The United States this week said it will join the European Union in developing a “code of conduct” for space, according to the State Department.
“The long-term sustainability of our space environment is at serious risk from space debris and irresponsible actors,” State Department Secretary Hillary Clinton said in a statement.
An “international code of conduct for outer space activities” would establish a rules and regulations for the responsible use of outer space, she said. The European Union has spearheaded creating the code.
Several days ago, a failed Russian probe that was launched only a few months ago and was intended for Mars crash-landed back on Earth, mostly breaking up in the atmosphere. A six-ton NASA satellite that was launched in 1991 crashed in the Pacific Ocean last September.
“Unless the international community addresses these challenges, the environment around our planet will become increasingly hazardous to human spaceflight and satellite systems, which would create damaging consequences for all of us,” she said.
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