Jane Edwards
Rick Ambrose, executive vice president for space business at Lockheed Martin, said the company has volunteered its satellites for World Economic Forum’s “space sustainability†rating system, Breaking Defense reported Thursday.
The rating scheme seeks to demonstrate how satellites and other spacecraft comply with debris mitigation operations and other best practices in low-Earth orbit. It will use publicly available information on satellites and data from operators.
“It’s a real serious issue with debris,†Ambrose, a 2019 Wash100 winner, told reporters at the Paris Air Show. “So, I think there are going to have to be some multinational policies†for how the industry operates in space.
He noted that rules should be in place to prevent potential space hazards by directing satellite operators to de-orbit at the end of their spacecraft’s lifecycle.
“If we want to have a robust economy in low Earth orbit … we’ve got to deal with [debris] mitigation,†he added.
