Reimagining Near-Earth Space Policy in a Post-COVID World

TL;DR

This paper highlights the urgent need for equitable and sustainable policies for near-Earth space post-COVID, emphasizing the importance of inclusive stakeholder engagement and policy reform to safeguard space resources.

Contribution

It critically analyzes current space policies and proposes specific reforms to promote safer, more equitable, and sustainable use of near-Earth space in a post-pandemic context.

Findings

Current policies fail to address equity and sustainability issues.

Global space activity has escalated during the COVID pandemic.

Recommendations for policy reforms to improve space governance.

Abstract

Our planet and our species are at an existential crossroads. In the long term, climate change threatens to upend life as we know it, while the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic revealed that the world is unprepared and ill-equipped to handle acute shocks to its many systems. These shocks exacerbate the inequities and challenges already present prior to COVID in ways that are still evolving in unpredictable directions. As weary nations look toward a post-COVID world, we draw attention to both the injustice and many impacts of the quiet occupation of near-Earth space, which has rapidly escalated during this time of global crisis. The communities most impacted by climate change, the ongoing pandemic, and systemic racism are those whose voices are missing as stakeholders both on the ground and in space. We argue that significant domestic and international changes to the use of near-Earth space are urgently needed to preserve access to - and the future utility of - the valuable natural resources of space and our shared skies. After examining the failure of the U.S. and international space policy status quo to address these issues, we make specific recommendations in support of safer and more equitable uses of near-Earth space.