In this talk, I discussed some of the ethical concerns for the future of space. In particular, I highlight a lack of legislation to properly address an increasingly crowded low Earth orbit.

1. Ethical Concerns for a
Spacefaring Civilization
Credit: Starlink
Melinda Soares-Furtado
Princeton University

2. Why regulate space?
1. Safety risks — crowding of low Earth orbit
& debris concerns
2. Enhanced complexity from increased
participation — private industry, national
space agencies
3. Impacts of light pollution on science & the
community

3. How crowded is LEO?

4. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

5. LEO objects > 10 cm

7. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

8. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

9. How dangerous is debris?

10. 10 km/s

11. 10 km/s

12. Credit: Space Safety Magazine
Paint Chips

13. Whipple Shield: objects < 1 cm

14. Whipple Shield: objects < 1 cm
Disintegrates &
Dissipates KE
Critical Surface

15. 2 cm
ISS Danger Zone: 1 - 10 cm
Cannot be tracked or shielded

16. ENVISAT
Defunct ESA 8-tonne satellite
Went dark in 2012
~200 years to deorbit

17. Credit: Space Safety Magazine
ISS

18. Credit: NASA
Texas (1997)

19. How are we addressing the
space debris problem?

20. Space Debris Legislation
1. Mitigate explosive risk.
• Prevent explosions by requiring fuel to be either
depleted/burned/released.
• We still have five explosions every year.
2. The 25 Year Rule.
• Given 25 years to remove body put into orbit. Moved
either above or below LEO.
• Today only half of the satellites disappear from space
within 25 years.

21. European Space Agency
Invert contributions by 2030
• Ensure all ESA missions are
environmentally neutral by 2020
• Develop the technologies necessary for
active removal of space debris by 2024
• Enable all ESA missions to be risk-
neutral by 2030.

22. How can we clean our mess?
Methods:
1. Space tugs — grab multiple objects per
launch and deorbit them.
2. Laser broom — lasers to deorbit (1.0 mm/s)

23. RemoveDebris Satellite

24. RemoveDebris Satellite
Planned to retrieve & deorbit ENVISAT

25. How are we making the
problem worse?

26. “This is complicated by the changing nature of exploration,
which will no longer solely consist of nations, but companies
within those nations.” — L. Walkowicz

27. Credit: Starlink
“This is complicated by the changing nature of exploration,
which will no longer solely consist of nations, but companies
within those nations.” — L. Walkowicz

28. 2019 2028
Satelliteslaunchedperyear
CreditCredit
Credit: Space Safety Magazine

29. 2019 2028
Satelliteslaunchedperyear
CreditCredit
Credit: Space Safety Magazine

30. Mega Constellations
Miniaturized arrays Credit: One Web

31. Credit: Space Safety Magazine
ISS

32. In the crowded LEO highway, how
do we allocate “right of way” ?

34. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

35. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

36. Anti-Satellite Tests

37. Credit: Space Safety Magazine

39. Mission Shakti

40. Mission Shakti

41. Credit: Space Safety Magazine
Kessler Syndrome

42. What are the ethical concerns
for data acquisition?

43. Blanco Telescope in Chile
Credit: Cliff Johnson & Clarae Martinez-Vazquez

44. Blanco Telescope in Chile
Credit: Cliff Johnson & Clarae Martinez-Vazquez

46. Credit: Starlink

47. LSST
100 petabytes

48. LSST
100 petabytes
~20% unusable

49. Where is the legislation?

50. Where is the legislation?
• Dated: Outer Space Treaty of 1967
• Signed by most countries
• Established little, cannot own a celestial
body, you cannot own a biological
organism.
• Loopholes: You can own the water.

51. Loss of the night sky
•Do agents have the right to completely change the
night sky?
•Is light pollution immoral?
•Are these mega constellations actually progress?
For whom?

52. Credit: Alma Nungarrayi Granites, Aboriginal Artist

53. Confronting Colonialist Roots

54. Confronting Colonialist Roots

55. Credit: NASA

56. Any questions?