6. Real types of professional orders
6.6. Summary
seemingly robust order, it is far from defining the emerging space order.
Although under hard pressure and burden with internal deadlines, it has also not much influence on the direction of the emerging outer space order. Altogether, the strong commercial suborder, as well as thinking in terms of state interests equating economic growth, narrowed the room for reflective reason within the diplomatic suborder.
engineers. Therefore, I decided to distinguish between the scientific and the engineer when referencing them as well as to be sensitive to their differences in the further discussion about the emerging outer space order. However, in my analytical framework, the professions will remain one real type, the scientific. This might not be the optimal and most stringent solution but was deemed a feasible solution as, within the scope of this inquiry of the emerging outer space order, the professions are close and together make up the space community. The two professions are also from a natural science background.
Theoretically, the likelihood for communication between the suborders should be symmetric in the respect that each professional suborder has similar chances for establishing communication and reaching shared agreements. However, symmetric communication was absent, due to an implicit but normalized hierarchy between the suborders and due to the constitutive materiality (elaborated in the next chapter about interplay).
The lack of symmetric communication was also due to the varying degrees of overlap between the different suborders’ deep frames. In the remainder of this section, some of the most essential findings of overlaps and divergence of the deep frames will be outlined. Commensurability, i.e. to what degree the suborders were inclined to understand each other’s perspective, as well as their divergence and tensions, is at the centre of this short analysis, which also is summarized in the concluding matrix.
To begin with, the visual frames and language set of numbers are a common nominator for the scientific and the commercial suborder. This facilitated interaction. Numbers and calculations also contribute to truth proximity, as it is hard to question equations if not all the data and steps are available in a discussion. It is time-consuming and sometimes overly complicated to question calculations. Numbers and estimates contribute to authority. The commercial suborder, however, is more relaxed about the accuracy of numbers.
The military suborder is also familiar with estimates and numbers but to a lesser extent dominated by numbers. However, like the commercial suborder, visual frames, maps and pictures are constitutive of the military suborder. By this, I mean that military and commercial professionals do not need much more than a map, a short mission statement or a vision to start acting. This preparedness unites the commercial and the military suborder and contributes to agency. Thus, common for the military and
commercial suborders is the will to act and to make the move before others do. Hence, the commercial motto of ‘first come first serve’ applies to the military thinking of ‘taking the initiative’ in reaching the high ground and establishing space superiority. These suborders are united in their vision to establish themselves in outer space.
However, whereas the military agency is predictable within given structures, the commercial agency is disruptive and breaks barriers. In this regards, the commercial suborder is more like the scientific suborder.
Hence, the innovation potential is within the deep frames of the commercial and scientific suborder. Seeking cutting-edge technology to establish space superiority, nevertheless, makes the military suborder a supportive and predictable customer. In addition, the military suborder has in common with the scientific suborder to work with the invisible such as radio and radars.189
The scientific and commercial real types’ deep frames are overlapping in non-linearity, which imply breaking with the expected and question the familiar and intuitive, as well as thinking disruptively.190 Where the scientists see one world made up of the same matter or material, the commercial sees one world united by the global market. Moreover, the temporality of these suborders extends beyond the next election, Earth and this generation. The commercial and scientific real types are both driven by curiosity and excitement. The transformer of the emerging outer space order is the commercial real type with its bold visions. Still, the commercial suborder is increasingly dependent on the scientific as the complexity of fulfilling its visions rises. For example, the launching of micro-satellites collaboration with engineers has progressed technology, but voyages to Mars requires significant technological advancement. The scientific real type with a genuine drive and passion for outer space aims foremost for knowledge, and then for scientific status. All of this makes the scientific real type a neglector of the modern order.
189 This observation of commensurability of deep frames is also observed by Neil DeGrasse and Avis Lang who argue that cooperation or “the alliance” between scientists and militaries are facilitated by for example the experience of imagining and operating in the invisible (2018:165ff).
190 Interestingly for this inquiry is that Lebow finds that the non-linear visual transformation still only has dormant effects on identity formation (2015:7 & 133).
