Today's Date:

May 2001

Alain Bensoussan is Chairman of the Centre national d'études spatiales [CNES - National Space Research Centre] and Chairman of the Council of the European Space Agency. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.

Success in space has always been a strategic challenge. Nearly forty-five years after the very beginnings of the conquest of space, there is now a new challenge: the East-West ideological confrontation has been succeeded by an increasingly economic rivalry between the United States and Europe. Despite the disparity of resources, the European countries, and in particular France, have the wherewithal to make the most of the potential offered by space-related applications.

In the main, this development of space-related applications is not being funded by the market. Indeed, it is important to stress that the world space industry still depends to a large extent on public resources. In 1998, worldwide public civil and military space expenditure rose to nearly US$ 34.5 billion. At the same time, turnover from purchases of satellites and launcher services operated by commercial businesses, with telecommunication and television satellites representing the lion’s share, was close on US$ 5.5 billion, i.e. less than 16% of public investment.

Moreover, since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the world space industry has developed largely in the West: the USA and European countries are responsible for nearly 90% of worldwide public expenditure on space and have the largest industries in this sector. Russia’s investment in space has collapsed, accounting now for only 2% of worldwide expenditure, and the Russian space programme nowadays largely involves American and European partnerships in the area of manned spaceflight and launcher services. Japan also has the resources for an independent space programme and accounts for 5% of worldwide public expenditure in this field. Other countries, such as India and China, are channelling ever increasing budgets into space activities and seem destined to be major players in this field in the future.

We have to face the fact that, financially, the United States dominates the international space market. With an annual budget of some US$ 26 billion split almost equally between civil and military activities, the United States accounts for about three quarters of worldwide public expenditure, investing between five and six times more than all the European countries put together. The American space industry, benefiting from a captive institutional market accounting for 85% of its work, has a turnover of US$ 34 billion, i.e. six times more than its European counterpart. This financial supremacy is reflected by the US presence in all space-related fields, by its control of strategic infrastructure like GPS (Global Positioning System) and military observation satellites and also by its ability to launch and run ambitious worldwide programmes such as the international space station and Mars exploration programme.

In Europe, countries sought to join forces very early on so as to be able to implement large-scale programmes and instigate the launch of a strong space industry capable of realizing the ambition of Europe’s independence. By and large, this cooperation, which has been taking place for nearly thirty years within the European Space Agency (ESA), has resulted in some indisputable successes.

Thanks to the Ariane launcher series Europe has independent access to space and has gained over half the world market for commercial launches; development of the envied launch site in Kourou in French Guiana has provided it with the resources it needs to exploit this launcher to the full.

The fact that very many of the world's most important scientific missions are carried out within ESA or by its member countries reflects the excellence of Europe's scientific teams. While Europe does not have an independent manned space vehicle, it does have a body of experienced astronauts and is playing its part in the international space station venture. On the applications front, Europe is also occupying a leading role on the world stage in meteorology and telecommunications thanks to the fact that for several decades the European countries have steadfastly continued to invest in the space sector and today channel some EUR 4 billion every year into civil space activities. Admittedly, this is three times lower than the comparable US figure, but it should be borne in mind that manned spaceflights account for much of American expenditure.

The European space industry now has an annual turnover of some EUR 6 billion and employs around 40,000 people. Unlike their American competitors, European industries do not have a protected institutional market and their orders are split more or less equally between the public and commercial sectors. This handicap means that they must perform well. The results obtained in 2000 when, for the first time, Europe ordered more satellites than the USA, are thus especially remarkable and show the excellent position that the European space industry has reached.

With 40% of the European civil and military space budget (EUR 1.9 billion), the largest contribution to ESA’s budget (29%) ahead of Germany and Italy, the most substantial investment in military space applications (EUR 450 million) and the highest number of "space" jobs on her territory (some 13,000), France is undoubtedly the spearhead of the European space industry. Historically a pioneer, France has for nearly forty years been working in all the fields of space research and space-related applications and has initiated many European space programmes.

The creation in 1961 of the Centre national d’études spatiales [CNES – National space research centre], which is both an agency and a technical centre, was a real plus for France and has added value to the European space industry through its ability to take initiatives and give a lead, its skills in designing innovative space missions, its essential role in space transport and in the management of the Kourou launch site and the originality of its scientific programme which complements that of ESA.

Despite this potential and these successes, the European space industry has a number of weak spots which it needs to rectify to avoid being left behind. One of the main ones is that Europe does not currently put as much money into defence-related space applications as the US. Moreover, the European funding of some EUR 800 million per annum comes from a small number of countries, including France and Britain, and its low level is limiting Europe’s ambitions to become a world power in this field. Recent industrial restructuring is, however, a positive sign and has led to the space sector tightening its links with, and thereby getting support from, the major aircraft and defence sector. The differing views of some countries or groups of countries as to the purpose of space operations and methods of funding them, different interests aggravated by the rules on a fair industrial return for fifteen countries, administrative red tape and the large numbers of players involved are, however, all problems which the European space industry is encountering at a time when the sector itself is going through far-reaching changes brought about by society’s new needs.

Starting at a propitious time for the realization of major technological projects, space operations are today having to adapt to a society geared to increasing knowledge and in which information plays a paramount role, marked by a growing demand for customized services and an awareness of the need for collective action to safeguard our natural environment. Against this background, three sectors seem today to be the genuine prime movers of space sector development.

