Case Studies Show the Limits
Case studies highlighted in the IJETRM article show insurers underwriting SpaceX launches, OneWeb’s mega-constellation, and Blue Origin’s suborbital flights. These policies are finely tuned to very specific risks: a rocket explosion, a satellite collision, or an injured space tourist. But none of them speak to the broader catastrophe model that would apply if an interstellar object were to disrupt Earth-orbiting systems.
As we reported previously, the silence on 3I/ATLAS is not harmless. It is a warning sign. While insurers experiment with granular coverage for space tourism, they avoid the more frightening modeling question: what happens if the next asteroid doesn’t miss?
What’s Next
Astronomers will regain sight of 3I/ATLAS soon, and Apophis’s 2029 flyby is not far on the horizon. For insurers, the procedural roadmap is clear. They must disclose their space-risk modeling, update policy language to address space events directly, and prepare contingency plans for claim processing. Regulators in Washington, Brussels, and beyond may be forced to mandate disclosures, just as climate risk reporting has become compulsory in securities filings. Without that, the next major celestial scare could also trigger litigation against insurers accused of misleading shareholders or abandoning policyholders.
