The Kármán Line

The idea of 14,000 satellites in low earth orbit sounds pretty scary but in context there’s over a million cars on the road in the UK alone and low earth orbit is a really big 3D space. So, should people be worried about space sustainability? Shouldn’t they just relax and remember there’s loads and loads of space out there?  

Or should they still be scared? What happens when satellites do cross paths? If they’re all part of the SpaceX Starlink constellation they’ll talk to each other instantaneously and get out of the way. But what if the contact is with a satellite from another country? Is it fair to say they’re on the equivalent of email or telephone? And what if they do collide? Will it be like the experiment in 2007 when the Chinese fired a missile at a defunct weather satellite? On the one hand, “great shot lads, you’ve hit something moving at 4km per second” but on the other, “you’ve probably caused a millennia worth of debris problems”.

If it’s within our capabilities to move bikes and cars and trains and planes around the world in an ordered fashion, shouldn’t it be well within human capabilities to extend the use of space?  Is there a role for the UK in being “the AA” of space and is the UK-New Zealand debris removal agreement a useful step down this road? 

Join Alice and Jonners as they talk to Phil Buckley, partner at the Public Service Consultants and a specialist in space sustainability, about the perils and pitfalls of satellite traffic jams and an opportunity that the UK “could be absolutely brilliant at”.

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Jonathan Daves, The Karman Line

Jonathan Daves | LinkedIn

Phil Buckley, Partner at the PSC

Phil Buckley | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

• Space sustainability
• The Kessler effect
• Space debris
• Starlink
• UK-New Zealand agreement
• Space traffic
• The Fengyun weather satellite
• Refuelling
• Servicing

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Why do people in the space sector think they have a comms problem and yet the public at large think space is sexy? Should we stop evangelising about the technology that gets stuff into space rather than the core marketing message? After all, KFC is about the chicken not the trucks that deliver it.

What are the leadership opportunities in the UK from launch in Scotland and what is the “environmental conscience” behind that endeavour? And how did we end up with kids in St Austell working on global lunar space missions on the back of a famous “failure”?

Join Alice, Jess Ratty from Halo Global and John Harrington UK editor of PR Week, as they confront the introspection of space and figure out better ways of confounding British understatement and amazing a world of would-be investors.

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Jess Ratty, Founder and Leader, Halo Global

Jess Ratty | LinkedIn

John Harrington, UK Editor, PR Week

John Harrington | LinkedIn

PR Week UK

Key topics covered:

• Communications
• Marketing
• Leadership opportunities
• Saxa Vord launch
• Environment
• Spaceport Cornwall
• Virgin Orbit’s “Start me Up” mission

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With a mind boggling 1.8 million satellites filed for launch before 2030 how are we going to manage the congested and contested realm of space? We know about warfare in space but how about lawfare in space? Who actually owns the moon? More pointedly, who owns the resources of the moon?  How useful are the UK’s regulatory frameworks and how do you dispose of a fridge in low earth orbit?

Join Alice, Jonners and international lawyer Joanne Wheeler, “the single powerhouse behind many of the space business successes”, as they mull on the legal challenges of an exponentially growing race for space.

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Jonathan Daves, The Karman Line

Jonathan Daves | LinkedIn

Joanne Wheeler, Managing Partner, Alden Legal

Joanne Wheeler | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

• International law
• Regulatory frameworks
• Moon mining
• Moonrise project
• Space congestion
• Dual use

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How can Britain exploit the “astonishing opportunity” to become a global energy supplier from space? Why is space an engineering problem not a £7 billion physics problem like nuclear fusion? What did Gordon Brown do that transformed the UK film industry and why is this relevant to space? What connects the Crusades, crates of gold, coffee shops, blockchain and space?

Join Alice, Jonners and Mark Garnier MP as they figure out if space investment is big, messy and complicated or actually straightforward. And they argue why the UK Government must get properly involved.

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Jonathan Daves, The Karman Line

Jonathan Daves | LinkedIn

Mark Garnier, MP for Wyre Forest

Mark Garnier | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

• Solar energy
• Nuclear fusion
• Space investment
• Space X
• UK financial sector
• Government role
• Public awareness
• Parliament

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So, we’re flying humans around the moon and bringing them back. But why are we doing it? To build a strategic outpost? To play power games? To do science? And if it's science, isn’t the useful value of resources on the moon a bit opaque? For example, why do we need to mine helium-3 when we can produce it on earth? More problematic, if you’re investing billions of dollars in putting sensitive instruments on the moon and you’ve got good access to light and frozen water, what happens when somebody else comes along and says: “I’d quite like a bit of that as well please”? How quickly does astropolitics become geopolitics?

Join Alice and her guests, Libby Jackson, Head of Space at the Science Museum and Ian Annett, Chair UKSpace Launch Committee, as they debate the value of Artemis II and celebrate the idea of being driven to push boundaries. “We’re human, what can we do?”