Concerning the commensurability of the real typical deep frames, the organizing principle of balance of powers in a system of states was a familiar presumption of the military and political real types. These suborders’ deep frames also overlapped in the cyclic view of history from peaceful to violent times. As guardians of the modern order, their thinking was predictable. Thus, the political suborder shared organizing principle and worldview with the military but like the legal community, the political suborder hoped for the rule of law, international space law and uniting concepts. Hence, the political and legal real types also conveyed in the language set and visual frames that focused on text.
Moreover, the political suborder distinguished itself from the other suborders by routinely keeping in mind to mention the public.
The commensurability between the political and military real type’s deep frames as guardians of the state facilitated communication.
Communication was also facilitated as the military suborder knows its history. Historical knowledge contributed to the massivity of the military reality. Moreover, the military real type is trained to make themselves heard in a noisy environment and to make sure that their message reaches through. Typically, senior militaries are skilled leaders and experienced public speakers. Their propensity to inform the political suborder about the balance of power interplay hampers the political suborder from envisioning alternatives and from establishing an overarching outer space order. This is for example reflected in the expression that there ‘is not appetite for treaties’, but also due to that no other alternatives are articulated within the political suborder.
Concerning the quality of political reason, the suborders of the emerging space order were generally characterized by instrumental reasoning. The UN discourse about SDGs was an important exception, as were the encounter with some individuals of the political and legal suborder. The scientific suborder was also more inclined to think in terms of humanity in the sweep of universal history and did think about sustainability linked to nature and not in accordance with the commercial real type who associated it with a sustainable market. Still, the responsibility for sustainability and climate change firmly rested on the political suborder and other scientific disciplines, for the latter commonly in regards to meteorology. However, not even within the political suborder, the substance of sustainable development in outer space or of the rule-based order was much discussed outside official statements and resolutions. The
commercial suborder articulated the visions for the future that were transmitted throughout the world order. Within the military suborder, there were internally transmitted military strategies that aimed to shape the future. Within the scientific suborder, planned missions paved the way into the future. In comparison, the political future held together by the SDGs is not, at least not for the moment, endowed with agency infusing passion, excitement, innovation or optimism (more about this in the next chapter).
There are also some tensions between the suborders. As we will see in the next chapter, small un-manoeuvrable satellites launched by the commercial suborder clutter the scientific instruments. Moreover, the political and military suborders were concerned with the ‘real world’ challenges whereas the scientific appeared to be idealistic, naïve and aloft from, for example, security concerns. On the other hand, the scientific real type perceived the political, as well as the military real types, as ignorant. For example, it was perceived that big science, which includes space exploration, was ‘way above their heads’. Though, in relation to these tensions and divergence between the suborders, the commercial suborder displays a rather flexible attitude towards all the other suborders. On the other hand, the legal suborder was rather fixed and typically waiting to be directed by the other suborders due to weak inherent agency. All these observations are summarised in the table 17, below. Notably, the characteristics of key spaces and interplay within the table are tied to the observations presented in the next chapter.
Focal point Scientific Military Commercial Legal Political
Identity neglector guardian transformer interpreter guardian
Motives,
emotions curiosity, spirit
excitement spirit, anxiety appetite,
excitement spirit spirit, appetite Agency
(Innovation) high high
collective medium
pure agency high
no agency low
low low Organizing
principle one global scientific hierarchy
system of states,
market market,
business cases rule of law, text system of states, market
Outer Space passion, big
science force- multiplier and
superiority business case, up for grab global
commons, equality
symbolic, SDG
Language set not
outreaching, no why
limited but loud and
familiar wide reaching,
tailored text cyclic, set
Visual frames number and models, complex
simplified, spatial, maps, arrows catchy,
outreaching text symbolic, cyclic, text
Temporality Chronos Future
missions, break
troughs plans, procedures,
surface work dynamic slow,
directionless procedures, stress progress historically
contextualized empty and
open text historically
contextualized Constitutive
materiality
spread, global, far away
bureaucratized, isolated, heavy trajectory
agile, top spaces, scattered
capitals bureaucratized capitals
Robustness
Sentiment strong
optimism strong
optimism apt
optimism thin
pessimism stagnating pessimism
Authority high high high medium medium
Responsibility medium,
concern low, outside professional responsibility
low, some
rhetoric high, concern medium
Politics rigid, ignorant
thinking to be an instrument
of to influence to tame to master,
interests Political reason reflective instrumental instrumental reflective instrumental
Figure 17: Matrix - summary of the real typical suborders' characters