The Regulatory Problem Of Mega- Constellations: Can National Licensing Control The Cumulative Effects Of Thousands Of Satellites?
Yuvraj Singh Salh & Samidha Sharma, B.A.LL.B. (Hons.), National Law Institute University, Bhopal.
ABSTRACT
Low Earth orbit is filling up faster than the rules that govern it. Satellite constellations are licensed by national regulators one application at a time, yet the risks of collision, debris, radio interference and sky brightness come from all systems added together. This paper asks whether national licensing, as it now works, can control those cumulative effects. Using 2026 regulatory orders, public notices, policy briefs and journal analysis, it finds that licensing tests each applicant but never tests the orbit. The paper proposes four changes that licensors can adopt under their existing powers: licences expressed as shares of a shell-level risk budget, tranches released only after audit, a cumulative impact statement for very large filings, and a shell ledger tied to regulatory equivalence.
Keywords: Satellite Constellations; Space Jurisprudence; National Licensing; US federal Communications Commission.
