Space Debris, Congestion and the Wall-E Effect

Dr. Michael K. Simpson shares his thoughts on establishing the secure and sustainable use of the space domain. He discusses space sustainability and some of the key challenges to that effort, such as collisions from space debris, intentional efforts to destroy or handicap satellites and the potential lack of cooperation in using space as a shared and protected resource. Michael also explores the potential consequences of a significant event affecting space sustainability which could substantially disrupt the availability of satellite services and incur costs in the trillions to hundreds of billions of dollars. He also talks about how as more countries become involved in space there is a greater common interest in protecting the domain – since more parties are now affected by any potential negative consequences.