At a glance.
- A ban on kinetic ASAT weapon testing.
- Cybersecurity for commercial satellite companies.
- Procurement and innovation.
- Space National Guard still finds favor in Congress.
- Law beyond the Lagrange Point.
- No joke: Netflix cancels "Space Force."
The US interest in banning kinetic ASAT weapon testing.
An op-ed in Space News gives positive marks to emerging US policy that would limit certain forms of anti-satellite weapon testing. The US announced last month that it would not engage in direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) testing that would produce debris. The authors see the distinction as nuanced in a way that, while it represents a contribution to the safety of spaceflight and the security of orbital systems, does little or nothing to inhibit US development of anti-satellite systems that could serve as a deterrent to Russian or Chinese threats to US and allied space systems. They offer an informal list of the kinds of testing the US would remain able to undertake: "active defenses, co-orbital systems, lasers, jammers, and more remain unaffected." Thus the US seeks to dissuade one particular behavior it wishes to constrain, and not to set out an unattainable utopian arms control regime.
Technologies for debris control are also being pursued. Astroscale, for example, has won the Satellite Technology of the Year (STOTY) award. The company continues to work toward demonstrating the ability to approach, capture, and return debris from orbit.
Cybersecurity for commercial satellite companies.
US Space Force is offering "free, non-attributable" cybersecurity vulnerability scanning of supply chains to its commercial satellite vendors and some government partners, Via Satellite's Shaun Waterman reports. Colonel Jennifer Krolikowski, chief information officer for Space Systems Command (SSC), said that the scanning might eventually be used by vendors in the course of meeting the requirements of the Department of Defense Cybersecurity Model Maturity Certification (CMMC) program.
Procurement and innovation.
Space system development and acquisition is recapitulating, in its own way, familiar themes long seen in the US Defense acquisition system generally. That system has been shaped by a concern for bureaucratic accountability (in the best sense--think of competitive fairness, procedural equity, the avoidance of conflicts of interest, etc.) that has tended to militate against the swift development of new systems and, even more so, the insertion of innovative technologies into large programs of record. The Atlantic Council has published a report that addresses one aspect of space system procurement, an aspect driven by what it calls "the small satellite revolution." Its arguments will have a familiar look to those who've followed studies of, and proposals for, US acquisition reform. "If the United States is to maintain space superiority," the author, Nicholas Eftimiades, writes, "it will need to make substantive cultural, doctrinal, and operational changes to its multidimensional relationship with the commercial space industry." He reports six major conclusions:
- "The United States will most likely lose space superiority to China within the next decade.
- "The Department of Defense (DoD) and the Intelligence Community (IC) are trying to take advantage of the small-satellite revolution. The IC is increasingly investing in commercial small-satellite data, to increase collection capabilities and provide military support.
- "The DoD does not generally take a “buy commercial first” approach to space services. Rather, there is an established culture that ignores legislated “commercial first” mandates, and that behavior has become increasingly detrimental to national security interests. Over the last decade, this negative culture has eroded US space superiority, and will continue to do so as the world moves toward quickly developed and deployed, low-cost commercial space systems. For decades, presidential policies directed the executive-branch agencies to buy commercial goods and services before developing government solutions. Almost all of the government and industry experts interviewed for this study believe DoD and the IC ignore those mandates for commercial space capabilities.
- "To date, no commercial small-satellite service has proven itself viable without government support. Yet, the growth of this industry will dramatically impact US national security.
- "DoD acquisition processes are designed to reduce risk and, as a result, are ill prepared for the high-speed commercial space environment. Senior DoD leaders are making efforts to speed up acquisition processes for small satellites and associated technologies. The results to date are mixed.
- "The US Department of Commerce (DoC) Office of Space Commerce (OSC) has made little progress over the last year in executing its responsibilities for Space Traffic Management (STM) and on-orbit mission authorities. Being subordinate to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) does not allow the office to function at the level required to effectively execute its mission."
NGA's accelerator program.
The National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) has selected eight small businesses to participate in its technology innovation program, ExecutiveBiz reports. Startups will receive "a $100,000 non-dilutive grant and access to the agency’s St. Louis office. They will also be provided with subject matter expertise to support their geospatial technology development efforts." The eight companies in the new cohort are: Chooch Intelligence Technologies, Notoros, Pandata Tech, Scout, Skyline Nav AI, Terradepth, TCarta Marine and Fraym.
Space National Guard continues to attract Congressional support.
