
So You Want to Launch a Rocket? The FAA is Here for You (2017) - dublin
http://groundbasedspacematters.com/index.php/2017/06/30/so-you-want-to-launch-a-rocket-the-faa-is-here-for-you/
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cstross
OP is a useful overview of the relevant regulations.

And in case anyone disputes the need for regulations, it's worth remembering
that any rocket that can put a payload into orbit — _any_ size of payload — is
_de facto_ an ICBM: not a very good ICBM by modern military standards, but an
adequate one. Expecting your government to pay no attention to your microsat
launcher is like expecting them to ignore the unlicensed tank factory in their
back yard.

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justtopost
I would wager you coulld weaponize a micro/cubesat enough to cause much more
than icbm levels of chaos by attacking other sats (GPS, Spy, Comms, etc.)
Thinking in terms of 1940's missles is a bit outdated.

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Piskvorrr
Miss-iles, that's a very appropriate typo. "But I'm not planning to do any
damage intentionally, and I'm expecting nothing to go wrong!" Well - the best-
laid plans of mice and men often go awry, and things going wrong at orbital
velocities tend to have unintended...impacts, if you will.

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GW150914
Highly editorialized title. The original (sane) title is _So You Want to
Launch a Rocket? The FAA is Here for You_.

This is especially eggregious given the overall positive tone of the post,
see:

 _The point is, you do need federal permission to launch a rocket from the
United States. And, if you are a U.S. citizen or other entity you need FAA
approval to launch anywhere in the world. The Commercial Space Launch Act says
so. You also need permission to reenter a reentry vehicle or operate a
spaceport. The one thing my protégé had wrong, however, is that you don’t need
a license—or even an experimental permit—to launch a toy rocket or even a
somewhat large amateur rocket._

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Animats
The expensive problem is having enough liability insurance for the worst case.
Space-X originally launched from a Pacific island until they had their rocket
working reasonably well.

Hobbyist rockets have a mass limit and a thrust limit.[1] Low-powered rockets,
below those limits, have few regulations. As mass and thrust increase, the
restrictions increase. Above 1 lb, you're an airspace user and have to talk to
the FAA. Not much of a problem in rural areas far from an airport. Heavily
restricted in controlled airspace. Reasonable enough.

Remember, if it can't reach escape velocity, it's going to come down
somewhere. At high velocity.

Mojave Air and Space Port is supportive of people testing strange air
vehicles. [2] Virgin Galactic, Scaled Composites, and the National Test Pilot
School are all out there.

[1] [https://www.nar.org/find-a-local-club/section-
guidebook/laws...](https://www.nar.org/find-a-local-club/section-
guidebook/laws-regulations/) [2]
[https://www.mojaveairport.com/](https://www.mojaveairport.com/)

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bogus_323423
There are always ways around the law for those creative enough. All it takes
is one unregulated launch to put up a 'cold' ICBM in orbit, which would be
effective insurance against any and all regulatory action. It's a vicious sort
of realpolitik, but it would likely work.

Just wait until someone surreptitiously puts up a whole network of sleeper
nukes into orbit. One weird trick to become world emperor, eh?

A good sci-fi plot, since it's likely do-able by private firms in the near to
medium term.

That said there are more mundane ways to escape. However those come with their
own risks (ask Gerald Bull how his attempt turned out).

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TeMPOraL
> _All it takes is one unregulated launch to put up a 'cold' ICBM in orbit,
> which would be effective insurance against any and all regulatory action.
> It's a vicious sort of realpolitik, but it would likely work._

An ICBM with what payload exactly? With a _nuke_? Getting your hands on a nuke
is hard. But, if by some miracle, you managed to launch one into space, then
no later than you'd start threatening regulators with it, your nuke would eat
a satellite interceptor.

> _Just wait until someone surreptitiously puts up a whole network of sleeper
> nukes into orbit. One weird trick to become world emperor, eh?_

Near-impossible to pull off at this point, as it would require absurd world-
wide levels of incompetency in tracking nuclear material _and_ space launches.
That, or new technology for doing damage (this was a side plot in an excellent
hard sci-fi book, A Sword Into Darkness, where a fictional propulsion system
created by a private company could also work as a sort-of fusion bomb, without
radioactive material).

