Report: US adopts new rules to deal with orbital debris

On Thursday, The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted on a new set of rules to address the risk of orbital debris also known as space junk or space debrisposing a threat to space exploration. This new rules werepassed by a vote of 4-0 and it includes reducingthe time to remove defunct satellites from the Earth’s orbit which may get in the way of spacecraft on active missions, reported Reuters.

“It will mean more accountability and less risk of collisions that increase orbital debris and the likelihood of space communication failures,” said the FCC chair, Jessica Rosenworcel. The agency would give the US operators a shorter deadline for post-mission disposal of low-Earth orbit satellites, changing from 25 years to 5 years.

Reportedly, the agency noted that 10,000 satellites have been launched since 1957 and that more than half of them are no longer active. “Defunct satellites, discarded rocket cores, and other debris now fill the space environment, creating challenges for current and future missions,” said the FCC. They also noted that there are more than 4,800 satellites in orbit by the end of 2021, while a large majority of them are commercial low-Earth orbit satellites.

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“The second space age is here. For it to continue to grow, we need to do more to clean up after ourselves so space innovation can continue to respond”, said the FCC chair. According to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, NASA has funded many academic studies on space debris, while a bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation to jumpstart the technology that would assist with debris removal.

The new rule would “bend the curve of debris proliferation”, said Stark. He added, “It also will reduce collisions and free up resources that would otherwise go toward trying to avoid them.” According to Stark, “without a safe operating environment, debris risk could escalate from a financial afterthought to a hazard that makes investors think twice, and could complicate operations in a way that slows or limits new space endeavors while driving up per-mission costs.”

(With inputs from agencies)