This Brief discusses the current policy environment in which the United States space program
operates and proposes an industry-government partnership as a long-term policy solution. Since
the Reagan administration American space policy has increasingly sought to involve private
sector operators for space. The culmination of this trend has been the Obama administration's
policy of private sector transportation of crew and cargo to the International Space Station on
behalf of NASA. This book proposes that future administrations extend this policy to other
areas of space including energy in orbit manufacturing asteroid mining and the exploration
of the Moon and Mars. The book further demonstrates how these activities can stabilize the
global political system and lead to a dramatic increase in global economic growth. Finally the
book addresses one of the most important and critical issues currently facing humanity-the need
for a viable baseload and unlimited supply of totally clean energy. An extremely cogent
analysis of the interrelationship between space activity and the terrestrial economy this book
showcases the political and economic potential of the medium of space and adds greatly to the
existing literature in the field. This book will be of interest to students of political
science and strategic studies as well as members of the military government space agencies
and the international aerospace industry.
