SWF Leads International Dialogue on Space Situational Awareness, Large Constellations, and Open Access Data Repositories

Friday, September 27, 2019

For the seventh year, SWF staff contributed to the annual Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies (AMOS) Conference. which was held this year in Maui, Hawaii, from Sept. 18-20, 2019. SWF helped organize and actively participated in the Policy Forum held at the beginning of each day of the conference, which consisted of a keynote speaker followed by a panel discussion on a policy topic related to space situational awareness (SSA), and also organized a side event, the AMOS Dialogue, to discuss issues related to SSA data sharing.

The first day of the AMOS Conference opened with keynotes from Major General John Shaw, Deputy Commander, Air Force Space Command; Brigadier General Thomas James, Commander, U.S. Space Command's Joint Task Force Space Defense; and Hirohisa Mori, Director of the National Space Policy Secretariat in the Japanese Cabinet Office. They were followed by a panel discussion that featured Mr. Steph Earle from the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation, Mr. Walt Everetts from Iridium, Dr. T.S. Kelso from Analytical Graphics, Inc., and Mr. Wasanchai Vongsantivanich, Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) of Thailand, and moderated by Mr. Andrew D'Uva from Providence Access. The panel explored what the future of space traffic management might look like ten years in the future and how the challenges of today were overcome in getting there.

The second day of the AMOS Conference opened with a keynote from Dr. Francesca Letizia from the European Space Agency's Space Debris Office, who talked about their annual report on the state of the space environment. Dr. Letizia was followed by a panel discussion on norms and licensing for large constellations that Mr. David Goldstein from SpaceX, Dr. Diane Howard from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Mr. Chris Kunstadter from AXA XL, Ms. Agnieszka Lukasczyk from Planet, and Dr. Michael Nicolls from LeoLabs; and was moderated by SWF Director of Program Planning Dr. Brian Weeden.  During the afternoon of the second day, SWF partnered with the Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) to hold the seventh annual AMOS Dialogue in Maui, a small, invitation-only workshop to foster dialogue on SSA policy issues. This year's AMOS Dialogue discussion of open access data repositories to improve SSA data sharing, including the key characteristics of such data repositories and how they can provide better data and services over existing solutions while also fostering trust with users.

The third day of the AMOS Conference opened with a keynote from Mr. Kevin O’Connell, Director of the Office of Space Commerce in the U.S. Department of Commerce, who gave an update on the Trump Administration’s recent policy directives to modernize the regulatory regime for commercial space activities and establish a civil SSA and STM capability. He was followed by a panel discussion of SSA data sharing and data repositories featuring Dr. Pascal Faucher from the European Space Surveillance and Tracking Program, Ms. Diana McKissock from the U.S. Air Force's 18th Space Control Squadron, Mr. Mark Mulholland from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Mr. Rogel Mari Sese from the Philippines National Space Development, and was moderated by the SWF Washington Office Director Ms. Victoria Samson. 

This year's AMOS Conference also included the second EMER-GEN, a join program from the AMOS Conference and the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) designed especially for young professionals and students (35 and under) enthusiastic about careers in space. The program offered mentoring with renowned space leaders; interactive professional development sessions; technical short courses; and networking with other young professionals. Dr. Weeden and Ms. Samson helped develop and a simulation by the participants on implementing the recent United Nations guidelines for the long-term sustainability of space Ms. Samson also served as a professional mentor at the event.