Orbital debris: possible causes and issues for litigation

Pamela L. Meredith

doi:10.1117/12.156547

15 September 1993 Orbital debris: possible causes and issues for litigation

Pamela L. Meredith

Proceedings Volume 1951, Space Debris Detection and Mitigation; (1993) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.156547
Event: Optical Engineering and Photonics in Aerospace Sensing, 1993, Orlando, FL, United States

Abstract

After nearly 35 years of space exploration and exploitation with little concern for the debris generated during routine spacecraft operations and upon the termination of space missions, concentrations of debris at certain orbital altitudes have reached alarming levels. Consequently, the risk of damage to operational spacecrafts in orbits with large debris populations can no longer be discounted. In the event the risk materializes and the source of debris can be identified, and if a cause of action exists, litigation could well ensue. By means of a hypothetical situation, this paper considers some of the possible causes of such litigation, as well as some of the legal issues the courts could be called upon to resolve.

Citation Download Citation

Pamela L. Meredith "Orbital debris: possible causes and issues for litigation", Proc. SPIE 1951, Space Debris Detection and Mitigation, (15 September 1993); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.156547

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