Manned space missions

It might seem hard to believe today, but Britain was once one of the world’s pioneering space nations.
For a brief time, the UK was behind only the US and Soviet Union in the field of rocket technology.
It had reliable and efficient launch vehicles, a viable satellite launch programme, and there were even tentative plans for manned missions.
When an all-British Black Arrow rocket fired Britain’s first satellite, Prospero, into orbit in 1971, it should have been an exciting time for the Royal Aircraft Establishment boffins who had been working to put their country into space since the late 1950s.
Instead the launch at Woomera, Australia, was tinged with sadness and disappointment. For the Government had cancelled the project three months earlier, grudgingly allowing the scientists one last try.
That, effectively, marked the end of any serious British participation in space. Although British technology was to find its way into numerous satellites, orbiters and landers, the chance of becoming a major player in the exploration and exploitation of space was lost. Instead, France stepped into the ring with its highly successful and lucrative Ariane rockets.
Today, a new age is dawning which could see many more countries becoming involved in space exploration, and for the first time since the Apollo moon landings, a major role for manned space missions.
Britain could once again wait and watch these developments from the side-lines, and given the background, this might be expected. But there are signs of a change of heart - a return of some of the old pioneering spirit of the 1950s and 1960s that will bring a smile to the face of anyone old enough to remember Dan Dare's exploits in the Eagle comic from that era .
Academics and businessmen alike are now very aware of the potential rewards space exploration can bring. And ministers are keener than they have ever been to keep Britain competitive in the fields of science, engineering and technology.
Last week at the BA Festival of Science, held at York University, a high-powered panel of scientists and industry experts appointed by the British National Space Centre (BNSC) - a Government body that is the closest thing we have to a space agency - called for Britain not only to play a greater role in space, but to start preparing for future manned space missions.
If the working party’s advice is followed, British astronauts with Union flags emblazoned on their space suits could be walking on the moon by the 2020s.
In May, 14 of the world’s leading space agencies, including Nasa and the European Space Agency, published the Global Exploration Strategy (GES). This provides a framework for international co-operation between space-faring nations that envisages both robots and humans being sent to the Moon, Mars and beyond before the end of this century.
For Britain to take an active part in the GES it had to get involved in human space flight, said the the BNSC working party.
The Government will have to make up its mind up about the issue as early as 2010. If it decides to embark on a British astronaut programme, this will mark the biggest turn-around in UK space policy since the 1950s. Although a handful of British-born astronauts have flown in the American space shuttle, there have been no "home-grown" UK manned space missions.
For Britain to carry out its own rocket development, as it did in the 1950s, is now quite out of the question. Instead British astronauts would hitch a ride on other people’s launch vehicles, such as the US shuttle or Russian Soyuz.
Initially, training would be given to four astronauts, two of whom would be sent on missions to the International Space Station. But the ultimate aim would be to include British astronauts on voyages to the Moon and Mars.
The cost of such a five year programme from 2010 to 2015 has been estimated at £50-£75 million, on top of the £200 million Britain spends each year on space - surprisingly cheap considering what is involved. According to the experts, it could be paid for by everyone in Britain making a contribution of 50p a day.
Professor Frank Close, who chaired the working party, pointed out that all the G8 developed nations are now active in human space exploration except the UK. If Britain did not join them, it would be left behind.
Sending humans into space is about more than merely collecting scientific data, said Prof Close. It could also inspire the nation and future generations, and help resolve the classroom crisis caused by children turning their backs on science and engineering.
Prof Close added: "By doing the hard stuff we stretch ourselves as a nation, and that’s what it’s all about."