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Scientists from Switzerland and private Swiss companies are active in space. They miss tangible regulations.
“Switzerland wants to play a central role in security in space,” said Thomas Greminger, director of the Geneva Center for Security GCSP, at a web seminar on the topic. It is plausible that Switzerland in particular is involved here. Although it is not a world power, it is a space power.
When space becomes more unsafe, the whole world suffers.
She is one of the founding members of the European Space Agency and chairs a UN commission on the peaceful uses of outer space.
Legend:
One of the many satellites in orbit.
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Swiss science made significant contributions to the US space program Nasa, the Hubble space telescope and the Galileo navigation satellite. And more and more private Swiss companies are active in space. Professor Nayef al-Rodhan from the GCSP emphasizes: “If space becomes more unsafe, the whole world suffers.” Space is now overcrowded, disputed in terms of power politics and increasing competition is taking place there.
If such parts or unusable satellites orbit at a high altitude of 500 or 600 kilometers, they stay up for a very long time
Currently, 1200 new satellites are launched into space every year. There are also thousands of satellites and space debris that are now inoperable. Millions of pieces of debris from satellites destroyed by collisions or launches are flying around. “If such parts or unusable satellites orbit at a high altitude of 500 or 600 kilometers, they stay up for a very long time,” says Sergey Gugkaev from the Lausanne-based company Clear Space, which is busy removing such space debris. This is also a Swiss contribution to greater security in space.
Binding rules in space would be necessary
ETH Lausanne does another with an evaluation of space activities in terms of sustainability, reports Natália Archinard, who is responsible for the space dossier in the Department of Foreign Affairs in Bern. In addition, one is very active in international forums, especially in the UN, and promotes the dialogue about binding rules in space.
Legend:
Every year 1200 new satellites are launched into space.
key stone
Such would be urgent. But they are proud to have finally created a committee attached to the UN General Assembly to define norms for the peaceful use of space.
Space is of central importance
Nobody disputes the central importance of space for navigation, for collecting climate protection data, for civil aviation, for sea rescue, for arms control and much more. Al-Rodhan even speaks of the world’s over-dependence on space.
But the applicable rules are still based on the UNO space treaty of 1967. It says in general that space is reserved for peaceful use. But as soon as it becomes concrete, there are lots of gaps in the contract. Even military use is by no means entirely out of the question. Natália Archinard complains that more and more states and also the western alliance NATO are declaring space to be the new area of military operations.
The US, India, China and more recently Russia have all shot down satellites, their own, but proving they can attack enemy satellites. The stationing of weapons on satellites is also an issue.
There is a lack of generally accessible information about who is actually doing and planning what in space. There is not enough transparency, there is no traffic control in space, there are no general rules and standards. Switzerland is now campaigning for this, together with others. No one expects rapid progress, although it is urgently needed.