MANILA, Philippines (Mar 2026) — Satellites are colliding. Rocket debris is raining down on shipping lanes and populated areas. And the problem is only getting worse as more countries and private companies launch objects into orbit. Last March 12 and 13, representatives from across Southeast Asia gathered in Manila to figure out what the region is going to do about it.
The Philippine Space Agency, alongside the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and Thailand’s Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, convened the ASEAN Space Situational Awareness and Space Traffic Management Seminar-Workshop, bringing together policymakers, technical experts, and commercial operators from ASEAN member states to push for a coordinated regional response to the growing hazards of an increasingly congested orbit.
The stakes are not abstract. ASEAN economies depend on satellites for disaster response, aviation, shipping, digital connectivity, and financial services. A satellite collision or an uncontrolled reentry does not just affect the country that owns the asset. It affects everyone who depends on what that satellite does.
“What protects satellites, investments, and ultimately the services that space provides to our economies and our societies, is when that data is shared in what we call space traffic coordination,” said UNOOSA Director Aarti Holla-Maini. “When operators communicate with each other, they can maneuver safely out of each other’s way.”
The two-day workshop covered Space Situational Awareness, which involves observing, tracking, and predicting the trajectories of objects in orbit; Space Traffic Management, which translates that data into operational coordination between satellite operators; space weather impacts on critical infrastructure; and policy frameworks to support regional cooperation.
PhilSA Deputy Director General Dr. Marc Caesar Talampas used the Philippines’ opening statement to call on ASEAN partners to think beyond the satellite itself. “The Philippines invites our ASEAN partners to consider broadening the scope of our regional SSA/STM framework to include the complete arc of a space object’s life, from launch through reentry, and to explore how our region can develop coordinated protocols and capabilities that protect both our space assets and our people on the ground.”
Alongside the workshop, PhilSA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UNOOSA covering collaboration on space law, disaster risk reduction, capacity-building, and public engagement. One of the early outputs: PhilSA’s children’s activity book on space law, “Si Tala at ang Kanyang Lakbay Kalawakan!”, will be translated into all six official UN languages.
The Philippines, as ASEAN Chair this year, is also pushing for an ASEAN Declaration on Space Cooperation. PhilSA Ad Interim Director General Dr. Gay Jane Perez described it as more than a formal statement. “This declaration reflects a shared regional vision to strengthen collaboration in space science, technology, and innovation, including cooperation in SSA and STM.”
ASEAN Secretary-General Dr. Kao Kim Hourn called the anticipated declaration the most consequential space commitment the region will make this year. “It will formalize our collective intent to pursue responsible, secure, and forward-looking space governance.”
