In terms of the Liability Convention the territory from where a spacecraft is launched will be held liable for any damages caused by any future incident on earth involving the spacecraft. In the past couple of years the general satellite “population” has been growing consistently with an even more rapid increase expected as the planned communications mega-constellations commence construction. An increase in the satellite “population” brings with it economic benefits, though it comes at a price. As the amount of objects in orbit increase so does the chance of an undesirable interaction between a functional spacecraft and one of the thousands of pieces of orbital space debris, causing failure of the spacecraft and resulting in potential damage on earth. This is especially pertinent for countries responsible for the liabilities of spacecraft, whose risk exposure profile will invariably increase. This article investigates how the use of “On-Orbit Services” could be used by parties liable under the Liability Convention to mitigate their risk load.
On-Orbit Servicing, Opportunity and Liability
Studies in Space Policy
2020-09-08
18 pages
Article/Chapter (Book)
Electronic Resource
English
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