Wanted: Traffic Cops for Space.

On Monday in Vienna, a panel of scientists from space agencies around the world will submit to the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs recommendations for designing and flying space vehicles to reduce the amount of debris they produce and cut their chances of colliding with one another. ...

The shift is driven by growing awareness that, in space, litter and erratic movements can kill. Recent years have seen a marked increase in space debris, everything from used rocket boosters to paint chips, much of it from the increasing numbers of privately launched spacecraft, like communication satellites.

Because the material is moving at such high speeds, even a small chunk can cause potentially lethal damage. A collision with a small piece of space junk remains high on NASA's list of possible explanations for the puncture that apparently led to the disintegration of the space shuttle Columbia as it re-entered the atmosphere.