Modern life is wired through space, but the orbital environment is under threat. The same satellites that guide our planes and process our payments are navigating a shooting gallery of debris. Without swift, collective action, we risk losing access to the critical orbits that make modern society possible.
Space debris—ranging from dead rocket bodies to tiny impact fragments—travels so fast it can destroy a satellite on impact. This growing clutter forces operators to waste fuel on collision avoidance, driving up costs and shortening mission lives. The ultimate danger is a cascade of collisions that could seal off low Earth orbit for decades.
To prevent this, the Zero Debris Charter offers a path forward. It represents a global promise to keep space clean, requiring satellites to be designed for full disposal by 2030. Institutions like NLR are crucial to this mission, applying aviation-grade safety to space traffic management and exploring “self-cleaning” orbits like VLEO to naturally remove junk. As NLR’s CEO warns, the explosive growth in space activity demands we act now. The charter is our chance to prove we can be responsible stewards of the cosmos.