Firstly, because the satellite is a vehicle for information transfer, space industry development is closely linked to the development of the information society. Digital television and radio, mobile telephones, multimedia, the Internet, remote services, navigation and earth observation are enormous markets which are likely to grow substantially and for which satellites, even if they are not the only answer, offer major advantages. For instance, world Internet traffic, which tripled between 1998 and 1999, is forecast to triple again between now and 2004 and increase tenfold by the end of the decade. It is also estimated that the market for satellite navigation products and services will be some tens of billions of euros around 2010.

There is also a growing new requirement for public service on a worldwide scale. We need to protect our planet and ensure its sustainable development, a field in which satellites have a key role to play. Be it a matter of climate change, forecasting environmental disasters, surveillance of industrial pollution or water management, satellites provide us with a unique and continuously available tool capable of frequently monitoring situations on local, regional and global scales and over any period of time.

Lastly, our society’s thirst for knowledge, encouraged by the immediate availability of information, and the fall of the major ideological barriers argue in favour of establishing large scientific enterprises on a worldwide scale. Not dependent on terrestrial constraints and particularly important when it comes to finding out about fundamental issues such as the origins of life, space is an ideal framework in which to pool international scientific endeavours. It is in this spirit that major programmes such as the international space station and exploration of Mars are being developed.

All the main fields of space-related applications have defence implications: observation, telecommunications, positioning and navigation. The US, where these are not just felt to be of strategic importance, but are also seen as an incomparable testing ground for technological developments, is expected to intensify its work in these fields.

It is important to remember that even in the most readily marketable space-related activities, it is vital to maintain a strong and coherent public space policy if we are to satisfy the very many needs of the general public. Through the public-sector orders it generates, this policy can also make a large contribution to developing commercial markets and giving French industries a substantial advantage in them. This is the approach that the US is largely adopting, GPS being a good example.

Europe has to adapt to these developments. It has started to do so at the institutional level by recognizing the need to move beyond the framework of ESA. In this respect, the adoption, on 16 November 2000, by the relevant European Ministers of a space strategy drawn up jointly by ESA and the European Commission was a very significant event. Indeed, the European Union, now involved, alongside ESA, in drawing up and implementing European space policy, is a political authority capable of achieving our continent’s ambition to be a space power comparable with the US. This new institutional framework should also pave the way for discussions, impossible within ESA, of the contribution which space can make to common security and defence. It has also made it possible to set in motion steps to optimize Europe’s technical resources in the space field.

Space transport and consolidation of the Ariane launcher continue to be strategic priorities for Europe. However, to become a major world player in space activities, Europe has to get a firm foothold in the sector's main markets.

In the key sector of positioning and navigation, it is fundamental for Europe to be independent in terms of GPS infrastructure. The Galileo programme, under which a constellation of European navigation satellites is scheduled to be in place by 2008, is addressing this objective.

As regards telecommunications, which will long continue to be the most dynamic space sector, public funding must be channelled into research and technology both to keep European industry competitive and to develop new applications such as tele-medicine and tele-education.

With a large number of national and European earth observation programmes, Europe is well placed in the spheres of environmental protection and sustainable development. The GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) concept will make it possible to go further. The aim is to pool these efforts and combine them with non-space activities, so as to provide the resources for global, ongoing and long-term monitoring of our planet's environment on local, regional and global scales in support of all the European Union’s sectoral policies. This undertaking poses enormous economic, scientific and human challenges.

Finally, in order to remain on a par with the United States, Europe has to pursue the efforts it has been making for decades in space science, a sector marked by the development of innovative technology, a high degree of competition at industry level and with an incomparable global reach. Europe will inter alia have to play an active part in the use of the international space station from 2004 and both contribute to and profit from the European Research Area set up at EU level.

A prime mover in the European space industry, France has, in line with European space strategy, prioritized scientific and technical creativity and innovation in applications and services.

Firstly, central to the Ariane programme, France is endeavouring to improve the competitiveness of this programme, which is essential to Europe’s autonomy in the space sector.

French space activities also rely very heavily on scientific progress. The CNES is living up to the scientific community's expectations by developing innovative space technologies and capabilities such as a minisatellite network and a microsatellite network. Top priority is obviously given to cooperation within ESA and multilateral cooperation in Europe. There are also very interesting prospects not only in the US, where France is working closely with the United States on the Mars scientific exploration programme scheduled to start in 2007, but also with other space powers and emerging powers.

A further goal for France is to develop space applications of benefit to society, particularly in the fields of sustainable development, security and the information society. In the first field, the CNES is engaged in programmes concerned with the study and protection of the environment and also working on particular projects to be specified within the GMES framework. Moreover, the determination to play an active part in developing the information society is reflected by the formulation of a space telecommunications strategy and by major work under the Galileo programme. Finally, the CNES is also endeavouring to develop new user applications for space systems, in partnership with potential user industries and service providers. All these are obviously supported by a whole range of research and technology projects conducted at national or European level to ensure increased industrial competitiveness.

Europe has today very many space assets, making it the only really credible alternative to the United States in what has become a highly competitive sector. Keeping this position requires proactive public action using the skills of all the European States in order to provide innovative and competitive solutions to society’s new needs. As the leading European space power, France aspires to be quickest off the mark when it comes to implementing this European strategy.