Space Traffic Management Lucie Cordier– Export Compliance Manager, VIE ROYAL AERONAUTICAL SOCIETY YOUNG PERSONS’ LECTURE COMPETITION 11TH MAY 2017 – MBDA – STEVENAGE

Known orbit planes of Fengyun-1C debris one month after its disintegration by the Chinese Government

150 million or so -- pieces of untrackable, May 2014 BACKGROUND Former head of NASA’s Orbital Debris Program Office declared that more than 10% of functioning satellites in Earth orbit have likely experienced a sudden shock due to impact by debris too small to be tracked by ground sensors 150 million or so -- pieces of untrackable, millimeter-size space objects

ESA’s SENTINEL-1A: struck in August 2016 by a 1cm debris, 40 cm crater May 2014 ESA’s SENTINEL-1A: struck in August 2016 by a 1cm debris, 40 cm crater

May 2014 BACKGROUND: FACTS Orbits reaching a critical capacity due to spacecrafts and debris... …Owned by an increasing number of private and public actors New activities, new ways of using outer space Mega-constellations, DIY instruments, experiments, sensors and cubesats, space exploration /mining, space tourism…

SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (STM): DEFINITION May 2014 SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (STM): DEFINITION Conceptualized in the 1980s According to a 2006 study by the International Academy of Astronautics, STM is the set of technical and regulatory rules to ensure: safe access to outer space safe operations in outer space safe return from outer space

SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (STM): A BROAD DEFINITION May 2014 SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (STM): A BROAD DEFINITION Not only a legal concept STM has to cover the entire life (BOL-EOL) of a spacecraft and even more: its launch, its in-orbit phase but also its pre-mission phase and its re-entry on earth

REGULATION OF SPACE ACTIVITIES TODAY FOR STM May 2014 REGULATION OF SPACE ACTIVITIES TODAY FOR STM Outer Space Treaty and the Liability and Registration Convention have provisions holding space actors responsible for their activities into, in and back from space BUT there is NO: reliable mechanism for these provisions other set of regulations tackling STM in a more comprehensive manner NEW REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS To protect the national interest of us and our friends and allies What is controlled? – Technology we develop

2017 – EUROPEAN SPACE GENERATION WORKSHOP May 2014 2017 – EUROPEAN SPACE GENERATION WORKSHOP European Space Agency, Paris 24-25th of March 2017 Space Diplomacy Group: 24 delegates from 18 different countries UK export controls are based on the Export Control Act 2002 and supporting secondary legislation that came into effect in 2004 The legislation overhauled export controls for the first time in 60 years It provides a comprehensive framework to control proliferation activity and police the arms trade in today’s world Changes were complex and far reaching, so Government undertook to review 3 years after implementation Review provides an opportunity to evaluate impact and effectiveness of new controls… … and to assess further change options The latest review resulted in the creation of the Export Control Order 2008

Provide recommendations to the following three questions: WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES Provide recommendations to the following three questions: Legal framework of Space Traffic Management (STM)? Role of all (private and public) entities in STM? Proposed technical solutions?

RECOMMANDATIONS: 1. AWARENESS Raising awareness to all members of society government, industry, academia and citizens can be achieved both by the use of diplomacy (both traditional and digital) and media

RECOMMANDATIONS: 2. INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENT Reach an international agreement with legal enforcement mechanisms Spaceflight as a comprehensive traffic regime similar to car, ship and airplane regulation Particular constraints apply to the outer space environment limited manoeuvring capabilities, high velocities and kessler syndrome, limited visibility on ongoing operations… Types of spacecraft/mission and accessible zones to be determined Mandatory pre-launch/EOL/manoeuvre notifications to assess collision potential and other consequences Success of the International Charter Space and Major Disasters as an inspiration

RECOMMANDATIONS: 3. GLOBAL AGENCY Create a global civil agency all current space actors - both governmental and private - are required to contribute, cooperate and provide updated information on their spaceflight activities throughout all mission stages, and share their Space Situational Awareness (SSA) data could be established on the example of the ITU Common funding: Deposit system to incentivize deorbit - could be returned to space actors on successful compliance with deorbit regulations proportionate to Member States resources and their space activities, can be adjusted downwards depending on the level of members’ involvement in sharing information related to SSA

Thank you! 11 May 2017