USA: fine for abandoning waste in space, a first

Europe 1 with AFP // Photo credits: NASA / ESA / DSS2 / D.De Martin / Leemage via AFP 17:02 p.m., October 03, 2023

U.S. authorities have fined a satellite TV operator first-of-its kind for abandoning waste in space, the U.S. telecom regulator said. The operator Dish was fined $ 150,000 (142,440 euros) for "not properly deorbiting" a satellite named EchoStar-7, in orbit since 2002, according to a statement from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

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Half a million pieces of debris the size of a marble

"This is a first in the regulation of waste in space by the Commission, which has expanded its efforts towards satellites," the FCC added. There would be in orbit half a million pieces of debris the size of a marble and a hundred million measuring about a millimeter, according to a specialized agency of the UN. This debris is potentially dangerous to spacecraft.

According to the FCC, Dish had not respected the altitude agreed with the Commission to place its geostationary satellite, which was reaching the end of its life. This altitude, lower than agreed, "was likely to pose problems with orbital debris". Dish committed in 2012 to raise the satellite's altitude to 300 km above its operational trajectory, the FCC said. But with the drop in fuel levels, the company had limited itself to bringing its satellite to an altitude of just over 120 km above its trajectory.

"As satellite use becomes more frequent and the space economy accelerates, we need to make sure operators live up to their commitments," said FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief Loyaan A. Egal. He called the FCC's decision "very clear" and "its ability to implement its vital rules on waste in space" a "breakthrough."

"Explicitly exempted"

The settlement reached by the FCC and the company "includes an acknowledgement of liability by the company and an agreement to comply with a compliance plan as well as the payment of a $150,000 fine." Contacted by AFP, Dish rejected the FCC's claims. "As the enforcement office acknowledges in the agreement, the EchoStar-7 satellite was an older aircraft (launched in 2002) that had been explicitly exempted from FCC regulations requiring minimal abandonment orbit," a company spokesperson said in a statement. "In addition, the bureau has not reached any conclusion that the EchoStar-7 poses any safety concerns related to its orbital debris," he added.

Faced with the multiplication of private actors operating in space, the issue of space debris is also of concern to the US aviation regulator (FAA). The agency recently announced that it wants to require all private rocket take-off companies to have a solution to get rid of the upper stage of their launcher -- for example, by returning it to Earth's atmosphere, or by placing it in an orbit away from Earth.

14,000 satellites in orbit

This new regulation, which has yet to be definitively adopted, already exists for government space missions. "If left unchecked, the build-up of orbital debris will increase the risk of collisions and clutter orbits used for human spaceflight and satellites," the FAA said in a statement in mid-September.

In December 2022, a Soyuz MS-22 capsule docked to the International Space Station (ISS) was damaged by the impact of a small meteorite. A Chinese satellite had been brushed in early 2022 by debris from a Russian satellite destroyed the previous year in an incident "extremely dangerous" according to Beijing. Of the 14,000 satellites in orbit, about 35 percent have been launched in the past three years and another 100,000 are expected in the coming decade, according to the UN.