Developing Scripts and Case Studies for cisLunarFreighter/STC

This page is a temporary memory dump of some possible STC rules and regulations...

<START OF DOCUMENT> DRAFT - Starship Traffic Control - Regulations for avoidance of Collisions in Space and for the protection of space-faring vessels.

1. Scope of the regulations.

(a) These rules shall apply to all civilian vessels and in general to

  vehicles operating in civilian airspace.

(b) Nothing in these rules shall prevent additional measures, authorized by the control authority, required for the regulation of traffic at but not limited to, star ports, static platforms, military facilities or in controlled airspace.
(c) These rules do not usurp standing regulations in respect of military facilities.
(d) Traffic separation schemes may be authorised for the purposes of these rules
(e) The STC shall have the power to make exemptions under the rules, by issuing exemption notices, in limited circumstances.

2. Responsibility.

(a) No clause in these rules shall exempt any traffic, vessel, crew member or controller from neglect of any precaution deemed necessary or reasonable with respect to these rules, good practice or circumstances relevant to any incident or matter arising.

(b) In in interpreting these rules, consideration shall be given to the circumstances and intentions of this craft and crew involved in any incident.

3. Definitions.

'control authority' - Space Traffic Control 'central register' - Sol Central registry

(a) The word 'vessel' shall be defined to mean - Any space-faring craft capable of transportation of cargo or passengers, excluding artificial satellites or statically anchored platforms

(b) The following words and phrase shall be assigned meanings as follows: 'powered vessel' -

Any vessel operating under own propulsion for the purposes of course and atttitude  adjustment or compliance with control authority instruction

'unpowered vessel'

Any vessel incapable of adjusting course or attitude, under own propulsion or by
onboard action. (NOTES: This includes vessels designed without such propulsion)

'piloted vessel'

Any vessel which can change course course of attitude by independent sentient 
onboard action of crew or systems.

'drone'

Automatic machinery with a built in telemetry capacity for remote override or reset.

'invader vessel' - Vessel unknown or unidentied to the control authority

'rouge vessel' - Vessel acting in defiance of repeated control authority instructions

'in-flight' vessal underway, separated from any docking at superior ship or facility

'in-flight volume' A sphercial volume encompasing a vessel in flight, including any deployed anntanea or panels.

'wake' A momentum influence zone resulting from micro impacts against propulsion exhaust and outgassing of mass from ships, comets, and other bodies.

'extra vehicular activity' extra-vehicular activity -(of itself is ) Any and all activity external to a vessels outer hull undertaken by crew or automatic systems.

(NOTE: EVA is essentially docked or rendezvous'ed ships if count spacesuit as ship or external drones (mobile automatic machinery that can fall off) as a ship or equivalent)

'derelict' - An abandoned vessel seperate from other ships or facility,

          no longer under the control of it's previous owner or 
          serving its previous owner's purpose.

(NOTE: Derelict - An abandoned piece of property or debris posing potential hazard to shipping.) (NOTE: Derelicts are always eligible for salvage due to risk to other shipping and property. Derelicts are like flotsam big enough to be dangerous.) (NOTE: If no means of identfication can be found or owners have abandoned then ships are derelict, small stuff is debris and not subject to salvage law. )

'debries' - debries - Small items not comprising an entire vessel, natural material (susch as meteors), ice, gas clouds posing a hazzard to shipping

'airspace' 'Restricted airspace' - A volume defined by authorities as a no-enter without prior approval by the control authority. 'controlled airspace - A volume defined by the control authority within which that authority has the power to the regulate traffic and vessels

'military' - shalll refer to the Star Corps organisation. NOTES: Space Traffic Controllers use the term military to refer to Star Corp assets including but not limited to vessels, personell, and command structures.

'milltary airspace' 'milltary airspace' - airspace under the control of Star Corps. This is restricted airspace for civilian vessels

'prohbitied airspace' - Restricted Airspace which no civilin vessel may enter.

