China has joined other members of a United Nations technical subcommittee in approving draft guidelines for mitigating manmade space debris, after receiving "considerable criticism" for adding to the space-debris problem with its Jan. 11 anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon test.
Scientists meeting in Vienna under U.N. auspices have been working on guidelines for the design and operation of satellites, so that they will not create so much junk in outer space.