Space Junkies

Some folks should find this article interesting.

UN to discuss Air Traffic Control for outer space

”Low orbits have now become so crowded with satellites that operators are regularly having to make emergency manoeuvres to avoid collisions.“

You mean with all the room up there they can’t keep birds apart ? Can’t they tighten up the spacing ? How about more precise navigation ? Are they still using radar (that old stuff) to track these things ? And they don’t even have to contend with runway constraints. Okay, if I’ve made my point I’ll turn off the sarcasm.

”Currently the US is the only country with the ability to track satellites and debris in space, so other countries and satellite operators are reliant on the Americans alerting them to an impending threat.“

And...

”The European Space Agency has already begun work on a new tracking system, the Space Situational Awareness Programme, that could form part of such an international space traffic control. “

But of course.

It will be interesting to see how this all turns out in that no passengers are at risk. Just money.

Don Brown
February 6, 2010

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