Orbits Act Draws Some Attention at Senate Space Hearing
The Orbital Sustainability Act (S-4814) and orbital debris issues drew only limited attention during a Thursday Senate Commerce Space Subcommittee hearing on the future of satellite-based earth observation. S-4814, which subpanel Chairman John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., and ranking member Cynthia Lummis,…
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R-Wyo., filed in September, would require the Commerce Department to work with the FCC and National Space Council to develop and promote standard practices for avoiding collisions and near hits between spacecraft in orbit (see 2209140062). Maxar CEO Dan Jablonsky praised the measure during the hearing, calling it a “great step in protecting and maintaining a sustainable space environment for the future.” Lummis later asked NASA Chief Scientist Kate Calvin about whether “growing amounts of orbital debris” pose a threat to the Landsat program. NASA agrees “it’s important to ensure that space is usable for years to come,” Calvin said: “Space debris and megaconstellations are an issue that needs to be addressed by U.S. leadership.”