FAA to Require Reentry Vehicles Licensed Before Launch
DannyB writes:
FAA to require reentry vehicles licensed before launch
[....] In a notice published in the Federal Register April 17, the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation announced it will no longer approve the launch of spacecraft designed to reenter unless they already have a reentry license. The office said that it will, going forward, check that a spacecraft designed to return to Earth has a reentry license as part of the standard payload review process.
[....] "Unlike typical payloads designed to operate in outer space, a reentry vehicle has primary components that are designed to withstand reentry substantially intact and therefore have a near-guaranteed ground impact as a result of either a controlled reentry or a random reentry,"
[....] "Therefore, it is crucial to evaluate the safety of the reentry prior to launch," the agency concluded in the notice. "This way, the FAA is able to work with the reentry operator to meet the required risk and other criteria."
The notice did not state what prompted the change. However, it comes after Varda Space Industries launched its first spacecraft in June 2023 but did not get a reentry license for it until February after months of effort and an earlier, rejected reentry license application. Varda's capsule safely landed at the Utah Test and Training Range a week after receiving the license.
[....] Commercial spacecraft reentries remain rare. The FAA currently lists only two active reentry licenses, one for Varda and the other for SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft. However, the FAA expects demand for those licenses to increase as more companies seek to return cargo or crew from space.
Catch a falling space junk, put it in your pocket, savor radioactive decay.
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