Space Traffic Management: A framework for Sustainable Space Exploration in the Age of Commercialization

Abstract

The recent exponential increase in the number of satellites launched into the Earth’s orbit along with the emergence of commercial companies investing in space has necessitated the development of an effective and functional space traffic management (“STM”) system. The perceived menace of congestion, coupled with the prevailing accumulation of space debris, may work to the detriment of space exploration. The authors believe that it is critical to shape appropriate policies with respect to STM for preserving present assignments, enabling career anticipation in space, and for space utilisation. This paper emphasises the need for a long-term, non-discriminatory approach to the development of space activities and seeks to identify the gaps in the current international legal framework governing space, including the inadequacies of the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 and other related treaties. It highlights the need for international collaboration to address the depth and breadth of the STM framework, which demands technological advancement, collaboration, and enforceable measures. In this context, effective debris management measures and policies including the European Space Agency’s Space Debris Mitigation Policy and national space policies such as the U.S. Space Policy Directive-3, are also expounded. Accordingly, this paper proposes practically feasible policy recommendations, including a unified regulatory strategy encompassing license standardisation, orbital tracking mechanisms, and harmonised liability systems.