Contributor's contribution: Space cowboys

In space, no one can hear you regulate.

Daniel Porras is a career space lawyer. (Yes, we are jealous, too.)

Editor’s note: As they say, everyone wants to go to heaven. Nobody wants to follow rules. In this very serious and very actual policy brief for the commercial space industry, friend-of-Bupkes Porras reminds his industry that, you know, you maybe want to look where you’re going.

While this very serious and very actual policy brief is intended for a niche and technical audience, it is chock full of delightful tidbits that any general and specifically Bupkes audience will enjoy. We mean, the headline alone!

And such excerpts:

As surprising as it may be, there is no official directory for space that provides a point of contact (PoC) for all operators. If, say, a spacecraft operated by a US company were to come into close range of a Chinese satellite, it is very likely that neither operator would know whom to call to coordinate collision avoidance manoeuvres. Likewise, if a commercial US ISAM spacecraft were to come “close” to a Chinese spacecraft, it is unlikely either party would know whom to contact to give or receive credible information about the mission.

It’s the “if, say,” that has satire people like us worried that serious people like Porras will put us out of business.

Click here to read more about how our glorious commercial space pioneers are guiding us into an orbital future you definitely want to be part of — today!