space sustainability
LeoLabs to construct fourth radar in Costa Rica
Silicon Valley startup LeoLabs announced plans July 22 to construct a phased-array radar in Costa Rica to track objects as small as two centimeters in low inclination orbits.
Work advances on space sustainability rating
A consortium established last year to develop a rating to measure how well satellites comply with space sustainability guidelines expects to have an initial version of its rating system ready by late this year or early next year.
Incentives and requirements may be needed to enhance space sustainability
With satellite operators doing a poor job complying with guidelines to deorbit their satellites, incentives or even regulation may be inevitable to address concerns about orbital debris and satellite collisions.
New coalition seeks to improve space safety
A group of satellite operators and other organizations have banded together to endorse a set of best practices intended to improve space safety, including measures to minimize the risk of collisions in orbit.
EU agency starts space sustainability initiative
The European Union’s equivalent of a foreign ministry is starting a new effort to promote the need for sustainable space operations, but that effort will not initially include any new regulation of European satellite operators.
ESA spacecraft dodges potential collision with Starlink satellite
ESA said Sept. 2 it maneuvered one of its Earth science satellites to avoid a potential collision with a SpaceX Starlink satellite, the first time the agency said it’s had to maneuver to avoid a satellite associated with a broadband megaconstellation.
Starlink failures highlight space sustainability concerns
The failure of at least five percent of the first batch of SpaceX Starlink satellites has put a spotlight on the growing concerns that satellite megaconstellations could litter low Earth orbit with hundreds of dead satellites.
Long-awaited space sustainability guidelines approved by UN committee
The approval of set of space sustainability guidelines by a United Nations committee has been widely endorsed by the global space community, even while questions remain on how those guidelines can be turned into more binding rules.
Consortium to develop “space sustainability” rating system
The World Economic Forum has selected a consortium of companies, universities and agencies to develop a system to rate the sustainability of space systems, one that its backers hope will encourage good behavior in space.
