Briefing Notes
- A peer-reviewed study underscores insurers’ duty to cover catastrophic risks tied to commercial space activity.
- Despite record growth in satellites and human spaceflight, insurers remain opaque on asteroid and comet risk.
- Without regulatory mandates, policyholders may face blanket denials if a space-related disaster strikes.
USA HERALD – In our previous coverage at USA Herald, we called out the insurance industry for treating the disappearance of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS from Earth’s skies as a convenient excuse to stand down. With the object hidden behind the sun, reporting on space risks slowed, and insurers showed no urgency in modeling for the possibility of catastrophic impacts or orbital disruptions. That silence, we argued, looked like a dangerous abdication of duty to policyholders and shareholders alike.
Now, a detailed study published by the International Journal of Engineering Technology Research & Management confirms our concerns. The paper, Space Insurance for Commercial Space Activities: Navigating the New Frontier by Surya Narayan Saha, lays out how insurers should already be building advanced models for launch, in-orbit, and third-party liabilities tied to space activity. Instead, the industry continues to compartmentalize risk into narrow coverage products—launch, satellite, or third-party damage—without confronting the far broader implications of an asteroid event or interstellar object like 3I/ATLAS.
