{"id":54642,"date":"2022-09-30T23:56:01","date_gmt":"2022-09-30T15:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/fcc-adopts-5-year-rule-for-deorbiting-satellites\/"},"modified":"2022-09-30T23:56:01","modified_gmt":"2022-09-30T15:56:01","slug":"fcc-adopts-5-year-rule-for-deorbiting-satellites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/fcc-adopts-5-year-rule-for-deorbiting-satellites\/","title":{"rendered":"FCC Adopts 5-Year Rule for Deorbiting Satellites"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>FCC<\/strong> on Thursday adopted a new rule that requires satellite operators in Low-Earth Orbit to dispose of their satellites, calling it an important step in space safety and orbital debris policy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Commissioners voted 4-0 to adopt the draft rule, which requires satellites in LEO to deorbit \u201cas soon as practicable but no later than five years after mission completion.\u201d It also gives the industry a two-year transition period. The FCC says this action puts more accountability on satellite operators and minimizes the risk of collisions that would create debris.<\/p>\n<p>This rule replaces a long-standing 25-year guideline, which many agree is no longer relevant with the pace of innovation and activity in the industry.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor years, it has been the recommended practice for satellite operators to deorbit their spacecraft within 25 years of completing their missions. But 25 years is a long time. There is no reason to wait that long anymore, especially in Low-Earth Orbit,\u201d Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. \u201cOur space economy is moving fast. The second space age is here. For it to continue to grow, we need to do more to clean up after ourselves so space innovation can continue to respond.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Commissioner Nathan Simington said he hopes the decision signals a new regulatory approach to the space economy with rules that are \u201ctough, sensible, and performance-based.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>He said that while the industry may take action that makes this rule an \u201cunused backstop,\u201d the FCC cannot wait for that to happen.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOrbital debris is a problem, but not a crisis. Not yet,\u201d Simington said. \u201cOur rules may soon be superannuated by innovative solutions from responsible operators who recognize that for any operator to succeed, each must operate with an eye toward safety and sustainability. That could happen. In fact, I hope it does happen. But what we cannot do is bet on it. Hope is not a plan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The FCC acted despite a request from leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives Science, Space, and Technology Committee, who asked the FCC to postpone the decision while NASA reevaluates the U.S. Orbital Debris Mitigation Standards and Practices. Lawmakers support action to guard against space debris, but cautioned that FCC could create conflicting U.S. guidelines.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The FCC on Thursday adopted a new rule that requires satellite operators in Low-Earth Orbit to dispose of their satellites, calling it an important step in space safety and orbital debris policy.&nbsp; Commissioners voted 4-0 to adopt the draft rule, which requires satellites in LEO to deorbit \u201cas soon as practicable but no later than [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51191,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54642"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54642\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}