On May 11th a bipartisan group of US Senators introduced legislation to create a National Guard component for Space Force. In a joint press release, Senators Marco Rubio (Republican of Florida) and Diane Feinstein (Democrat of California) explained that part of their rationale for the legislation is the preservation of talent in the form of reservists who wish to continue their service after its active period is over:
"A National Guard for the Space Force would ensure talented active-duty Space Force personnel who leave active duty are able to continue serving their country as well as their states, eliminate the need to route funding between the Air Force and Space Force and allow better implementation of the mobilization processes, inspection systems, policies and culture of the Space Force."
“'Without a National Guard component for Space Force, we risk losing many talented individuals who want to keep serving their country and their states after they leave active duty, and that is simply unacceptable,' Senator Feinstein said. 'Creating a Space Force National Guard would also save money and ensure a smoother process in the event we need to activate personnel. Not establishing a Space National Guard was a mistake when Space Force was created, and this bill will remedy that.'
“'Creating a Space National Guard would boost our military readiness and increase efficiency,” Rubio said. “It would also ensure that the Space Force retains needed talent. I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this commonsense bill.'”
TheHill reports that the bill's co-sponsors include Senators John Hickenlooper (Democrat of Colorado), Lisa Murkowski (Republican of Alaska), Michael Bennet (Democrat of Colorado), Marsha Blackburn (Republican of Tennessee), Joe Manchin (Democrat of West Virginia), Rob Portman (Republican of Ohio), Rick Scott (Republican of Florida), Alex Padilla (Democrat of California), Mike Braun (Republican of Indiana) and John Cornyn (Republican of Texas). The co-sponsors all represent states with Air National Guard space units.
On May 13th, shortly after the bill was proposed, Space Force chief General Raymond explained that the new Service was still working out its force structure, and that integrating active and reserve components remained a priority. “Over the past two years, we have overhauled how we recruit, assess, train, develop, promote and employ and take care of Guardians. Resilient space power isn’t just about satellites. It’s also about Guardians. This is one of the reasons why we are seeking the integration of active duty and reserve forces into a single hybrid component structure,” General Raymond said, as quoted by Breaking Defense. The General did not directly address the Space National Guard proposal. The Department of Defense has generally been cool to the idea of a Space National Guard (except for the National Guard Bureau, a DoD agency that's been vocally in favor of such a move). Space National Guard proponents have voiced concerns that space personnel would remain lost, orphaned in the Air Force.
Lunar law.
Law beyond the Lagrange Point, or whatever the equivalent would be of law west of the Pecos on the final frontier. Space law is not completely unsettled. Indeed, much of it resembles the international law of the sea, and there's some sense to that, given the way earth orbit represents a global commons that resembles in certain significant respects the high seas. But other aspects of space law do remain unformed. What about crimes committed on the moon, for example?
CNET reports that the question was raised this month in Ottawa. Canada is considering an amendment to its criminal code that would address misbehavior in space. "A Canadian crew member who, during a space flight, commits an act or omission outside Canada that if committed in Canada would constitute an indictable offense is deemed to have committed that act or omission in Canada." Canada's criminal code already governs the behavior of Canadian crewmembers aboard the International Space Station, but the proposed measure makes it clear that law is to be extended beyond earth orbit. It would apply to anything done, the bill specifies, "on, or in relation to, a flight element of the Lunar Gateway; on any means of transportation to or from the lunar gateway; or on the surface of the moon."
Military Cyber Affairs has an essay (“Lasso the Moon? Is It Possible? What about Hack the Moon? Today’s International Framework for Activities on the Moon") by Diane M. Janosek (of the Military Cyber Professional Association), Armando Seay (Maryland Innovation and Security Institute), and Josa P. Natera (of the Catholic University of America) which considers other unsettled questions of space law. The moon and other parts of outer space are becoming in some respects real estate, and it's likely that some form of property rights will be required there (just as mineral rights and rights of salvage are asserted in the earth's oceans). They offer a description of existing international law concerning the moon in particular and offer some considerations about how this law might evolve.
"Space Force" has been canceled.
The Netflix series, not the Service, that is, and Military.com says that the actual Guardians won't miss it, not that much. The show was a goof, a parody, and it had some laughs, but on balance it was too far off for even effective satire, probably because of its fundamental distance from a target that, in fairness, was too small, too ill-defined, and too hard to approach. In any case the sentiment Military.com presents is that, as one Guardian said on condition of anonymity, "I think [the Netflix show] may have impacted how people viewed us on the outside, but on the inside, I don't see an impact." Don't feel too bad, Guardians: you await your artists, and eventually they'll find you. Just not this season on Netflix.