The Political Context of Technology Transfer: NASA and the International Space Station

This essay seeks to explore the impact of politics andtechnology transfer on the International Space Station (ISS) through theanalysis of secondary sources.Although there are many parties thatcontribute to and affect the ISS, the focus hereinis on NASA.Inconducting this analysis, the following seven stages of the ISS life cycle areexamined: (1) agenda setting, 1981-1993; (2) presidential adoption, 1984; (3)international partner enlistment, 1985-1988; (4) early implementation,1988-1992; (5) presidential re-adoption and Russian entry, 1993; (6)U.S.-Russian space station implementation, 1994-2000; and (7) toward"core-complete," 2001-present. This review demonstrates that policymakers in this effort are required tosatisfy not only the domestic parties involved but also those from theinternational community.The decision to invite Russian involvement inthis project drew criticism, as there was concern that the technology transferand diffusion of information would adversely impact the UnitedStates. In the end though, technology transfer did flow from Russia to the UnitedStates, and the flow from Russia to India was halted.It has become moreevident that large-scale R&D projects such as the ISS require thecooperation of many nations.This effort demonstrates that technologytransfer plays a significant role in the decisions of U.S. policymakers,specifically NASA, in deciding which nations to involve and when.(SRD)

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