The Landstuhl project - solar architecture and energy saving

A study of the uncertainty in industrial participation in the Japanese as well as the West-German BMFT space programme - which is an international one at least since the mid seventies - raises some questions. To sum up the statistical findings only, the Japanese space programme may be characterized by a steady state of uncertainty on a high level in industry. It did not become clearer which sectors will be the winners of the space application. The progress of the Japanese space programme has not succeeded in removing this industrial uncertainty up to now. The West-German experiance may be characterized by a stable distribution of funds between ESA and national R and D performers. Industry participation increased within the peripheral sectors (metals, optics, chemistry) on a very low level of funding since 1985, but its uncertainty was considerably lower than in the Japanese case in each year since 1973. In the more central sectors (space vehicle construction and electronics) concentrat ion was always and is still high and shows little sign of a change. More surprisingly, the second important sector in industry, electronics, is even more concentrated than the established space vehicle industries. The academic role remains dubious. Despite the overall participation of many universities, their contribution is mostly short-term and without continuity. It is more an exploitation of existing academic knowlegde by the BMFT space R and D programme than long prospect basic reseach.