. Kelly Space and Technology Inc. of California is developing launch vehicles. Space Access LLC is trying to develop a reusable space plane. Pioneer Rocketplane is developing a vehicle to orbit small packages. Kistler Aerospace Corp. is trying to develop a two stage system. SpaceX, Inc. is developing launch vehicles. Microcosm, Inc. is trying to develop low cost launch vehicles. SeaLaunch Co. is a Boeing company that will launch rockets from sites in the ocean. There are many more companies both here and in Russia and no doubt in the rest of the world just waiting to get into the space race. Dick Rutan, the famous aircraft designer, is now testing a space plane that is showing great promise.

Space Shuttle

The competition has increased and many countries are going their own way. If only we could all work together then we might truly get to the stars.