Latest news with #SpaceAct
UPI
10 hours ago
- Business
- UPI
EU's Space Act would track space objects and clear satellite debris
June 25 (UPI) -- The European Commission made a proposal Wednesday to clean up Europe's space sector while also reducing its footprint and making sure its satellites are better protected from hackers. In a press release, the commission said it wants to enact the EU Space Act, which it describes as a "new set of ambitious measures to make Europe's space sector cleaner, safer and more competitive in Europe and its export markets." According to its statement, the rules Europe employs in regard to its activities in space are messy due to "13 different national approaches," what it describes as a "patchwork" that interferes with innovation and creates unnecessary costs while reducing the European market share. If adopted, the Space Act would primarily dictate that the EU would need to forcefully track space objects and clear space debris so that Europe will have "secure and uninterrupted access to space." The act also would ensure that cybersecurity will be beefed up to "strengthen protection of European space infrastructure and ensure business continuity." In addition, all space vessel operators will be expected to keep track of how their off-world activities affect the Earth's environment but will also receive innovative support from the EU toward technologies such as debris removal and in-orbit servicing. The act also would make it so that non-EU operators who provide space services to Europe would also have to follow the rules, with requirements scaled proportionally, based on a company's size and risk profile. The package of legislation is not a done deal, however, as it first must be negotiated procedurally by the European Parliament and the Council. "We are bringing the first EU Space Act to the launchpad," wrote EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in an X post Wednesday. "It will make the skies safer, protect our satellites, and strengthen our space economy." "We are getting ready for the next era of space innovation," continued von der Leyen. "Faster, smarter and cleaner."
Euronews
15 hours ago
- Business
- Euronews
EU aims to create a ‘competitive' single market for space services
The EU Commission is aiming to create a competitive single market for space services and data by cutting red tape, protecting space assets and ensuring a level playing field for all businesses, in a new EU Space Act proposed on Wednesday. 'The Space Act will allow us to grow in space,' EU Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius told reporters. 'Growth in space means growth and jobs on Earth and in space,' he added. The regulation also seeks to address Europe's fragmented space rules by harmonising national measures to make the bloc's space market cleaner, safer, and more resilient. 'This fragmentation is bad for business, bad for competitiveness, bad for our future in space,' Kubilius argued, stressing that Europe wants a stronger stake in the global space economy. In 2023, the global space economy was valued at €572 billion and is expected to grow by around 9% annually until 2035, potentially reaching €1.6 trillion. So far, however, the space market has largely depended on public investment and institutional programmes—areas where Europe risks falling behind. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), Europe accounted for 11% of global public space funding in 2023 (€12 billion), while the US contributed 64% (over €65 billion) and China 12%. Europe's share of global private investment follows a similar pattern, with European investments totalling €980 million compared to the €3.6 billion invested by the US. To support the development of Europe's industrial and economic presence in space, the EU executive also presented on Wednesday 'A Vision for the European Space Economy,' a communication outlining 40 proposed measures intended to help the bloc expand its participation in the global space market. Space increasingly 'congested and contested', says Kubilius 'The European industry, although very competitive, can only capture one third of the accessible upstream market and one fifth of the downstream market,' a senior EU official said ahead of the proposal. The space economy is typically divided into three key areas: the upstream segment, which covers research, development, manufacturing, and launches; the downstream segment, focused on applications using space-based technologies; and a derived market, which includes all economic activities benefiting from space advancements, such as photovoltaic panels. Kubilius also warned that space is becoming increasingly congested and contested. 'It's time to put in place rules of the road for space to prevent damage and disasters and protect space services,' he said. Over the next decade, an estimated 50,000 new satellites and around 140 million pieces of debris will enter orbit, according to EU figures. Space assets are increasingly exposed to threats, both intentional and accidental. Kubilius pointed to rising cyber and physical risks. 'We know there is continuous radio-frequency interference with our systems, jamming, and spoofing. We know there are many cyberattacks. So, with our Space Act, we will increase the resilience of our satellites and space operations,' he said. If adopted, the regulation would apply to EU and national space assets, as well as non-EU operators providing services in the European market. However, it would not cover military activities. To ease the transition, the Commission plans to provide support to help businesses—especially small and medium-sized enterprises—manage any costs tied to compliance. MEP Christophe Grudler (France/Renew), co-chair of the Parliament's intergroup on sky and space, welcomed the proposal as an important first step toward building a space industry on an EU scale. "This, together with the upcoming EU Space Programme, will set the EU into orbit for the global space race,' he said in a press release. The Space Act also includes steps to boost the EU's presence in the satellite launcher market, which is currently dominated by Elon Musk's SpaceX. One measure would make a single launch authorisation valid across the entire EU. "This is a strong signal to encourage innovation and strengthen the competitiveness of the European space sector, which we want to see grow," Grudler concluded.
