Comments Due Dec. 26 on FAA Launch Orbital Debris Proposal

Comments are due Dec. 26 on an FAA NPRM proposing that upper stages of commercial launch rockets be removed from orbit within 25 years after launch, said a notice in the Federal Register last week. The FAA proposal would cover anything larger than 5 mm. It's proposing a requirement that removal be within 30 days of the mission's completion if disposal is by controlled disposal or by a move to a disposal orbit or Earth-escape orbit; within five years if disposal is by retrieval; or within 25 years if using atmospheric uncontrolled disposal or natural decay.