Clean Orbit Newsletter- Mar. 21, 2022
Russian Missiles and Space Debris Could Threaten Satellites, Russian cosmonauts arrive at International Space Station & E-Space Joins the Paris Peace Forum's Initiative to Reduce Debris
Russian Missiles and Space Debris Could Threaten Satellites
As the war in Ukraine continues, satellites' safety and their vulnerability to attacks from the ground are becoming topics of national security conversations. It has become harder to determine whether satellites’ transmissions are failing because of orbital debris or because of Russian actors jamming communication signals.
US Space Command's leader, General James Dickinson, called commercial space systems “an essential component of US critical infrastructure and vital to our national security.” It was Planet Labs and Maxar satellite imagery that allowed the world to see signs of hydraulic warfare in Ukraine and a miles-long convoy making its way to Kyiv.
If that infrastructure becomes a war target, space debris will continue to collect, and linger. Just this past November the ISS dodged debris originally created in 2007 and tracked the debris cloud caused by Russia’s demolition of a Soviet-era satellite with a ballistic missile from the ground.
US Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), the only astronaut in Congress, expressed concern that a focus strictly on China and Russia will distract from North Korea and Iran potentially exerting power with anti-satellite weapons.
US Space Command detailed plans to integrate missile defense radar on land and sea with the Department of Defense’s space surveillance system.
Three Russian cosmonauts arrive at International Space Station
This marked the first space crew launch since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.The war has resulted in canceled spacecraft launches and broken contracts.
These events highlight tension between international space programs and introduce new space debris into an already tense conflict, with many international partners dependent on satellite communications.
Ukrainian space industry players continue work, eye European projects amid war
While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to impact the Ukrainian space sector, senior industry representatives say that local companies have so far managed to adapt their activities to the realities of war, and they are determined to advance joint projects with their European partners.
Volodymyr Usov, the co-founder of Ukrainian space industry startup Kurs Orbital and the former head of Ukraine’s space agency, told SpaceNews that over the past few days areas surrounding Dnipro, a region in eastern Ukraine that hosts a major space industry hub, have witnessed an increasing number of attacks by Russian forces. This said, to date, Russia’s airstrikes and artillery fire have not targeted the key facilities of the country’s space sector, he said.
With this in mind, Orbit Boy is developing a solution in cooperation with Yuzhmash and other Ukrainian space industry players, hoping to secure a capacity for air launches with the use of mid-range aircraft.Usov says he is confident that, once the war in Ukraine is over, the country’s space industry will further bolster its ties with European partners.
In other news...
Spire Global Lands NorthStar Earth & Space as Space-as-a-Service Customer
NorthStar said this constellation will be able to deliver timely and precise orbit determination, collision avoidance, navigation services, and proximity warnings to the global satellite community.
This partnership showcases the industries growing recognition of a need for more sustainable use of the shared orbital space.
E-Space Joins the Paris Peace Forum's Net Zero Space Initiative to Reduce Debris in Orbit
The Net Zero Space initiative calls for “a global commitment to achieving sustainable use of outer space for the benefit of all humankind by 2030.” The initiative’s goal is to fuel urgent action to rapidly contain and reduce the ongoing pollution of Earth’s orbital environment by avoiding the further generation of hazardous space debris and remediating existing debris. E-Space joins a global coalition of satellite operators, launch providers, space agencies and academia, including CNES and The International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety (IAASS).
E-Space’s satellite system was designed to have small cross-sections to make them far less vulnerable to collision, preventing space debris generation. Eventually, the satellites will actively capture and deorbit small space debris. E-Space provides satellite constellation deployments with higher capabilities and lower cost to enable a new generation of services and applications, from 5G communications to command and control systems.
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Clean Orbit advocates for proactive, sustainable solutions to the growing threat of space debris in low earth orbit. Follow our newsletter for the latest developments in Space Traffic Management (STM), Active Debris Removal (ADR), and orbital close calls.