The Hindu Editorial Analysis, India-US Space Cooperation

The Hindu Editorial Analysis: India-US Space Cooperation:

In Today’s The Hindu Editorial Analysis on ”India-US Space Cooperation” we will discuss about Areas of India-US Space Cooperation, Limitations of India-US Space Cooperation and ways to boost India-US Space Cooperation.

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Context

In News?

• India and the United States agreeing to advance space collaboration in several areas, under the ‘initiative on critical and emerging technology’ umbrella, including human space exploration and commercial space partnership.
• This follows from the eighth meeting of the US-India Civil Space Joint Working Group (CSJWG), that was held on January 30-31, 2023.

Background

• In 2018, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the Gaganyaan program would place Indian astronauts into orbit by August 2022, the 75^th anniversary of the country’s independence.
• However, that first crewed launch has slipped to at least 2024 as ISRO gears up for a series of abort tests and uncrewed orbital test flights starting in the coming months.

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Recent Agreements on India-US Space Cooperation

Astronaut Training

• The NASA-ISRO announced that they would arrange for training of Indian astronauts at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
• As, India has long been relied on Russia for astronaut training, sending several Indian Air Force pilots to the Star City cosmonaut training center for training in 2020.
• That training was part of India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight program that includes development by the Indian space agency ISRO of a crewed spacecraft that would launch on a version of its GSLV Mark 3 rocket.

Cooperation on NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) Program

• NASA and ISRO will work together to identify cooperation on NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, where NASA purchases flights of research payloads on commercial lunar landers.
• NASA and ISRO will convene a meeting of companies that have CLPS contracts with Indian aerospace companies within the next year.
• This will foster US-India commercial space engagement and enable growth and partnerships between U.S. and Indian commercial space sectors.

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Areas of India-US Space Cooperation

A US-India Space collaboration seems straightforward. India could secure technologies and expertise by collaborating with an advanced spacefaring nation where the U.S. could strengthen its relationship with India on a matter that seems less controversial than others.

Artemis programme

In November 2022, the U.S. kicked off its Artemis programme by launching the Orion spacecraft towards the moon and bringing it safely back to earth. India itself is set to embark on its first human spaceflight mission (Gaganyaan) in 2024.

Both India and U.S. Are Advancing In The Private Space Sector

Both India and U.S. have also taken significant strides in advancing the private space sector. Together, these endeavours will shape and impact U.S. and Indian space policies and programmes over the next decade.

NISAR Mission

The biggest cooperation between the United States and India in civil space currently is the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) Earth science mission, which features a jointly-developed SAR payload that will be integrated onto an Indian-built satellite and launched by India in 2024.

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Limitations Of India-US Space Cooperation?

Here are some structural factors limiting India-US space cooperation:

Mismatch In The Two Nations’ Interests In Outer Space

• Although the U.S. and its partners stress the importance of maintaining capabilities in low-earth orbit, their ambitions are firmly set on the moon. Meanwhile, India’s scientific community focuses on building the nation’s capability in and under earth orbits.
• This is not to say that India does not aim for the moon, Mars or beyond. But India’s top priority is to substantially increase its satellite and launch capabilities in earth orbits and catch up with other spacefaring nations such as China.

The Asymmetry In Capabilities

• U.S.
  • The U.S. has the highest number of registered satellites in space.
  • It also has a range of launch vehicles serving both commercial and national-security needs. Private entity SpaceX, for example, managed to achieve a record 61 launches in 2022, far higher than the number of launches undertaken by any other commercial entity or country.
  • The American private sector has also assumed the challenge of replacing the International Space Station by 2030 with many smaller stations.
• India
  • India has presently  just over 60 satellites in orbit and cannot undertake double-digit launches annually.
  • The Indian government also opened the space industry to the private sector only in 2020.
  • Since the U.S. already has an extensive network of partners for space cooperation, it has few technical incentives to cooperate with India.

How To Boost India-US Space Cooperation?

Sustained Engagement

•  The standard solution to induce long-term India-US Space cooperation is to sustain the engagement between academics, the private sector and state-led entities in the two countries.
• Sustained engagement could also take the form of collaborating on highly specialised projects such as the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission.

Partnership Between State and Private Entities

• As agreed in the most recent ISRO-NASA meeting, a convention of American and Indian aerospace companies to advance collaboration under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme.
• Such an arrangement could be taken further. India could send its astronauts to train at American private companies.
• This could help India reduce its dependence on Russia while ISRO builds its own astronaut training centre.

Consortium Led By New Space India Limited

Consortium led by the government-owned New Space India Limited which involves private companies in the U.S. This setup could accelerate India’s human spaceflight programme and give the U.S. an opportunity to accommodate Indian interests in earth orbits.

Simplifying Regulatory Framework

• American Space companies, particularly communications and geospatial service providers, are looking to expand into India, but have long complained of regulatory challenges for doing so.
• SpaceX, for example, has been working since late 2021 to secure permission to offer its Starlink broadband service in the country.

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