MITRE said the United Nations guidelines for the long-term sustainability of outer space activities do not address cybersecurity challenges and other threats to space systems.
Good cyber hygiene is essential to the sustainability of the space environment amid the efforts of competitors and adversaries to build capabilities that could impact space system operations, MITRE said in a white paper published on Friday.
The document is MITRE’s response to a Department of State notice seeking public sector input on the implementation of the 21 long-term sustainability guidelines for outer space activities.
According to the organization, implementing robust cyber hygiene practices should be prioritized on the same level as debris mitigation efforts.
The paper also highlighted the company’s efforts that directly align with the long-term sustainability guidelines, including the development of the Sensor Network Autonomous Resilient Extensible system, which uses permissioned blockchain to record orbital element sets from space sensors, and the decentralized Space Information Sharing Ecosystems; its collaboration with the Space Information Sharing and Analysis Center; and the implementation of Mitre’s International Space Strategy aimed at balancing efforts across defense, preservation and sustainability and organizational and policy components of space use.