Memorandum submitted by the Royal Astronomical
Society (UKSA 25)
1. With more than 3,500 Fellows, the Royal
Astronomical Society (RAS) is the leading UK body representing
the interests of astronomers, space scientists and geophysicists.
As such, the Society has taken a close interest in the UK Space
Agency and strongly supported its establishment. We are therefore
pleased to offer evidence to the Committee for this inquiry.
2. In summary, we argue that the Agency's effectiveness
will be clearer once it is fully established, that its priorities
should be framed by the existing strategies for space and looking
forward, at least in part by the ambitions of the space science
community. We further also note that investment in space-related
activities in the UK remains some way behind that of our major
European competitors.
3. What progress has been made in setting
up the UK Space Agency?
4. Following the launch event in April,
some transition work has taken place but little of this has been
in the public domain so the Society is not able to comment on
progress towards full operation as an executive agency from April
2011. For the Agency to have a greater impact, once it becomes
fully established it needs to take a more visible lead on space
policy.
5. How does the UK Space Agency work with
other bodies (national and international) on space issues?
6. Given the short time since the Agency was
set up it is too early to answer this question. The Society expresses
the hope that the Agency will collaborate effectively with all
the relevant national and international agencies and scientific
bodies. In the UK, this would include the research councils, learned
societies and networks of scientists and engineers in universities,
research establishments and the space industry. Internationally,
the Agency should strive to remain a strong partner in ESA and
continue the existing work being done with other agencies like
NASA, JAXA and the Chinese and Indian space organisations.
7. Is the UK Space Agency more effective
at coordinating space policy than its predecessor, the British
National Space Centre?
8. Again, it seems premature to make a judgement
on the effectiveness of such a new organisation. The RAS lobbied
Government for the creation of the new Agency, at least partly
in the belief that a single body would be better placed to make
decisions than an amorphous partnership of many government departments,
non-departmental public bodies and industry.
9. If the UK Space Agency is to live up to its
potential, then officials and advisory bodies (like the Space
Leadership Council) should certainly continue to work with key
stakeholders in the scientific community including the relevant
learned societies like the RAS.
10. What should the UK Space Agency's priorities
be for the next five years?
11. The RAS argues that the starting point
for setting Agency priorities should be the recent Space Exploration
Review, and Space Innovation and Growth Strategy, published in
2009 and 2010 respectively. The Review set out the options for
UK involvement at different levels of investment and the benefits
for science, innovation, commerce and society that would follow.
12. Looking forward, there is a vibrant space
science community in the UK with no shortage of ambition. Recently,
this community organised two meetings on the ESA Cosmic Visions
call for proposals and put forward a series of innovative ideas
for missions. The RAS strongly urges the Agency to use the talent
of this community to help its future priorities for space science
and exploration.
13. The Space Innovation and Growth Strategy
set out a 20-year vision for space sponsored by industry, government
and academia. This report argued that with Government support
the UK space industry could grow to a value of £40 billion
by 2030 and in the process create up to 100000 jobs.
14. The Society believes that the Government
should capitalise on this opportunity with a corresponding expansion
in civil space science and exploration activity alongside that
in the private sector.
15. Setting of future priorities will depend
not only on the budget for the UK Space Agency, but also the resources
available for astronomy and space science research from the Science
and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). Without adequate support
for this science, it will be far more difficult to realise the
potential benefits of the new Agency.
16. Is the UK Space Agency adequately funded?
17. In the light of the June Emergency Budget,
the Comprehensive Spending Review now underway and the transition
from BNSC to a full executive agency, the size of the final budget
for the UK Space Agency remains unclear.
18. According to BIS, in the fiscal year 2008-09,
investment in civil space activities amounted to £268.7 million,
with £106.07 million of this directed to space science and
exploration. In comparison, in the year 2001-02 expenditure on
space science and exploration amounted to £41.75 million.
Much of this space activity is funded through mandatory and optional
contributions to the European Space Agency (ESA).
19. The Society welcomes the increase in
investment in the last decade, but notes that none the less the
UK still remains parsimonious in comparison with other advanced
nations. On the most recent figures, the contribution by the UK
to ESA is only around half that of France and Germany and significantly
lower than Italy. In GDP terms overall UK space funding is 21st
in the world.
20. Given the strength of the commercial
UK space industry and the opportunities it presents for high-value
economic growth, the Society argues that investment in space science
and exploration should increase to match that of our European
competitors.
Royal Astronomical Society
August 2010
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