Please Don't Cut Funds For Space Traffic Control, Industry Begs Congress (theregister.com)
- Reference: 0178357992
- News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/07/12/0052223/please-dont-cut-funds-for-space-traffic-control-industry-begs-congress
- Source link: https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/10/space_traffic_control_congress/
> "One of OSC's most important functions is to provide space traffic coordination support to US satellite operators, similar to the Federal Aviation Administration's role in air traffic control," stated [2]letters from space companies including SpaceX, Boeing, Blue Origin, and others. The letters argue that safe space operations "in an increasingly congested space domain" are critical for modern services like broadband satellite internet and weather forecasting, but that's not all. "Likewise, a safe space operating environment is vital for continuity of national security space missions such as early warning of missile attacks on deployed US military forces," the letters added.
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> Industry trade groups sent the letters to the Democratic and Republican leadership of the House and Senate budget subcommittees for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, claiming to represent more than 450 US companies in the space, satellite, and defense sectors. The letters argue for the retention of the OSC's FY 2025 budget of $65 million, as well as keeping control of space traffic coordination within the purview of the Department of Commerce, under which the OSC is nested, and not the Department of Defense, where it was previously managed. "Successive administrations have recognized on a bipartisan basis that space traffic coordination is a global, commercial-facing function best managed by a civilian agency," the companies explained. "Keeping space traffic coordination within the Department of Commerce preserves military resources for core defense missions and prevents the conflation of space safety with military control."
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> In the budget request document, the government explained the Commerce Department was unable to complete "a government owned and operated public-facing database and traffic coordination system" in a timely manner. The private sector, meanwhile, "has proven they have the capability and the business model to provide civil operators" with the necessary space tracking data. But [3]according to the OSC, TraCSS would have been ready for operations by January 2026, raising the question of why the government would kill the program so late in the game.
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/10/space_traffic_control_congress/
[2] https://commercialspace.org/news_events/csf-and-industry-partners-urge-continued-support-for-the-office-of-space-commerce/
[3] https://space.commerce.gov/tracss-expands-crada-efforts-with-spacex/
AIDS (Score:5, Insightful)
Trump doesn't care what damage his cuts cause. A person who cuts HIV/AIDS support that millions of people will die without clearly feels comfortable enough in his own bubble that the rest of the world can fall apart and he doesn't care.
Re: AIDS (Score:2)
You mean rob a bank so they can afford the drugs? Great plan!
Re: (Score:2)
And get government funded healthcare in jail. Hey we might be onto something!
Military control (Score:2)
Looks like someone wants to move TraCSS to the military.
Re: (Score:3)
From the [1]source [noaa.gov], page 300.
> To implement this policy directive, DOC was tasked to make releasable portions of the catalog available to the public either directly or through a partnership with industry and/or academia. DOC was also tasked to assess whether statutory and regulatory changes are necessary to affect this change in responsibilities.
> Under the prior administration, DOC was unable to complete a government owned and operated public-facing database and traffic coordination system. In the convening time,
[1] https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-06/NOAA%20FY26%20Congressional%20Justification.pdf
Ground control to Major Tom (Score:5, Funny)
Ground control to Major Tom
Our circuit's dead, our funding's gone.
Can you hear me, Major Tom?
Can you hear me, Major Tom?
Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you-
Here am I floating 'round my tin can
Far above the moon
Planet Earth is fucked
The cunts choose Trump and Musk.
Re: Ground control to Major Tom (Score:2)
Meanwhile, Peter Schilling's equally great answer to this song gets forgotten.
Set up a tax on satellite operators to fund it (Score:2)
Place a tax on every satellite or piece of space debris left in orbit as long as it is in orbit. Currently there are 45,000 objects orbiting earth. That would be a tax of $1,200 per year for each object. This would also provide an incentive for operators to not leave junk in orbit. Some enterprising company could make money collecting up the space junk. You would not have to deorbit it just collect it. If its not a separate trackable object it does not pay the tax. So the collector could charge the junk pro
Re: Set up a tax on satellite operators to fund it (Score:3)
How, pray tell, is the U.S. supposed to enforce a tax on objects launched by/belonging to other nations and located in a place (space), where by international treaty no country possesses sovereignty? And do so ex post facto, at that?
Maybe, just maybe, they could get away with doing so for future objects launched under the authority of the U.S. as a condition of granting a launch license, but even that would be a hard sell, since a failed launch where a craft breaks up into multiple objects would result n
Re: (Score:2)
The US prides itself in applying its own laws to its citizens all around the world. There's no reason to expect it couldn't charge a US company a tax on satellites in space. Frankly, a lot of satellites are owned by Elon, I could totally see Trump signing an executive order just to fuck with Starlink.
