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Secure World Foundation Newsletter
August 2017
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Insight - The United Nations, COPUOS, and Space in 2017
By Christopher Johnson, Space Law Advisor
The sixtieth session of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) concluded on June 16, 2017, in Vienna, Austria. However, consideration of space activities at the United Nations level is not over for the year, and a number of events, workshops, and conferences remain on the horizon. This brief article will first look back at the major UN-organized events on space already concluded, and offer a glimpse of meetings still on the calendar for the remainder for the year.
COPUOS’ Scientific and Technical Subcommittee met from January 30 to February 10, and agenda items included space debris, space weather, near Earth objects, and the long-term sustainability of space activities. Under this last agenda item, the STSC has been developing the Long-Term Sustainability (LTS) Guidelines, and these guidelines - while still in draft form - continue to be developed at intersessional meetings as they move toward completion. These non-legally binding guidelines fall into several broad categories: policy and regulatory frameworks; space operations; international cooperation and capacity-building; and scientific and technical research and development...continue reading
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Events
Jul 10, 2017
Trash in the Skies II: Industry Perspectives on Dealing with Space Debris
SWF held a luncheon panel discussion on Capitol Hill that brought together private sector experts to discuss the current space debris situation, what steps are being done (or not done) to address it, whether the blanket 25-year rule is still sufficient, and what role industry can play in helping ensuring the long-term sustainability of space while fostering continued innovation and growth of the space sector. The panel's comments touched on the concern of operators, salvage of debris in space, coordination between megaconstellations, and whether or not the government should be involved in regulating the mitigation of risk in the orbital environment due to space debris.
Jul 31, 2017
2017 NOAA Satellite Conference Addresses Future View of Satellite Meteorology
SWF supported the 2017 NOAA Satellite Conference recently held in New York City from July 17 through 20. Hosted by NOAA Cooperative Science Center for Earth System Sciences and Remote Sensing Technologies (CREST) at The City College of New York, this meeting consisted of invited oral presentations with emphasis on environmental satellite technological, scientific, educational and training opportunities, and direct readout and re-broadcast services to raise awareness of upcoming enhancements and prepare for their use and involved a variety of users and providers of polar-orbiting and geostationary satellite data, products, and applications, from the public, private, and international and academic sectors. SWF’s role was to facilitate the presence of a broadly representative team of professionals from several Latin American and Caribbean countries. Project Manager Krystal Wilson attended the conference and international reception.
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Staff Activities and Presentations
Jul 19, 2017
SWF Invited to Speak on Space Security by the Center for Ethics and Rule of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School
Washington Office Director Victoria Samson was invited to speak at the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law summer seminar on space security. Ms. Samson discussed counterspace threats, changes in the space domain with the arrival of new actors and new kinds of activity in orbit, and the ways international cooperative approaches can help support national space security.
Jul 25, 2017
SWF Staff Participated in the Hague Academy of International Law's 2017 Summer Course
Space Law Advisor Chris Johnson participated in the Hague Academy of International Law's 2017 public international law summer course held at the Peace Palace in the Hague, Netherlands, also home of the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
Jul 31, 2017
SWF Supported Newly Founded Brooke Owens Fellowship Program
Providing mentoring, conference leadership, and individual copies of the Handbook for New Actors in Space for each participant, SWF has been an active partner in launching the new Brooke Owens Fellowship Program. Created to honor Dawn Brooke Owens, an aerospace professional whose life and career were cut sort when she was just 36 years old, the fellowship program provides paid internships for 36 young women who are actively preparing for careers in the aerospace sector.
Jul 31, 2017
International Space University/Secure World Foundation Partnership Continued in Cork, Ireland
The International Space University’s Space Studies Program (SSP) changes location annually with the 2017 edition taking place in Cork, Ireland. This year, Executive Director Michael Simpson and Space Law Advisor Christopher Johnson joined former Executive Director Ray Williamson to bring several elements of SWF’s insight into space sustainability to the highly intense learning experience.
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Experts in the Media
Jul 11,2017
How Colorado is Trying to Cash in on the Multibillion-Dollar Space Race
Director of Program Planning Brian Weeden Quoted by CNBC on Global Competition in Space
Jul 12, 2017
Sweating the Small Stuff: CubeSats Swarm Earth Orbit
Dr. Weeden Quoted by Scientific American on Space Debris and CubeSats
Jul 13, 2017
The US Isn't Going to Launch a Military Space Corps - For Now
Dr. Weeden Quoted by Quartz on the Possibility of a New U.S. Military Space Corps
Jul 14, 2017
Space Corps Proposal Has Murkier Path Forward in the Senate
Dr. Weeden Quoted SpaceNews on the Odds of the Space Corps Passing the Senate
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Publications
Jul 21, 2017
SWF Publishes Updated Fact Sheet on the UN COPUOS Long-Term Sustainability Guidelines
The updated fact sheet includes new details following the sixtieth session of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and an overview of the process from its inception in 2010. The updated fact sheet is available here.
Jul 24, 2017
A Summer Update on the COPUOS Long-Term Sustainability Guidelines
Washington Office Director Victoria Samson and Space Law Advisor Chris Johnson Publish Update on the COPUOS Long-Term Sustainability Guidelines in The Space Review.
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Announcement
Jul 26, 2017
Updates to Advisory Committee Members Announced
This year, SWF announces the departure of one long time Advisory Committee member: Ciro Arévalo-Yepes. His contributions and dedication to the organization will be missed, and we wish him the best as he moves on to other endeavors.
SWF is pleased to welcome Dr. Angie Bukley, who has been appointed to fill a vacant position in the 2018 Class of the Advisory Committee. Dr. Bukley is the Director for Program Formulation and Partnerships in the Space and Technology Directorate at The Aerospace Corporation, and brings to the Advisory Committee over 30 years of professional experience providing technical and management expertise in the defense and space sectors, including 10 years in academic administration.
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