Just last week the topic of Space Debris Removal made the "big league" conference circuit at the 60th International Astronautical Congress in Daejeon, Republic of Korea.

In fact, in addition to several dedicated sessions on topics addressing almost every aspect of debris production phenomena, improved tracking accuracy, better conjunction prediction methods, advanced mitigation techniques and removal scenarios, much of the discussions in the hallways was about this topic.

There appears to be a consensus of opinions from the experts that debris will continue to proliferate irrespective of the many mitigation steps that have been adopted by most space-faring nations.

Unless steps are taken to remove at least a portion of existing debris objects, the space environment will continue to deteriorate, leading to a loss of access to part of the near-Earth space region. There is a further consensus that developed nations cannot let this happen. Although the discussion was intense, no large scale solutions were offered.

It seems that, after a good deal of analysis, the most controversial areas associated with the space debris reduction issue can be simplified and summarized in three questions:

1. Technology - How do we remove excess space debris?

2. Cost - Who will pay for removal?

3. Political - Does this mean we will have space weapons?

There is no doubt that the answers to all three questions are interlinked. For example, some new innovative technology may result in cost savings. There may be a way to effectively reduce debris without the use of devices that may be classified as potential space weapons. Obviously, the list of possible combinations is lengthy, and this essay is space-limited.

There will, however, surely be heated and prolonged national and international debates on the how, who and how much of debris clean up that will span the time from now until at least the state of space congestion reaches a critical stage.

At this point in time, no one knows the answers to these questions, nor how much time we have to debate them. We can only hope that the answers come before the time runs out.

Clearly, all of our readers will be affected by the space debris threat, and everyone in the space community should be interested in getting up to speed on space debris issues and possible solutions.

This is where Launchspace can help. Either register for the "must take" one-day intense seminar on November 5, 2009, or contact Launchspace for a customized on-site briefing for your managers and staff.