Denmark’s Minister of Education and Research Christina Egelund has withdrawn a proposed amendment to the country’s Activities in Outer Space law that would have imposed a three-year ban on rocket launches.
The amendment was submitted by Minster Egelund on 29 March 2023 and sought to temporarily restrict the launch of rockets from Danish territory to give the country time to adopt necessary regulations.
According to the amendment, Denmark’s geographic location, population density, and traffic density both at sea and in the air above the country were assessed to be significant impediments to safely performing rocket launches from its shores. However, the proposed ban did not end at the Danish coastline. It also sought to extend the temporary ban to launches outside the area of authority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including launches carried out on Danish vessels or equipment or by Danish operators. It was, as a result, a broad all-encompassing ban.
Currently, as the text of the amendment admits, practically all of Denmark’s rocket launch activities are conducted by amateur rocket associations. The amendment indirectly cites one such association, referencing an ambition to “bring an astronaut into outer space and back again.” This is, of course, alluding to the work being done by Copenhagen Suborbitals, a non-profit run by a group of enthusiasts that is developing a suborbital rocket that it hopes will ferry an amateur astronaut to space and back. It’s unsurprising that legislation drafted in 2016 is not sufficient to regulate these activities, but the text of the amendment appears to highlight broader issues with the country’s legislation governing rocket launch activities.
“An investigation between relevant ministries established in early 2017 found that the regulation of civil rocket activities was insufficient, that the organization of the authorities was scattered and incoherent, and that rocket activities in Denmark were not conducted in a secure manner.”
If the amendment had been passed into law, violations of the proposed three-year ban on rocket launches would have resulted in fines or four months in prison. Additionally, violations with particularly aggravating circumstances would have resulted in up to two years in prison.
The proposed amendment was withdrawn by Minister Egelund earlier this week. In a comment given to European Spaceflight, the minister explained that input from stakeholders had prompted her to reconsider her position.
“On Wednesday the 12th I informed the Speaker of the Danish Parliament that I withdrew the proposed bill L 77 – proposal for a law amending the Act on activities in outer space on significant rocket launches,” said Minster Egelund. “There is a need for regulation in this area. However, the views of the stakeholders have given me reason to reconsider the matter, and I will now use the necessary time to clarify possible future solutions.”
In a statement published shortly after the withdrawal of the amendment, Copenhagen Suborbitals thanked the minister and stated that the organisation looked forward to collaborating with policymakers on new legislation.
“We would like to long thank the minister for her responsiveness to our arguments and for considering the long-term interests of Danish spaceflight and space research,” said Copenhagen Suborbitals chairman Jørgen Sky. “This shows that there is room for dialogue and collaboration between policymakers and professionals in the field of space.”
