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Navigating Space Traffic Management's Next Phase: Exploring Centralized, Decentralized, and Hybrid Models
The rapid expansion of space activities — including satellite mega-constellations, human spaceflight, autonomous systems, and the growing integration of AI — has intensified the need to consider how Space Traffic Management (STM) should evolve in both the near and long term. This panel brings together experts from industry, academia, government, and the policy community for a comparative discussion of the operational, technical, and legal pathways that could strengthen STM.
Recent interdisciplinary analyses — including work from the International Institute of Space Law’s Working Group on Legal Aspects of AI in Space, chaired by Tuana Yazici — highlight emerging questions around the structure and evolution of STM frameworks in an increasingly complex environment.
Building on these perspectives, the session will examine centralized, decentralized, and hybrid governance pathways. Discussion topics will include the proposed Space Traffic Management Authority (STMA) — introduced in the IISL Working Group’s report and modeled after ICAO and IMO — as well as alternative approaches involving domestic regulation, bilateral coordination, and the role of interoperability and international technical standards (e.g., ISO) in decentralized systems.
The session will compare these models from multiple sectoral perspectives, highlighting differing viewpoints, practical trade-offs, and the considerations shaping each approach. The discussion will explore where alignment is emerging, where tensions remain, and what realistic next steps may look like for ensuring safe and sustainable operations in increasingly congested orbital environments.
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