The World Needs a Space COP |
As space exploration undergoes a technical, commercial, and military revolution, outer space itself has become a Wild West, governed by outdated treaties set up during the height of the Cold War. Over the past decade, the cost of reaching orbit has collapsed, satellites have multiplied, and space has become ever more indispensable to communications, commerce, and security on Earth.
Yet the legal and institutional framework that governs this domain has barely evolved. Across governments, militaries, and the private space industry, a consensus has emerged: Space is “congested and contested,” as U.S. Space Force officer Col. Corey Klopstein puts it—full of satellites, debris, and risks of confrontation. More troubling is the shared assumption that as our reliance on space deepens, congestion and competition will increase, with no path to a workable solution.
As space exploration undergoes a technical, commercial, and military revolution, outer space itself has become a Wild West, governed by outdated treaties set up during the height of the Cold War. Over the past decade, the cost of reaching orbit has collapsed, satellites have multiplied, and space has become ever more indispensable to communications, commerce, and security on Earth.
Yet the legal and institutional framework that governs this domain has barely evolved. Across governments, militaries, and the private space industry, a consensus has emerged: Space is “congested and contested,” as U.S. Space Force officer Col. Corey Klopstein puts it—full of satellites, debris, and risks of confrontation. More troubling is the shared assumption that as our reliance on space deepens, congestion and competition will increase, with no path to a workable solution.
The backbone of international space cooperation is the Outer Space Treaty, signed in 1967. Here too, there is a consensus among commercial actors, policymakers, and academics that the status quo is inadequate. This is in part because of timing: The Outer Space Treaty was drafted at a time when only two countries—the United States and Soviet Union—could reach orbit, and private spaceflight was inconceivable. Furthermore, while the treaty obliges signatories........