General James Cartwright, the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff warned that the risk of collision of satellites was increasingly high and insisted that space traffic which was becoming more chaotic should be governed by international rules.

He continued by saying that maintaining high levels of secrecy regarding the large number of satellites orbiting in space was just unnecessary. While regulations regarding this clearly seemed to be the solution, he said that no one looked like they wanted to take the initiative.

Speaking at a conference which was sponsored by the Centre of Strategic and International Studies Cartwright said that collision in space had become a frequent problem, as is the blocking of each other’s signals unknowingly.

Last year’s collision which took place between a US and Russian satellite somehow seemed to go unnoticed, amidst low key concerns regarding space traffic, the lack of control and knowledge and the increasing amount of space debris.

Cartwright pointed out that half a century following the beginning of the space age, global rules and regulations still ceased to exist. It really is no big deal, all that is needed is the sharing of orbital tracks; just like aircraft flight paths are shared.

Contrary to general belief, Cartwright said that his urging towards a set of regulations was by no means a push towards the military taking over space, but said a common understanding amongst countries was necessary to carry out business in space in a safe manner.