Space Needs 'Standards And Norms’ To Tackle Space Debris Problem, Pentagon Officials Say

Top Pentagon experts recently highlighted the importance of establishing expected patterns of behavior in space by the international community in spite of the ongoing global political tension. Winston Beauchamp, the deputy undersecretary of the Air Force for space, spoke at a summit on Nov. 17 hosted by the Defense One website, where he talked about the risks posed by debris floating in orbit and collision dangers, a threat that has to be addressed jointly by nations -- even if the relationship between them is tense, such as is the case between the U.S. and China or the U.S. and Russia.

"There is an erosion of some of the commonly accepted standards and norms, and there is concern about that as folks around the world have tried to find advantage, find seams," Beauchamp stated, as quoted by Space.com. "That is part of the reason why we want to codify our norms and behavior in space because it is such an important domain, not just for us but for humanity," he added.

The deputy undersecretary also stated that a global understanding is important to operate smoothly in space for the dual purposes of advancing the present state of technology as well as getting the human race off Earth and to another planet one day, feats that cannot be achieved if space debris continues to be a deterrent in flying out.

Incidentally, the U.S. military is taking a defensive mindset and pushing in various areas to avoid making miscalculations in space because of the long lasting effects posed by destroyed satellites and the consequent debris, according to Space News. "Everything is about not having a war extend to space," said Rear Admiral Brian Brown, head of the Navy Space Cadre.

Read Admiral Brown further added that the U.S. is currently warning satellite companies and other countries when there is a threat of collision even in peacetime. Meanwhile, Beauchamp has also stated that if another country attacks the U.S. assets in space, the Pentagon would not necessarily put up the defensive in space by responding in kind, rather they would do so at a time and place of their own choosing because they do not expect something in space to take place in isolation.