The Year of the Rocket
This press release is copyrighted by The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE). Its use is granted only to journalists and news media.
The Chinese space program has matured rapidly over the last decade, to the point where a manned mission is possible as early as next year. Progress in space booster development raises concerns as to the possibility of improved nuclear ICBMs and other security concerns for Western nations. Accusations have been made in the West, particularly by the United States' Cox report, that the Chinese have achieved their progress by espionage. In the May issue of IEEE Spectrum, contributing editor James Oberg takes a critical look at this charge by examining the engineering issues, particularly a number of launch failures, involved in the Chinese space program. The serious inadequacies of the Cox report are also described.
Oberg concludes that the Chinese have developed considerable indigenous expertise, although they do rely heavily on foreign technology. Most of that technology, however, is acquired legitimately from U.S. and European sources. Drawing parallels from the U.S.-Soviet Cold War, Oberg contends that the best way to deal with security concerns is not to attempt to erect bureaucratic barriers to technology transfer, but to ensure that Western commercial investment in space technology stays ahead of the Chinese.
Contact: Stephen Cass, 212 419 7754, [email protected].For faxed copies of the complete article ("The Year of the Rocket" by Contributing Editor James Oberg, IEEE Spectrum, May 2001, pp. 62-68) or to arrange an interview, contact: Nancy T. Hantman, 212 419 7561, [email protected].
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