U.S.-European-Japanese Workshop on Space Cooperation: Summary Report

Summary: A trilateral workshop on space cooperation hosted by the Space Research Committee (SRC) of the Science Council of Japan—and including representatives of the Committee on International Space Programs (CISP) of the Space Studies Board (SSB), National Research Council (NRC), and the European Space Science Committee (ESSC) of the European Science Foundation (ESF)—was held in Tokyo at the Science Council of Japan on May 19-21, 1999. The purpose of the workshop was to: 1. Assist independent space science advisory bodies in Europe and the United States to establish a relationship with like bodies in Japan; 2. Begin this relationship by examining the nature of trilateral, cooperative space missions conducted during the last decade; 3. Understand better the primary factors that led to successful collaboration, explore the benefits and costs of cooperation, and identify major problems; and 4. Review the status of several embryonic projects and consider broader issues such as the possibility of coordinated, international strategic planning for space science and other policy issues likely to be significant in the future.