Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: As outer space becomes a site for human activity, it is alsoincreasingly polluted by space debris. Today of the approximately 10,000 objects that are larger than 4 inches orbiting in space, only 700 are operational satellites, and the rest are junk from previous launches. These objects pose a potential danger to immensely valuable space equipment, andcould have indirect, devastating effects on communications and defense. However, a regime to regulate space debris has not yet evolved. Controlling the production and cleanup of space debris raises a host of significant technological and political questions, such as the status of non-state actors (corporations), the rights and responsibilities of the US as the overwhelmingly most active space-faring nation, and the growing interest in the military uses of space. This paper will address these questions from the point of view of regime theory, discuss possible modifications to the Outer Space Treaty. It will also cover the current systems, directed mainly by NASA and the US military, for the surveillanceand regulation of space debris.