Space race or space club?

[Ags]

In the fifties and sixties it was USA vs USSR, there could only be one winner.  We got to the Moon.

in the following decades we played nice and clubbed together… building space stations.

It seems we got a bit more done scientifically and technologically when when we persuaded the general public and politicians that getting the “right” flag on the Moon was somehow very important? When space is presented as an opportunity for cooperation and peace… people aren’t that interested?

 I’m not trying to start a political debate, but I’m interested the psychology of this. Does public debate focus on the negative, so that when cooperating our discourse is “our partners are spending less than us!!!” while when competing our fear is “our rivals are spending more than us!!!”?

Edited May 27, 2023 by Ags

[Nik271]

Good topic! I suspect indeed the fear of losing out is a big drive of current space ambitions. It will make much more sense to pool resources and design a plan for  a permanent base on the Moon with international copperation, the way it worked with the ISS.

A permanent base on the Moon is going to be such a technilogically complex task, with challenges to get supplies, reliable source of power, shielding from radiation , etc., It probably will be beyond the ability of any single nation to achieve. Sadly the current political situation is not boding well for cooperation unless it is between Russia and China 😞 The US is going boldly alone, currently at the front but at tortoise pace, probaby the only thing that keeps it going (politically) is fear of losing out.