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Ian Annett, Chair UKSpace Launch Committee

Ian Annett | LinkedIn

Libby Jackson OBE FRAeS, Head of Space, the Science Museum

Libby Jackson OBE FRAeS | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

• Artemis II
• Apollo missions
• Mining on the moon
• Astropolitics
• Collaboration in space
• Cost of commercial launches
• Security in space
• The lunar economy
• Mars missions
• Understanding evolution
• Kerosene alternatives

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How do we solve population pressure and climate crisis in space? How has GPS allowed us to provide 12% more food globally? How did the UK become a global leader in small satellite manufacture after the British Government said, “there’s no future for the UK satellite industry”? How did Elon Musk turn reusable rockets from science fiction to science fact in less than 20 years? What else are “Elon and Jeff” going to allow us to do? And why is SpaceX still “the elephant in the room”?

Join Alice as she talks to Will Whitehorn, chair of giant space tech investor Seraphim and former president of Virgin Galactic, as they discuss the implications of “The Elon Musk show” and its legacy, “the beginnings of a competitive space industry of scale”.

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Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Will Whitehorn OBE, Seraphim Space Investment Trust

Will Whitehorn OBE | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

• UK satellite manufacture
• UK universities
• SpaceX valuation
• Reuseable rockets
• Agricultural management
• Population pressure
• Climate crisis
• Solar power
• Data centres in space
• Industrialising in space

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What did the Space-Comm Expo conference and exhibition tell us about connecting space and wider business?  How does this manifest as tech connectivity in telecoms and why do farmers care about that? What did we learn about the benefits of extreme cold in manufacturing laboratories and why do pharmas care about that? How vulnerable are global logistics to the spoofing of navigation signals? And why is the UK government centralising space strategy in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology?

Join Alice and Jonners as they reflect on the UK space sector’s largest trade event and the “energy, diversity and …sheer scope of what this industry has to offer”.

Contributors:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Jonathan Daves, The Karman Line

Jonathan Daves | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

Space-Comm Expo, London, March 2026

Conference overview

Sector integration

Insurance

Customer utility

Government role

Future outlook

Technological advancements

·  Telecoms

·  Manufacturing

Defence and security

·  Satellite capabilities

·  Current threats

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The space race is on but scientists are worried for our ozone. As this new frontier looks to expand with new investors, how should the environment sector respond? Plus, an unprecedented recommendation from the Environment Agency concerning PFAS. Listen to the ECO Chamber to find out more. 

Once only the domain of US and Russian governments, the cost of launching things into space has come down, enabling more and more rockets and satellites to enter space.  

However, NASA has warned that the growth of space travel could cause damage to the ozone layer. Dr Alice Bunn, the UK Space Agency’s former international director, joins the team this week to discuss the fine line to be treaded. 

PLUS: The Marine Management Organisation has hired a new chief after a two-year search; South West Water has pleaded guilty to offences related to the supply of water “unfit for human consumption”; and the UK has legislated a lead shot ban – the first chemicals restriction since Brexit. 

The ECO Chamber is brought to you by journalists at ENDS Report.

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As of 2026, the UK space industry is a significant and strategic driver of the national economy, contributing over £19 billion in revenue and supporting tens of thousands of high-skilled jobs. Satellite-based services and data underpin roughly 18% of UK GDP, equivalent to approximately £454 billion of the wider economy. And the sector is growing exponentially.

But this is just the tip of the iceberg. For the space industry to fully realise its potential it needs more of the right people to understand what’s happening and get involved. People like policy makers, investors, regulators, planners, communicators, lawyers and consultants.

Dr Alice Bunn, the president of UK Space, and her panel of guests, Sam Adlen co-CEO of Space Solar, Nick Shave managing director of Astroscale and Anushka Sharma founder of Naaut, discuss the surprising, awe inspiring business of space and make the compelling case for why more companies and investors should get involved. 

Contributors:

Host:

Alice Bunn, President of UKspace 

Dr Alice Bunn OBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng | LinkedIn

UKspace: Overview | LinkedIn

Guests:

Nick Shave, Managing Director of Astroscale

Nick Shave FRAeS | LinkedIn

Astroscale: Overview | LinkedIn

Sam Adlen, CEO of Space Solar

Sam Adlen | LinkedIn

Space Solar: Overview | LinkedIn

Anushka Sharma, founder of Naaut

Anushka Sharma | LinkedIn

Naaut: About | LinkedIn

Key topics covered:

Impact of Space on Everyday Life

• Practical Applications
• Environmental Monitoring
• Global Security

Sustainability and Innovation in Orbit

• Space Debris
• Manufacturing in Microgravity
• Space-Based Solar Power

Economic and Regulatory Landscape

• Cost Reduction
• Investment and Finance
• Regulation and Policy

The Future of Space Exploration

• New Platforms
• Academic Contribution

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Introducing the Kármán Line, the only channel dedicated to the UK space industry.

Whether you're an investor, innovator, lawyer or scientist, if you want to keep up to date with this fast moving, full-of-potential sector listen to our interviews with the leading figures in the sector.

Dr Alice Bunn, former-international director of UK Space Agency and now president of UKspace, joins the show.

More to come. Subscribe here.

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