The TraCSS logo. Credit: NOAA
WASHINGTON — A House appropriations bill would reverse plans by the administration to stop development of a civil space traffic management system.
The commerce, justice and science (CJS) spending bill approved by the House Appropriations Committee on May 13 included $50 million for the Office of Space Commerce within the Commerce Department. The department had requested just $11 million for the office in its budget proposal in April.
The bill’s report included language supporting continued work on the Traffic Coordination System for Space, or TraCSS. That is a civil space traffic coordination system under development by the office as authorized by the first Trump administration’s Space Policy Directive 3, or SPD-3, in 2018.
TraCSS “is on track to deliver critical flight safety services to be used by all stakeholders,” the report stated, emphasizing the role of a “systems integrator” to develop and operate it. “The Committee expects NOAA to continue development of TraCSS through use of a systems integrator.”
