By Michelle Hanlon –      Space is truly a great unknown – especially from a legal standpoint. The Outer Space Treaty regime has served us well for the past sixty years, but we are now contemplating all sorts of new activities in a domain once solely the realm of superpower nations. The treaties reveal more gaps than solutions. We know the formation of law is a time-consuming and at times frustratingly persnickety process. So how can we promote the responsible and sustainable use of space? One way is to articulate ethical norms that will guide activity and underpin the gra ..read more

By Connor Haffey – June 2024 The Office of Space Commerce (OSC) has made a major push in the past decade to become more relevant in the commercial space industry. OSC’s statutory purview was never regulatory, as such, it only had a budget of $500,000 in 2016. However, OSC acquired NOAA’s remote sensing licensing responsibility when it merged with the Office of Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs (CRSRA) in 2021 and its budget has grown exponentially since then. While it may seem the Office of Space Commerce is well-suited for mission authorization because of its fitting name, its trac ..read more

By Michelle Hanlon –      Space is truly a great unknown – especially from a legal standpoint. The Outer Space Treaty regime has served us well for the past sixty years, but we are now contemplating all sorts of new activities in a domain once solely the realm of superpower nations. The treaties reveal more gaps than solutions. We know the formation of law is a time-consuming and at times frustratingly persnickety process. So how can we promote the responsible and sustainable use of space? One way is to articulate ethical norms that will guide activity and underpin the gra ..read more

By Connor Haffey – May 2024 The US commercial space industry is growing rampantly – with no slowing in sight. The missions identified in the Section 108 Report that might have aspects outside the current US commercial space mission authorization framework are growing ever nearer, but that does not necessarily mean they are here. With more objects being launched into space, sustainable space behaviors, including proper authorization of missions, are also growing more important. The two proposals for authorizing novel commercial space missions were both presented in the last two months of 2023 ..read more

By Michelle Hanlon –      Space is truly a great unknown – especially from a legal standpoint. The Outer Space Treaty regime has served us well for the past sixty years, but we are now contemplating all sorts of new activities in a domain once solely the realm of superpower nations. The treaties reveal more gaps than solutions. We know the formation of law is a time-consuming and at times frustratingly persnickety process. So how can we promote the responsible and sustainable use of space? One way is to articulate ethical norms that will guide activity and underpin the gra ..read more

by Connor Haffey – May 2024 The Outer Space Treaty (OST), a keystone legal body of international space law, cemented fundamental obligations for its State Parties. Article VI of the OST requires “authorization and continuing supervision” of any national space activities, including those carried out by a nongovernmental entity. This requirement has been heavily deliberated over the years, with each State Party taking their own approach to its implementation. For example, the UK and Japan, among other State Parties, have an authorizing national space law that dictates a single agency or ministry ..read more

By Heath Hoeffner – May 2024 Since the Apollo missions, spacecraft landings on the Moon have been awe-inspiring achievements. However, they have also left behind a lesser-known consequence—the plume effect, which refers to the interaction between spacecraft exhaust plumes and the lunar surface during landings and takeoffs. When spacecraft engines fire during descent or ascent, the exhaust plumes disturb the lunar regolith, creating a variety of effects that can impact both immediate operations and long-term lunar exploration endeavors. During spacecraft landings and takeoffs, the exhaust plume ..read more

By Michelle Hanlon –      Space is truly a great unknown – especially from a legal standpoint. The Outer Space Treaty regime has served us well for the past sixty years, but we are now contemplating all sorts of new activities in a domain once solely the realm of superpower nations. The treaties reveal more gaps than solutions. We know the formation of law is a time-consuming and at times frustratingly persnickety process. So how can we promote the responsible and sustainable use of space? One way is to articulate ethical norms that will guide activity and underpin the gra ..read more

By Heath Hoeffner – April 2024 In late February, Erika Nesvold provided a fantastic presentation on environmental justice in space which serves as a catalyst for critical analysis of key topics shaping the discourse around space exploration. With a PhD in physics, and a background in computational astrophysics research, Dr. Nesvold prompts us to consider the intersection of space exploration with environmental, ethical, and social considerations through a variety of different topics Dr. Nesvold’s discussion raises important questions about the environmental impact of terrestrial launch sites f ..read more

By Michelle Hanlon –      Space is truly a great unknown – especially from a legal standpoint. The Outer Space Treaty regime has served us well for the past sixty years, but we are now contemplating all sorts of new activities in a domain once solely the realm of superpower nations. The treaties reveal more gaps than solutions. We know the formation of law is a time-consuming and at times frustratingly persnickety process. So how can we promote the responsible and sustainable use of space? One way is to articulate ethical norms that will guide activity and underpin the gra ..read more