IASL Students participate in the 2023 Planetary Defense Conference

On the 6th of April 2023, two of our master's students, Judith Jahnke and Sanchi Dhamija, gave presentations at the 2023 Planetary Defense Conference, which is held biennially and brings together experts from the planetary defence community, including scientists and policymakers. This year, the conference was held at the UNOOSA headquarters in Vienna, Austria. The presentations covered a range of topics, including the latest scientific findings from the DART mission, disaster management, and various impact scenarios, offering our students a unique opportunity to explore multiple aspects of this field.

During the conference, our students delivered two presentations on the complex legal issues surrounding planetary defence mitigation. Judith Jahnke discussed the legal complexities that arise when private actors are involved and a planetary defence mission partially fails, resulting in an asteroid impact in a different state than originally anticipated. Sanchi Dhamija argued for the obligation of states to act when an asteroid threat is detected. Judith noted that presenting at such a prestigious and internationally recognized conference was a valuable experience.

Both presentations can be viewed on UN TV at the following link: https://media.un.org/en/asset/k11/k112i49pj8.