'police' -"The term police shall refer to a law enforcment body established by the control authoirty to keep order and to excerise functiosn nessarcy to mantian the rule of law'

'orbital' - The anticipated path an unpowered spacecraft or object will take in the future. (NOTE: orbital - Is path an unpowered object will follow in future. No orbital shall impact Earth in the event of power failure.)

'planned orbital' 'planned oribtal' - shall mean an orbital notified to the control authority which a vessel plans to follow.

'filed orbital' - A formally filed plan detialing an orbital or couse a vessel intends to use or follow.

'fixed planetry object'

'vessel attitude' - attitude is one axis of orientation measured in angle between line between nose and tail and the line of motion of vessel 'yaw' is the other measured around vertial axis 90 degrees from line of motion

'abnormal' abnormal - Out of ordinary operational parameters or expected procedure. (NOTE: Not Standard Operating Conditions (SOP) )

'visibility' 'restricted visibility'

'manoeuvrability' 'restricted manoeuvrability' 'enhanced manoeuvrability' 'compromised innumerability'

4. General visibility (a) The following shall apply in respect of any visibility (b) All vessels shall maintain proper measures to allow themselves to

   to identify collision risks.

(c) All vessels shall maintain proper identification (d) Vessels shall maintain an appropriate course,position and attitude based on the conditions apparent and intentions of other vessels (e) Vessels shall if required be able to stop within appropriate distances. (f) Vessels and the control authority shall maintain means to determine if collision risk exists. These shall include early warning systems

(g) A collision risk shall deem to exist if:

(h) Vessels and the control authority shall be expected to take positive, obvious and timely actions to avoid collision.

(i) Vessels with enhanced ability to manoeuvre shall not impede other vessels restricted in their ability to manaourve or to comply with instructions issued by the control authority

'j'. Vessels crossing 'flight lanes' shall maintain attitude such that their course is perpendicular to the flight lane concerned at the point of crossing.

5. Vessels in range of one another (a) Vessels passing each other shall pass port to port (as far as their attitude allows) (b) Vessels overtaking shall maintain safe distance from others with respect to both their flight volume and wake exclusion zone. (c) When two vessels approach head on, the vehicle with enhanced manoeuvrability shall yield (d) The yielding vessel, shall inform the control of authority of their intentions and take early and substantial action.

(e) Nothing in these rules shall prevent either vessel from taking additional action to avoid collision

(f) The general priority table for manoeuvrability is : ...

6 Restricted visibility

(a) Restricted visibility shall exist in any circumstance where :

(b) Under conditions of restricted visibility :

 i)  Vessels shall reduce speed or alter attitude respectively
 ii) Shall inform the control authority as to the restricted visibility
     of their vessel, or visibility of other vessels to same.

...

7 - Lights and 'markers' (a) Vessels shall carry appropriate lights or markers. (b) The 'visibility' of these markers shall be:

(c) In flight vehicles shall carry markers as follows : (d) A vehicle consisting of multiple part of towing shall have markers as follows:

 i)  The lead vehicle
ii)  The tail vehicle shall display markers as follows:
iii) Intermediate portions.

(e) Vehicles with restricted manoeuvrability. (f) Vehicles engaged in trawling operations. (g) Vehicles engaged in recovery operations (h) vehicles not in-flight

i. 'derelicts'

8 Radio Signals and tones

9 Extra Vehicular Activity

NOTE: Vessals around which EVA is active out shall broadcast fact on emergency channel every 15 minutes. No vessal shall approach closer than fifteen minutes to such vessel without prior permission from the EVA status ship's captain.

A. Distress Signals

(a) A signal of a vessel in 'distress' shall be

i) SOS sent in morse by whatever means
ii) A warbling tone (between) on a known distress frequency
iii) Six long tones, flares or tones followed by a pause and
iv) The spoken sequence 'Mayday, Mayday, Mayday'
v) Slow and repeated raising and lowering of out-stretched arms when in
   sighted visual rnage of another craft.

(b) Use of Space Distress signals for other than purposes of genuine distress is strictly prohibited.