The Guardian
27-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
The Guardian view on owning the heavens: the perils of letting capitalism colonise the cosmos
In 2015, a rare moment of US congressional unity passed the Space Act – to mine asteroids as if they were open seams of ore and harvest planets like unclaimed farmland. Quietly signed by President Barack Obama, it now reads as a premature act of enclosure: staking titles in a realm we scarcely understand. Though some expressed concerns at the time, it was justified by the idea of inevitable progress. Such naivety evaporated with Donald Trump. Space had been humanity's last commons, shielded by a 1967 Outer Space treaty. Mr Trump declared it dead in 2020, signing the Artemis Accords and enlisting 43 allies, including the UK, in the legalisation of heaven's spoils. In March, Mr Trump vowed to plant the stars and stripes on Mars – and beyond. The age of celestial commons was brief, if it ever began. A new report by the Common Wealth thinktank, titled Star Wars, warns that a powerful coalition – composed of private corporations, billionaires such as Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, and 'neoliberal' thinktanks – is working to extend earthly ownership structures to space. The report's author, Durham University's Carla Ibled, calls it 'the transfer of shared resources into the hands of a few'. The 1967 treaty bans state exploitation of space, but is vague on private claims – a loophole now fuelling a tycoon-led scramble for the stars. The aim is obvious: to act first, shape norms and dare others to object. Companies are targeting asteroid mines for 'platinum group' metals, lunar ice for fuel and helium 3 for nuclear fusion. These are, admittedly, more likely to be business cases more than functioning businesses. Space law, however, is being fashioned to allow appropriation under the guise of peaceful, commercial activity. Some bizarrely argue that off‑planet mining is social justice – shifting pollution from Earth to 'lifeless' space to spare local communities environmental harm. Common Wealth rightly sees this as a modern-day enclosure movement. Space isn't a prize for private conquest. It's a shared realm needing democratic, ethical stewardship – not corporate extraction in legal disguise. Building a worldwide democratic, collective model is not easy. There is no global body that has clear authority over space resource governance. There is an embryonic one in the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs. Previous attempts to create new frameworks – like the 1979 Moon Agreement – have failed to gain traction among major space powers. There are also longstanding concerns that privatisation is a cover for the militarisation of the cosmos. Notably, the UK has yet to adopt a space resource licensing system – unlike its fellow Artemis Accords founders the US, Luxembourg, United Arab Emirates and Japan. Reviving cold war lines in the stars, Russia and China defend space as common property against western-style celestial land grabs. There is no viable commercial model for the extraction of space resources and their return to Earth for sale. Nasa's Moon rock returns helped Congress justify space property rights. Dr Ibled warns that humanity's last commons is slipping into private hands. Some have proposed an Antarctic-style, consent-based model for space – which would treat it not as endless bounty but as a realm worthy of restraint and respect, where survival uses like water extraction would be permitted. Creating equitable global governance is hard. But that's no excuse not to try. The stakes, after all, are planetary.
