In 2021, a Starlink satellite and OneWeb spacecraft came dangerously close to colliding in orbit. While both companies’ automated systems detected a potential collision, the incident sparked intense debate about communication and de-confliction between autonomous space systems. As competing satellite operators increasingly rely on automated collision avoidance software to manage their growing constellations, this near-miss highlights a crucial gap in international outer space law: Legal frameworks never contemplated a future where automated systems, sometimes guided by AI, would make critical decisions in outer space that could constitute “harmful interference” under existing international law — that is, when a country’s space
The post Autonomy Has Outpaced International Space Law appeared first on War on the Rocks.