Brian Weeden Appears Before Congressional Committee Hearing on Space Traffic Management

Friday, May 9, 2014

SWF Technical Advisor Brian Weeden testified today before the U.S. Congress as part of a hearing on space debris and space traffic management. The hearing, convened by the Subcommittee on Space of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, focused on the threat space debris poses to continued use of space.

In his testimony, Brian highlighted the three main activities needed to address the debris problem - debris mitigation, debris removal, and space traffic management - as well as the importance of space situational awareness (SSA) in support those activities. He recommended efforts to harmonize the existing regulations for space debris mitigation, developing a comprehensive strategy for dealing with existing debris that may include removal, and shifting part of the SSA and space traffic management mission to a federal agency other than the Department of Defense. A copy of Brian's written testimony can be found here.

The hearing was broadcast live on C-SPAN, a recording of which can be found below: