In the six months ending May 31, SpaceX satellites performed 207,152 propulsive collision-avoidance maneuvers. That is more than 1,100 a day. The figure is not evidence of recklessness. It reflects a conservative safety threshold, a fleet operating at unprecedented scale, and an unusually transparent public accounting.

It is also a policy alarm bell. At this volume, a rule inside software is no longer merely advice to an operator. It becomes physical behavior in orbit. Before America’s satellite fleets grow more autonomous, Washington must decide what turns a collision warning into permission to move a spacecraft.