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kchoudhu
You don't need nukes for space weapons, kinetic bombardment will do just fine.

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TeMPOraL
Still, there's no stealth in space, and neither the US nor Russia nor China
will let you _just_ assemble a kinetic bombardment vehicle in orbit.

Things _might_ get easier if humanity expands meaningfully beyond GEO.

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kchoudhu
No assembly involved. You launch a 20 ton tungsten rod with minimal
atmospheric steering ability to LEO. Deorbiting the rod to a target will
result in a 0.1 kiloton impact, which due to the directional nature of the
strike will be far more locally destructive than a nuclear weapon.

~~~
TeMPOraL
That's the reason you won't be able to launch it in the first place. A rocket
with 20 ton to orbit capacity will attract scrutiny of other space-capable
powers, and they will be within their right (moral as well as legal) to shoot
it down if you insist on not cooperating and disclosing its payload.

Also, even if you put a single "rod of God" in orbit, the moment you've
threatened anybody with it, an attempt to shoot it down will be made. If you
manage to drop it on someone, it'll only add extra mass murder charges onto
your life sentence or execution.

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slededit
The note at the end is somewhat important. If you are deciding where to
incorporate your startup and you are _not_ a US citizen, ITAR is a good reason
to avoid the USA. YC generally suggests US incorporation but it has real
downsides, and exporting of technology is restricted.

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m1el
What happens if I go to Russians?

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vkou
Then the Red Airforce will ask a lot of questions about what you're doing. The
last thing they want is the US confusing your rocket launch with a preemptive
nuclear strike.

Then, the rest of the government will have their pick at you. By international
law, each country is responsible for anything that gets launched into orbit by
their citizens/companies/from their territory.

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craftyguy
It may be 'international law', but I'm pretty sure it has never been enforced,
and probably never will be unless there's an intentional aggressive action
against some other country outside a time of war.

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vkou
It's the kind of international law that results in lawsuits, which nation
states don't always ignore.

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craftyguy
But they generally do, since they are not enforceable... Worst case, you get
some sanction/parting shot.

That said, I would love some examples of a country being convicted of
violating international law (or losing a lawsuit in an 'international court'),
and having to pay for it. The only ones I can think of are WTO trade disputes,
but recent (~2 months?) history shows that this body is now incapable.

~~~
adventured
Oil companies have won international law cases against Venezuela as one normal
example. You have to be able to enforce that through seizing assets though (if
necessary), backed by force. That's true in any such court case, whether we're
talking domestic or international.

Conoco won a judgment against Venezuela before the International Chamber of
Commerce and they have an open case before the World Bank's International
Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes. They can then plausibly leverage
the US Government as the means to seize assets of Venezuela in the US (Citgo
being an example).

[https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/25/business/energy-
environme...](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/25/business/energy-
environment/conocophillips-venezuela-ruling.html)

An unorthodox example: Iraq's invasion of Kuwait was basically universally
found to violate international law. The UN authorized coalition of 30 nations
made them pay for it (crushed their military and economy).

You have to have a really big stick to back-stop anything like 'international
law.' The UN and most agencies don't have that kind of power unto themselves,
only nations do, because in most cases it ultimately comes down to military
enforcement (for the exact same reason taxation enforcement ultimately is
supported by a gun). The sole major exception to that, is the US using the USD
global reserve currency as a platform for sanctions (through various levers),
and or working with the EU and other large economies to sanction in concert
(Iran, North Korea, et al.).

The US is one of the few entities capable of unilaterally dictating
international law, because of its numerous large sticks. It occasionally
suffers the non-surprising blowback from doing so (as with the recent
withdrawal from the Iran deal).

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394549
The site's title for the post is "So You Want to Launch a Rocket? The FAA is
Here for You."

HN title has been editorialized to "Launching a rocket? The US Govt _will_
have its hooks into you."

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sctb
Thanks, we've reverted it to the original.

