Cross-Waivers in Space Missions: What They Are and Why They Matter

When NASA, ESA, JAXA, and private companies like SpaceX work together on a space mission, they don’t sign contracts full of lawyers and loopholes. Instead, they use something simpler: cross-waivers, legal agreements that waive the right to sue each other for damages caused during joint space operations. Also known as mutual liability waivers, they’re the reason the International Space Station hasn’t been tied up in court for decades. Without them, no one would dare share a rocket, a sensor, or even a power cable with another agency. If one country’s equipment fails and damages another’s, the default legal path is a lawsuit. Cross-waivers shut that door before it even opens.

These waivers aren’t just paperwork—they’re the backbone of modern space cooperation. They cover everything from satellite collisions to ground station errors, and they apply to both government and commercial partners. For example, if a SpaceX Falcon 9 launches a European satellite and a minor glitch damages a Japanese instrument on board, neither side can sue the other. The same rule applies if a NASA sensor on a Russian module overheats and fries a Canadian experiment. The system works because everyone agrees: space is too risky, too expensive, and too complex for blame games. Instead, they share the risk—and the reward.

This isn’t just about saving money. It’s about enabling missions that would otherwise be impossible. The International Space Station, a joint project involving 15 nations and dozens of contractors relies on cross-waivers to function. So do missions like Europa Clipper, which carries instruments built in the U.S., Germany, and Italy. Even formation flying satellites, where multiple spacecraft operate as one instrument, need these agreements. If one satellite’s thruster fires too long and nudges another out of position, the waiver keeps the mission going instead of triggering legal action.

And it’s not just about big agencies. Private companies launching satellites or providing ground support must sign on too. That’s why companies like Viasat, Starlink, or even small satellite builders agree to these terms—they know that without cross-waivers, the entire ecosystem of space collaboration would freeze. No one wants to be the first to sue after a launch failure. Everyone wins when blame is set aside and progress moves forward.

You won’t hear about cross-waivers in headlines, but you’ll feel their impact every time a mission succeeds. They’re the unspoken contract that lets astronauts from different countries eat the same meal on the ISS, lets European telescopes ride on American rockets, and lets private firms join NASA’s lunar missions without fear of being sued if something goes sideways. They’re not glamorous. They’re not flashy. But without them, space exploration would be a collection of isolated, fragile efforts—not a global, growing network.

Below, you’ll find articles that dive into the real-world tech and teams behind today’s space missions—from how satellites coordinate in formation to how astronauts train for spacewalks. These aren’t just stories about hardware. They’re stories about cooperation, trust, and the quiet systems that make it all possible.