Work

Deterministic Execution Authority for Autonomous Space Systems: Governance Architecture for Orbital Platforms Under the Outer Space Treaty

Year: 2026

Type: preprint

Abstract: Starlink performed roughly 300,000 autonomous collision avoidance maneuvers in 2025, every one decided by onboard AI and none reviewed by a human, while the Outer Space Treaty assigns liability to the launching state with no way to prove the system stayed inside its authorized envelope. This paper specifies an evidence-bound authority kernel for orbital platforms, governing eight operation classes from collision avoidance to deorbit, with receipt chains that scale to 42,000-satellite constellations. Liability defense becomes cryptographic proof instead of organizational assertion.

Source: OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints)

DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/g852s

Author: James Benton

Language: English

Topic: Space exploration and regulation

Subfield: Political Science and International Relations

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W7166322277

Cites: 4

Cited by:

Related to: 10