Re: (Score:2)
Well they could deny info to other countries unless they pay. Negotiate a treaty with other countries to cover space junk. If they use US rockets to launch they would have to agree to pay. Taxing US companies who left old junk in orbit is not hard just pass the law. The government creates new taxes all the time. Taxing defunct companies is not possible. The government itself is responsible for some of the junk so would have to pay. May tariffs on communications transmitted by Foreign countries that pass th
So things are going to get real bad real fast (Score:3)
When Trump was President last time he couldn't do a lot of the really bad shit because he had hired competent people out of habit and they just wouldn't let him do all the crazy shit like try to end birthright citizenship or do a fuck ton of illegal tariffs using fake emergencies or firing everybody in the government so you can replace them with cronies that will let you crown yourself King
So in order to be able to do all the crazy crap in project 2025 that is just going to wreck the economy like it did in the 1800s where the policies came from he hired yes men the worst kind.
So you have lunatics like Robert f Kennedy Jr and completely incompetent buffoons like Christi Noem.
These people are evil. But they're also staggeringly incompetent. This means that no matter how much money corporations and lobbyists have the people they are lobbying are going to be so dumb that they can't even do the things they're being bribed to do.
I don't think anyone especially Trump voters have come to terms with just how badly we fucked up letting him get a second term.
People are calling him Taco because Trump always chickens out. But they're misunderstanding something.
First, Trump is a senile old man. He isn't doing anything it's a bunch of heritage foundation goons running the show.
and second they're not chickening out they are testing the limits of what they can get away with.
And all the while they're doing that they are completely fucking incompetent because they're a bunch of psychopathic nepo babies.
In 4 years about half the people reading this will have lost their houses like 2008 on steroids. Only this time they're on to cheap apartments for you guys to move into so you're going to be living down by the river. And I guarantee you anyone reading this has already convinced themselves they aren't going to be in that half. And I'll be voting for Trump in 2028.
American in 2025 (Score:2, Troll)
What a shit show. Essential services have to beg to continue operating. Notice how a bunch of people died in a Texas flood and they shut up about getting rid of FEMA?
Re: (Score:2)
Of course they can. Cutting TraCSS may be less about the money and more about moving its core function under control of the Pentagon.
Re: (Score:2)
It won't even cost $55M.
Government budgets are bloated.
If it is moved to the private sector, they can fire the fat Americans and replace them with skinny Indians at a tenth of the price.
Re:Come On (Score:5, Insightful)
> It won't even cost $55M.
> Government budgets are bloated.
> If it is moved to the private sector, they can fire the fat Americans and replace them with skinny Indians at a tenth of the price.
Do not know much about U.S. budgets do you. Programs like this are not what is bloating the budget. The main drivers are SS, Medicare, Medicaid, and DoD.
Of those, DoD ($842 Billion in 2024) is getting an increase due to la Presidenta figuring now is the right time for the Golden Ass Defense Shield. But it is silly without Canada being dealt in. Too bad he's pissed off Canada so violently that they won't buy American goods thus imposing a peoples tariff. la Presidenta has no depth perception. This gormless gargoyle still believes Putin wants peace deal.
SS ($1.5 Trillion in 2024) has a pop. problem. American have stopped having babies.....something about too expensive The Covid damage to the supply chains caused the last major bout with inflation. Now it will get a new jolt from the tariffs that are within weeks of really increasing retail prices; it takes time for them to work through stockpiled goods. And we'd have been fine if we allowed in more immigrants but la Presidenta doesn't like brown people and white people (although weirdly not the Africaaners) know better than migrate to America. And Congress refuses to raise the caps on SS taxable income. Right now, income over roughly $180K is not SS taxed. Neither are capital gains SS taxed. Gotta protect them rich folks who fund the pols.
Medicare ($1.52 Trillion in 2024) and Medicaid ($890 Billion in 2024) have unique problems mostly due to the rising cost of healthcare. Our dear healthcare "companies" fight to preserve their hold over this part of the economy and squeeze Americans out of their life savings should the unfortunate happen. Meanwhile those lovely migrants, who contribute quite a bit in taxes even without being citizens are being exited from the country because la Presidenta cannot put two and two together.....intellectual depth of dime.
Discretionary Spending....which is everything else ($950 Billion in $2024) "In Fiscal Year 2024, the US federal government spent $6.75 trillion. This spending resulted in a deficit of $1.83 trillion, as revenues totaled $4.92 trillion"
There you have it, Want to talk about bloated budgets. You need figure out how to reduce DoD, reduce healthcare (cutting the expenditure does not reduce it, it just makes people pay more...and those least able to afford it), and you need to reform SS by increase it tax take and means-testing (I didn't touch on the latter but it too needs to be done). Discretionary funds science, rules and regs so those nice companies don't poison you, the judicial systems, police, etc, etc. etc. and there are a lot of etcs.
The bullshit about the "budget" is bloated has the same problem with depth perception as la Presidenta. And in the new Big Stupid Bill, several drug companies preserved their ability to not have Medicare force lower prices on them. Of course la Presidenta went along with that....although it isn't clear he understands squat about anything. When asked who in his administration approved canceling Ukraine arms shipments, he is comment was (paraphrasing), where did you hear that, I would have known about it. That was three days after FOX News Dolt in Charge of DoD (his official title) canceled shipments.
Re: Come On (Score:2)
> Government budgets are bloated Yes I'm sure Musk will have that $2T of waste cut any time now!!