Abstract
Since World War II, the US federal government, as well as some governments in other nations, have supported “big science.”1 Big science is short-hand for a broad range of research and development (R&D) projects that have certain characteristics. They are extremely costly; are large-scale in the number of scientists, engineers, and technicians employed; entail multi-institutional government, industry, and university relationships; have complex management systems; are both visible and often controversial; and last a decade or more from concept to completion. A wide range of projects fit under big science, most of which are big because of engineering requirements for large and complex machines. The purposes of big science are varied, but scientific discovery is only one and in some instances not the dominant rationale for governmental expenditures.
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Notes
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Guy Gugliotta, “Scientists Detail Diverse Weather System on Titan,” Washington Post, January 22, 2005, A2.
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© 2013 Roger D. Launius
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Lambright, W.H. (2013). Big Science in Space: Viking, Cassini, and the Hubble Space Telescope. In: Launius, R.D. (eds) Exploring the Solar System. Palgrave Studies in the History of Science and Technology. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137273178_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137273178_6
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
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