NASA defines space sustainability as “… the ability to maintain the conduct of space activities indefinitely into the future in a manner that is safe, peaceful, and responsible to meet the needs of the present generations while preserving the outer space environment for future activities and limiting harm to terrestrial life.”
Exploitation of space has exploded in the last decade. In 2023, over 2500 objects were launched into space.
In theory, space is infinite. In practice, it is not. The practical and physical limitations of the environment necessarily funnel space missions into a handful of orbital regimes and spectrum bands. As barriers to entry continue to fall, the competition for these limited resources increases congestion and the risk of harmful interference. To proceed blindly without intelligent operational regulations may spell disaster for the continued use of space. The global community must develop protections today to preempt the potentially devastating effects of unsustainable practices and unbridled exploitation.
Silicon Flatirons convened a Space Sustainability Roundtable in Boulder, CO on Friday, June 28, 2024. The roundtable brought together experts from the scientific, commercial, regulatory, and defense sectors to look out over different time horizons and discuss questions such as:
- What policies and regulations best preserve scientific endeavors in optical astronomy, radio astronomy, and Earth observation, for example? How might we manage radio frequency (RF) spectrum, in space and terrestrially, to avoid harmful interference from commercial and defense systems?
- What policies and regulations are required to manage space as a common resource? Concerns include managing orbital slots, satellite end-of-life disposal, risk mitigation, debris management, indemnification, and more.
- How do we create a policy and regulatory framework that can easily adapt to emerging technologies and applications? New technologies present opportunities for commercial, scientific, and defense missions, yet may not fit within existing regulatory regimes. A stable policy and regulatory environment allows the community to design and deploy systems with confidence and incentivizes investment. How can we future-proof regulation without drafting overbroad and ineffective policies?
- What enforcement mechanisms are necessary to ensure compliance in an international regime? Between penalties and incentives, which is more likely to modulate stakeholder conduct? What is the correct organization to levy enforcement actions and how do we cultivate community buy in?
A roundtable outcomes report will be published and posted to this page in the fall of 2024. The results of the roundtable discussion will inform a follow-up conference in spring of 2025.