STEPHAN HELLMICH; MATHIEU UDRIOT; EMMANUELLE DAVID
DOI Number: 10.13009/EUCASS2023-016
EPFL Space Center (eSpace) is a pioneer in space sustainability. With the Clean Space Initiative, initially proposed to deorbit Swisscube which eventually spun off from EPFL as the ClearSpace-1 mission to recover a Vega Secondary Payload Adapter (Vespa) from orbit, the Center can draw on a decade of experience in space sustainability. More recently, in 2019 eSpace initiated a two-year pilot phase of a research initiative on sustainable space logistics (RISSL) which became the starting point of several consortium projects that attracted many stakeholders and resulted in the development of a space logistics modelling software for mission profile evaluation and optimization. The success of this pilot phase encouraged the Center to continue exploring this new domain. In 2021 EPFL was selected to host the Space Sustainability Rating (SSR), which incentivizes space operators to adopt more responsible mission design and operational behaviour. Because the definition of sustainability in space is constantly evolving, eSpace is continuously improving the formulation of the SSR in order to address emerging environmental, societal, and economic factors in the assessment. Current research and development projects cover the topics life cycle assessment of space transportation vehicles, assessing space debris risks, material research to optimize the reentry phase, optimisation of space logistics and mission design, physical characterization of orbital debris and developing policy options and interrelations with Earth system governance. These projects will help assess and improve the situation in space and mitigate the impact of space activities on Earth. In order to unite EPFL’s forces in the domain of sustainability in space, eSpace has recently introduced the Sustainable Space Hub (SSH). Five institutes within EPFL are currently involved in research and development projects in the field of space sustainability. The goal of the SSH is to coherently manage and foster the growth of these topics. The SSH is connecting these individual projects in a workflow that rests on three intertwined domains: measure, understand, and act for space sustainability. The projects associated with each domain are essential for finding solutions to the problems arising from the rapidly increasing space activities, the risk from space debris, and the generated atmospheric impacts. The SSH will help identify and promote new technologies in space sustainability with new services in orbit and on the ground. This paper presents the organisation of the new Sustainable Space Hub, and highlights ongoing research and development conducted in this domain. It discusses the three domains, shows how the development of the individual project benefits from the hub, and gives an outlook on future projects related to space sustainability at EPFL.