Journal article 2024
Acta Astronautica Vol. 225 · pp. 515–523
Space-program governance is not moving through a simple replacement of old by new models: Legacy, Transitional and New Space arrangements can coexist, producing a polycentric structure that combines different ownership, contracting and risk-sharing logics.
The transition from Legacy Space to New Space changes who owns infrastructure, who funds and bears risk, how requirements are defined and how public and private actors collaborate. This research examines the evolution of space-program governance through NASA-led exploration programmes. It develops three governance models and explains the drivers and barriers behind their evolution, with particular attention to public-private partnerships and the coexistence of multiple governance arrangements within contemporary programmes such as Artemis.
How is the governance of space programs evolving in the transition from Legacy Space to New Space?
Why is the governance of space programs evolving in the transition from Legacy Space to New Space?
The study adopts an in-depth single-case design focused on NASA-led space exploration programmes, including their evolution from Apollo and the International Space Station to contemporary initiatives such as Artemis. Documentary evidence is triangulated with semi-structured interviews with six senior domain experts and managers. The authors codevelop and validate three governance models, then identify the drivers and barriers that explain movement between them.
Legacy Space concentrates ownership, financing, requirements and risk in government. Transitional arrangements introduce new contracting and cost-sharing mechanisms, while New Space relies more strongly on private ownership, fixed-price logic, collaborative development and public-private partnership structures.
The transition is not captured by a binary Legacy versus New Space distinction. A Transitional model combines elements of both and helps explain how space agencies progressively redistribute responsibilities, requirements, incentives and risks while preserving public objectives.
The contemporary state of space governance is polycentric rather than uniform. Programmes such as Artemis can simultaneously use different governance models for different projects and capabilities, allowing agencies to match arrangements to technology, market maturity, strategic goals and risk.
The article provides a concrete framework for analysing how space-program governance evolves rather than treating governance as static. It also introduces the Transitional model and explains why the emergence of New Space does not make Legacy arrangements obsolete.
For space agencies and companies, the three models clarify how choices about ownership, requirements, contracts, cost sharing and risk allocation fit together. This helps decision makers select or combine governance arrangements according to the objectives and maturity of specific programmes and projects.
Zancan, V., Paravano, A., Locatelli, G., & Trucco, P. (2024). Evolving governance in the space sector: From Legacy Space to New Space models. Acta Astronautica, 225, 515–523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2024.09.005
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