Matching Legal Liabilities with Technical Solutions to Geostationary Orbit Debris

Sebastiane Alexandra, Mark Hempsell, and Roger Longstaff (2022), JBIS, 75, pp.86-92

Refcode: 2022.75.086

DOI: n/a

Abstract:

The debris environment in space is posing a serious collision hazard to space systems and risks making some orbits unusable. In the particular case of the Geostationary Equatorial Orbit (GEO), subtle legal differences and major technical differences interact, necessitating mitigation strategies that are specifically designed for GEO, where there is no air drag and satellites abandoned in this region will remain a collision hazard in perpetuity. A provisional roadmap is described that outlines the operational, legal and regulatory steps necessary for the removal of dangerous, derelict objects, thereby preserving this unique resource for the decades and centuries to come.

Keywords: Space debris, Geostationary orbit, Sustainability, Legal liability, Responsibility