Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Glossary of abbreviations in text and annexes
- Glossary of abbreviations in appendices
- Preface
- 1 The scientific background
- 2 The technical background
- 3 The initiation of the Skylark rocket programme – the IGY and artificial satellites
- 4 Post-IGY developments – NASA – COSPAR – British National Committee for Space Research – British satellite experiments
- 5 The Ariel programme
- 6 The European Space Research Organization
- 7 Commonwealth co-operation in space reseach
- 8 Smaller rockets for scientific purposes – Skua and Petrel
- 9 Attitude controlled Skylark rockets
- 10 The Trend Committee and the Science Research Council
- 11 The transformation of ESRO into ESA
- 12 The Space Science Committee for Europe
- 13 Scientific studies by British space scientists – figure of the earth and the neutral atmosphere
- 14 Scientific studies by British space scientists – the ionosphere, the magnetosphere and cosmic rays
- 15 The contribution from British space scientists to astronomy
- 16 Concluding remarks
- Appendices
- Annexes
- Notes
- Index
12 - The Space Science Committee for Europe
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 February 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Glossary of abbreviations in text and annexes
- Glossary of abbreviations in appendices
- Preface
- 1 The scientific background
- 2 The technical background
- 3 The initiation of the Skylark rocket programme – the IGY and artificial satellites
- 4 Post-IGY developments – NASA – COSPAR – British National Committee for Space Research – British satellite experiments
- 5 The Ariel programme
- 6 The European Space Research Organization
- 7 Commonwealth co-operation in space reseach
- 8 Smaller rockets for scientific purposes – Skua and Petrel
- 9 Attitude controlled Skylark rockets
- 10 The Trend Committee and the Science Research Council
- 11 The transformation of ESRO into ESA
- 12 The Space Science Committee for Europe
- 13 Scientific studies by British space scientists – figure of the earth and the neutral atmosphere
- 14 Scientific studies by British space scientists – the ionosphere, the magnetosphere and cosmic rays
- 15 The contribution from British space scientists to astronomy
- 16 Concluding remarks
- Appendices
- Annexes
- Notes
- Index
Summary
The formation of the Provisional Space Science Board for Europe
In Chapter 4 we discussed the important role played by the Space Science Board (SSB) of the US National Academy of Sciences in relation to the space science programme of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Board gives expert advice on the long-term programme and generally acts as a body to which members of the space science community may turn to air any dissatisfaction they may have. On the other hand, the Board does not interfere in the day-to-day running of NASA and its short term programme.
In 1973 the SSB, then under the Chairmanship of R.M. Goody, expressed their concern about the need for an international advisory body for space science. In a letter to Sir David Martin, the Executive Secretary of the Royal Society, H. Friedman, a member of the SSB, stated ‘our concern is related to the growing interest in joint development projects for space exploration … much of the interest can be directly attributed to the increasing national budgets and growing political emphasis placed on sharing the costs of major projects internationally. Without an independent and respected source of scientific advice we believe it is possible that the science content and planning for joint projects may be overly influenced by aerospace industry requirements ….’ He then suggested that he would welcome the opportunity to discuss the idea of an international advisory agency during his forthcoming visit to London to attend a meeting of the Bureau of SCOSTEP.
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- History of British Space Science , pp. 244 - 259Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1986