By Fay Simmons

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

The Deputy Prime Minister yesterday said space debris from three other operators besides SpaceX was found in The Bahamas during clean-up following the March 6 explosion of the latter’s Starship 8 rocket.

Chester Cooper, also minister of tourism, investments and aviation, chose not to reveal the identity of the other three companies until “further communications directly through diplomatic channels”. He said the Government is still investigating the additional space debris discovered during the recovery efforts.

“Additional debris has been recovered in our territory, linked not only to Space, but to three additional companies operating within the broader aerospace and commercial launch industry. We are continually investigating these findings,” Mr Cooper said. 

“The Office of the Attorney General and DEPP (Department of Environmental Planning and Protection) are reviewing to ensure compliance with international outer space treaties and convention. These discoveries are continuously under review. We are working to determine definitively their origin and responsibility in each case.”

Mr Cooper added that work must be done to ensure increasing space activity does not adversely affect safety on the ground in The Bahamas. “As commercial space technology and activities evolve, the industry holds great promise, but will it will always require us to provide careful scrutiny, protect our national interest,” he said.

“Maximising the opportunities, minimising the risk will require a comprehensive strategy, including diplomatic agreements, regulatory enforcement, scientific partnerships and consistent legal reviews.”

Dr Rhianna Neely-Murphy, DEPP’s director, said the debris collected on Ragged Island and Crooked Island was mainly from the heat shields of the Starship 8 rocket but debris found on Cat Island, Abaco and Eleuthera were not linked to the SpaceX asset.

“To my understanding, the modelling and the information received by DEPP, any of the heavy parts would not have been dropped in Bahamian waters, and what we collected so far were the heat shields that were washed ashore, predominantly with seaweed as the tides came in. We have not received any recent reports of any more of the debris associated with that, or what we think is associated with that, on those two islands,” said Dr Neely-Murphy.

“The Government has received reports of space debris on Cat Island, Abaco and Eleuthera and, at this time, there’s no evidence that connects Space X to any of those debris that have been found on those other islands.”

Dr Neely-Murphy confirmed that none of the space debris recovered was hazardous, and some parts appear to have been in Bahamian waters since 2012.

“None of the debris reported thus far has been observed or confirmed to be hazardous, and some of it appears to have been in the ocean for quite some time. One estimation is that the debris washed up on Cat Island has been in the ocean since 2012,” said Dr Neely-Murphy.

“We have made the adjustments, and we have reported these things to the United Nations, and all approvals so far have been given for the export of the space debris for all islands except Eleuthera, which is still a work in progress.”