There's an old saying in the space world: amateurs talk about technology, professionals talk about insurance.

As an organization of volunteers, AMSAT was putting "amateur" satellites in orbit decades before the current Cube Sat craze.

Hobbyists and students are gaining access to technologies without being part of a long-standing amateur establishment.

The challenge here, of course, is ensuring that what an amateur community considers to be responsible, actually is.

This form of "self- governance" is possible within long-standing amateur organizations that, over time, arc able to build a sense of responsibility to community members, as well as society in general.

Yet as LEO opens up to more amateur satellites, they may pose an increasing threat.

Yet the evidence from AMSAT and other areas of technology development suggests that responsible amateur communities can and do emerge around novel technologies.