What do you think?
Rate this book
Ronald Reagan and the Space Frontier
When Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980, limits on NASA funding and the lack of direction under the Nixon and Carter administrations had left the U.S. space program at a crossroads. In contrast to his predecessors, Reagan saw outer space as humanity’s final frontier and as an opportunity for global leadership. His optimism and belief in American exceptionalism guided a decade of U.S. activities in space, including bringing the space shuttle into operation, dealing with the 1986 Challenger accident and its aftermath, committing to a permanently crewed space station, encouraging private sector space efforts, and fostering international space partnerships with both U.S. allies and with the Soviet Union. Drawing from a trove of declassified primary source materials and oral history interviews, John M. Logsdon provides the first comprehensive account of Reagan’s civilian and commercial space policies during his eight years in the White House. Even as a fiscal conservative who was hesitant to increase NASA’s budget, Reagan’s enthusiasm for the space program made him perhaps the most pro-space president in American history.
- GenresSpace
435 pages, Hardcover
Published December 10, 2018
3 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
About the author
John M. Logsdon
19 books7 followersJohn M. Logsdon is the founder and from 1987 to 2008 was the director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University.
In 2003, Logsdon was a member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. He is a former member of the NASA Advisory Council. He is frequently cited as an authority on space policy and history by press entities such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, and has appeared on various television networks.
Logsdon is a professor emeritus of political science and international affairs, and has been on the GW faculty since 1970. He is also on the faculty of the International Space University In 1992–1993 he held the first chair in Space History at the National Air and Space Museum and in 2008–2009 was Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History at that museum. Logsdon authored the entry on space exploration for the latest edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica and many articles and commentaries. He is author of The Decision to Go to the Moon: Project Apollo and the National Interest (MIT Press, 1970), and the general editor of the seven-volume series Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program (MIT Press, 1970). Dr. Logsdon is the author more recently of the award-winning John F. Kennedy and the Race to the Moon (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010) and After Apollo? Richard Nixon and the American Space Program (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015).
The International Astronautical Federation awarded Logsdon the 2013 Frank J. Malina Astronautics Medal for outstanding contributions including space policy decision-making, space history, and education. Logsdon is a recipient of the Exceptional Public Service, Distinguished Public Service, and Public Service Medals from NASA, the 2005 John F. Kennedy Astronautics Award from the American Astronautical Society, and the 2006 Barry Goldwater Space Educator Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the International Academy of Astronautics and former chair of its Commission on Space Policy, Law, and Economics. He is a member of the board of directors of The Planetary Society and the Academic Council of the International Space University. He is on the editorial board of the international journal Space Policy and was its North American editor from 1985 to 2000. He is also on the editorial boards of the journals New Space and Astropolitics.
Logsdon holds a B.S. in physics from Xavier University (1960) and a Ph.D. in political science from New York University (1970).
source: Wikipedia
In 2003, Logsdon was a member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. He is a former member of the NASA Advisory Council. He is frequently cited as an authority on space policy and history by press entities such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, and has appeared on various television networks.
Logsdon is a professor emeritus of political science and international affairs, and has been on the GW faculty since 1970. He is also on the faculty of the International Space University In 1992–1993 he held the first chair in Space History at the National Air and Space Museum and in 2008–2009 was Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History at that museum. Logsdon authored the entry on space exploration for the latest edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica and many articles and commentaries. He is author of The Decision to Go to the Moon: Project Apollo and the National Interest (MIT Press, 1970), and the general editor of the seven-volume series Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program (MIT Press, 1970). Dr. Logsdon is the author more recently of the award-winning John F. Kennedy and the Race to the Moon (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010) and After Apollo? Richard Nixon and the American Space Program (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015).
The International Astronautical Federation awarded Logsdon the 2013 Frank J. Malina Astronautics Medal for outstanding contributions including space policy decision-making, space history, and education. Logsdon is a recipient of the Exceptional Public Service, Distinguished Public Service, and Public Service Medals from NASA, the 2005 John F. Kennedy Astronautics Award from the American Astronautical Society, and the 2006 Barry Goldwater Space Educator Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the International Academy of Astronautics and former chair of its Commission on Space Policy, Law, and Economics. He is a member of the board of directors of The Planetary Society and the Academic Council of the International Space University. He is on the editorial board of the international journal Space Policy and was its North American editor from 1985 to 2000. He is also on the editorial boards of the journals New Space and Astropolitics.
Logsdon holds a B.S. in physics from Xavier University (1960) and a Ph.D. in political science from New York University (1970).
source: Wikipedia
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 9, 2022
John Logsdon completed his series of books on spaceflight policy with this study of Ronald Reagan's presidency. With the help of documents from the Reagan Library and the recollections of many members of the administration, he explains that America's fortieth president viewed NASA's activities as emblematic of American greatness and attained numerous tangible accomplishments even if the results did not always match his rhetoric. His administration successfully corrected a policy mistake that had called for the Space Shuttle to carry all kinds of U.S. payloads into Earth orbit. Instead, the shuttle fleet after the Challenger accident stuck to missions that required the presence of a crew after the administration advocated for this position and this would prove to be a more realistic policy. Reagan also approved the development of a space station in 1983 over the objections of some of his advisors, which eventually bore fruit in the form an International Space Station that operates to this day. The administration forged partnerships with the space agencies of Europe, Japan, and Canada for that project, which is another legacy that continues to affect life in our own time. The administration also acted as a pioneer in developing policies to support private sector space capabilities, which was a precursor to the rockets and spacecraft operated by organizations like SpaceX today.
Logsdon does point out that there were limits to what the Reagan administration was willing to pursue in spaceflight. When Reagan left office in January 1989, NASA's share of overall government spending (0.85 percent) was almost exactly the same as when he entered eight years earlier (0.84 percent). He did not succeed in directing NASA toward the goal of sending crews beyond low Earth orbit and even his space station project sputtered as it went through several years of modest budgets and threats to its continued funding. In this sense, the Reagan era was not like that of John F. Kennedy. But I enjoyed learning about all of the decision making during the Reagan era and the lasting legacy of those decisions, many of which are positive.
Logsdon does point out that there were limits to what the Reagan administration was willing to pursue in spaceflight. When Reagan left office in January 1989, NASA's share of overall government spending (0.85 percent) was almost exactly the same as when he entered eight years earlier (0.84 percent). He did not succeed in directing NASA toward the goal of sending crews beyond low Earth orbit and even his space station project sputtered as it went through several years of modest budgets and threats to its continued funding. In this sense, the Reagan era was not like that of John F. Kennedy. But I enjoyed learning about all of the decision making during the Reagan era and the lasting legacy of those decisions, many of which are positive.
Displaying 1 of 1 review