Do We Need Separate Space Theory: The Lessons of History

Abstract

How we think has important effects on what possibilities our thoughts produce. The impact of theory on how we think can not be overstated. Acknowledged or not, humans process information through mental constructs to make order out of chaos and that fundamentally affect the relative importance ascribed to the incoming data. Professionals throughout the Department of Defense and other branches of the US government have long debated the need to produce separate space theory or whether a modified version of air theory is sufficient to guide the emerging ability to exploit space. Too often, this debate devolves into frequently acrimonious arguments over resource allocation and service independence rather than the addressing the fundamental issue of theory. This study ignores these issues in the attempt to resolve the fundamental question: are the physical characteristics of the space environment sufficiently different to require an independent body of theory to guide operators in seizing its full exploitation potential?

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 2001
Accession Number
ADA407814

Entities

People

  • Fred H. Marheine Jr

Organizations

  • Air University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Power
  • Aircrafts
  • Communication Systems
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Employment
  • International Law
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Naval Operations
  • Naval Warfare
  • Navy
  • Second World War
  • Students
  • United States

Readers

  • Educational Psychology
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies

Technology Areas

  • Space