Perhaps the single most important security debate of the early 21st century is the future status of activities in outer space. The international community of states is at a crossroads in this regard, facing a choice of several different directions for how best to proceed. Unfortunately, due to sharp differences of opinion between the United States and other countries over missile defenses and anti-satellite weapons, there are no serious international discussions going on at the governmental level regarding these issues. Similarly, there is currently no domestic forum in the United States where representatives of various perspectives and interests are discussing...

The present rather anarchic coexistence of military and commercial assets on the space frontier may come to an end within the next five to 10 years. This could happen if a new stage—weaponization of space—begins and is followed by the first space weaponizing power’s promulgation of its own rules of the road for space. Or, it could happen if the present nearanarchy is replaced by a new international rule of law, whether via a formal treaty or political agreements.

In any event, there cannot be much doubt that the weaponization of space will begin in the foreseeable future...

Control of space is at the crux of the debate about the future of U.S. military space policy. It is important to point out that the issue is not whether the United States should militarize space. The militarization of space has already occurred and will continue. Space assets are currently used to great effect to support terrestrial (ground, sea, and air) military operations. The more immediate issue is whether the United States should weaponize space, at least in the near- or mid-term, and more important, whether military uses and requirements in space should be the driving force behind how we...

In analyzing the issue of space vulnerability, we will begin by attempting a broad examination of the relevant problems from a variety of different technical angles.¹ We will also weigh both weapons and non-weapons responses to these vulnerabilities. In our conclusion, we provide thoughts on a possible weaponization ban, which, after our analysis, is our preferred solution. Our approach is organized by considering seven questions.

Vulnerabilities potentially exist both from space and in space. Any careful analysis must include possible space-to-space threats, space-to-terrestrial (land/sea/air) threats, and terrestrial-to-space threats. There is considerable overlap in this regard: space targets can be attacked...

Space is the most fragile environment that exists because it has the least ability to repair itself. Only the Earth’s atmosphere can remove satellites from orbit. When the sun flares up in its 11-year cycle, it heats the upper atmosphere and makes it expand so that debris and spacecraft in low orbits are subjected to increased drag. But the higher the original orbit, the less air there is to collide with.

Near-Earth space is already at risk from human activities, and it is in great need of protection by scientists and humanity at large.¹ Scientists should be especially concerned, both...

In the debate over the military uses of space, many often ask the wrong questions. All too often, questions about weaponizing space are divorced from life and death struggles here on earth and the reality that we live in a dangerous world full of political-strategic uncertainties. It is not helpful to talk ly about the weaponization of space, or to talk about it as the road to apocalypse. Times being what they are, we should rather look more closely at possible life-saving advantages.

The Rumsfeld Commission on Space Organization and Management reported last year that space is becoming increasingly important...

Under the administration of President George W. Bush, the United States is reassessing its long-standing ambivalence toward putting weapons in space. A review of U.S. space policy, the first since 1996, is being launched by National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. With only a cursory read of the Washington tea leaves, it is apparent that this review more likely than not will result in a reversal of direction: sending the U.S. military into orbit in a way not seen since the dawn of the space age.

On one hand, it is commendable that the administration is launching a space policy review...

Military space cooperation, like many space issues, is a complex and contentious issue area. This essay presents a skeptical view about the prospects for many or broad-ranging cooperative military space efforts by examining the following subjects: space weaponization; recent space arms control; control of high-resolution commercial satellite imagery, global utilities, and spectrum crowding; orbital debris; and space traffic control. Analyzing opportunities and challenges in military space cooperation may help to illuminate several of the most likely paths forward for future space activity and highlight the security implications of these developments.

At a fundamental level, virtually all issues of space strategy...

The rapid development of new technologies and their use for military purposes has highlighted the need to solve the problem posed by technological progress toward the weaponization of outer space. If no action is taken, such developments will create a new channel for the arms race, which will have far-reaching negative consequences. The most dangerous outcome in the near future would be development and deployment of a space-based echelon of ballistic missile defenses and antisatellite (ASAT) weapons.

Currently, several international instruments regulate state activities in space. Several of them play a key role in maintaining global security and safeguarding outer...

My remarks will focus on three aspects of the current debate on space security: 1) the need for a new international legal instrument on preventing space weaponization; 2) the possible elements of such an instrument; 3) and the ways and means to achieve it.

Since the first successful launching of a man-made earth satellite nearly half a century ago, great progress has been made in the exploration and use of space for the benefit of mankind. During this process, we have witnessed two important trends. One is the ever increasing dependence of human society on space, to a greater extent...

The United States continues to recognize the common interest of all countries in the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes, as declared in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. When our astronauts walked on the moon for the first time, they left the message that they “came in peace for all mankind.” The United States and other nations have sent unmanned probes to explore outer space and the celestial bodies, to explore the surfaces and atmospheres of the other planets in our solar system in order to understand the environment beyond our world.

The exploration and use of...

The issue of future security in space is being debated at a crucial moment in the process of creating a new, broader architecture for security. The challenge of terrorism to the world community, the danger of the spread of weapons of mass destruction as well as missiles, particularly in view of regional developments, necessitate major changes in global security arrangements. As the May Russian-American summit in Moscow demonstrated, the key proponents of a new strategic framework—more respectful of this new security environment—have clearly expressed their political will for practical deeds. A Russian-American treaty has been concluded in the...

One of the trends often emphasized in space activities is the rise of the commercial sector, which can be defined as public and private companies commercializing space products and services. But what are the relationships, if any, between this sector and military space programs? Could this sector have any role and influence on the planned projects for the basing of weapons in space?

Before addressing these issues, it is necessary to make some remarks about the perimeter of the commercial space sector and its international aspects. It is also interesting to consider the extent to which space commercial activities are...

Although a small number of non-governmental organizations, such as the Union of Concerned Scientists and the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space have been concerned about the military uses of space for some time, for most NGOs awareness of the risks of space weaponization have grown out of their concerns about missile defense during the late 1990s. Though the issues of missile proliferation, missile defense and the weaponization of space may be connected, they give rise to different kinds of political questions and responses. It is perhaps premature to speak of NGO initiatives on space weaponization. There are...