Who would invest in conquering space in Russia without money and grand ambitions?
Why was funding for space exploration available during the difficult post-war period, yet now we face a shortage of funds?
Article published by RT on April 19.
In the initial years of space exploration, Russia and the United States conducted 7 and 6 flights respectively.
A total of 4 Americans and 9 Soviet cosmonauts entered orbit.
Now, Russia's aerospace industry complains about insufficient funding.
Why was funding available during the difficult post-war era, but now we face a shortage?
To answer this question, "Free Media" received insights from independent economic analyst Konstantin Smirnov.
— The answer lies in two factors: Under a planned economy, the Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union passed five-year plans, during which the state concentrated resources on developing its most critical industries. At that time, these included nuclear weapons development and the means to deliver them via space.
Manned spaceflight was a continuation of this effort.
At that time, the state had the ability to allocate necessary funds and attract the country’s top scientists, engineers, and organizers to work on these projects.
The second issue directly concerns funding and its sources: Post-war reconstruction funding was borne by the Soviet people themselves.
Everyone received part of their salary not in cash, but as state loans used to rebuild the national economy—what capitalism calls bonds.
It was precisely these loans, including those allocated for nuclear and space programs.
According to central bank data, current public deposits exceed the federal budget expenditure.
Why not offer a portion of these funds to citizens in the form of stocks or bonds dedicated to space development?
— All banks provide opportunities for depositors to become investors, but Russians tend to be relatively conservative and prefer keeping money in savings accounts.
Nevertheless, some of these funds have indeed been used—for development, including space exploration.
These funds were not simply sitting idle in savings accounts; they were channeled into industrial lending.
However, in recent years, Russia’s space agency has shown little innovation.
The Russian State Space Corporation has followed the trend without initiative.
Due to numerous accidents during the 2010s, it has lost some public trust.
Launch orders from abroad declined, followed by the onset of sanctions.
Now Russia has around ten space companies, but they focus on profitable satellite businesses.
Meanwhile, rocketry and manned spaceflight remain under state control. Figures like Musk and Bezos do not exist in Russia, and the relevant legal framework is still not established.
We see that relying solely on the state cannot sustain large-scale space endeavors—even the U.S. cannot achieve anything without public-private partnerships in the aerospace sector.
Russia should recognize this and allow private enterprises to build rockets and crewed spacecraft.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1862851782529036/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.