Star Laws: Reform needed to stop final frontier becoming billionaire wasteland

Private space missions bankrolled by billionaires are exploiting a regulatory black hole and leaving unwanted satellites and other junk to float in outer space.

Researchers have found that outdated laws drawn up during the Cold War era Space Race do not directly address private companies, raising serious environmental and safety concerns.

Space governance is centred around a series of international treaties which outline the obligations for states venturing beyond earth.

But the laws are not directed towards non-state actors, meaning private companies can enjoy impunity for space pollution unless their host State takes measures against them.

The University of Essex’s Dr Matthew Gillett, who led the research, said: “Space is becoming crowded with decommissioned satellites, leading to an increase in collisions and a greater threat from fragments whizzing around earth.

“This, mixed with questions over the true impact of rocket exhaust and other pollutants on extra-terrestrial environments, means there needs to be a greater focus on how we govern space and ensure the accountability of non-state actors.”

Private space missions and firms are thought to make up three-quarters of the global space economy, which has an estimated value in excess of $400billion.

In a new book outlining their work, Lex Ad Astra, researchers have called to strengthen the Outer Space Treaty, which was put forward by the United Nations in 1967.

The proposed amendment would complement the state’s role as a primary regulator, by adding a protocol setting out obligations directly applicable to non-state actors.

This innovative reform would bring the law in line with the reality of New Space, in which non-state actors play an increasingly predominant role in outer space.

Dr Gillett, of Essex Law School, added: “The activities of non-state actors in space present a unique set of challenges for the international community.

“While the innovations in this new era of space exploration are promising, this advancement is not without threats to the environment and safety.

“These threats will only increase if left unaddressed.

“The global community must come together to ensure there is accountability for the worst acts of environmental sabotage and destruction, regardless of whether it takes place on this planet or not.

“We must protect space and ensure human activities there are sustainable so we can protect it for future generations.”

Dr Gillett worked with Katja Grunfeld, from the Institute of Air Law and Space Law and Cyber Law in Cologne, and Iva Ramus Cvetkovič, of the Institute of Criminology in Ljubljana, to write Lex Ad Astra.