So at least three states are involved – and the question is which of these states should register NSS-6 and NSS-7 (spoiler alert: I think it’s the Netherlands). Once in orbit, ownership of the satellites was transferred from Lockheed Martin to New Skies.
Both launches took place from French territory. Launch services were provided by Arianespace SA (‘Arianespace’), a French corporation. The two satellites were built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems (‘Lockheed Martin’), a United States-based corporation, for New Skies International NV (‘New Skies’), a Dutch corporation.
So which state is shirking their duty to submit NSS-6 and NSS-7 to the International Register? Registration ensures that the state responsible for a specific space object can be readily identified, and, if necessary, presented with a claim under the Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects.įor this reason, under the international space object registration regime, all space objects must be registered by a state. Just as we do not accept unregistered cars on our roads, we should not accept unregistered space objects in orbit. Despite having been operational for over 15 years, the satellites NSS-6 and NSS-7 are missing from the United Nations Register of Objects Launched into Outer Space (‘International Register’).
