ESA Planetary Dust Contamination Workshop 2025

Session

Session 1: Dust, simulants and characterisation

4 Jun 2025, 09:30

Newton 1 (ESTEC)

4. On the Phenomenological Behaviour of Dust; Causes, Characterisation and Consequences

Michael Bradley (The Wolfson Centre, University of Greenwich)

04/06/2025, 09:30

Full length presentation

This paper seeks to review the understanding of the forces acting on dust particles, how these affect their behaviour, how we can measure and quantify these, and what the consequences are especially if we are trying to run real-world simulations in different gravity and fluid fields or absence thereof (e.g. Earth atmosphere, Earth vacuum, Lunar exosphere).

Specifically, forces due to...

11. LuNOR: Nordic-Origin Industrial Lunar Simulant for Enhanced Fidelity, Consistency & Sustainability in Dust Contamination Research

Øystein Risan Borgersen (SolSys Mining AS)

04/06/2025, 09:55

Short pitch

Lunar dust poses a critical challenge for surface missions due to its abrasiveness, electrostatic adherence and fine particulate nature. SolSys Mining will contribute to ESA’s Planetary Dust Contamination Workshop 2025 by presenting LuNOR, a European lunar simulant—available in both mare and highlands variants, with dedicated dust simulant formulations forthcoming in 2026. Produced from raw...

12. Sensing and Modelling Planetary Dust Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and their Effects on Space Missions by High-Fidelity ROS-Activated Dust Simulants

Christos Georgiou (Stellar Discoveries)

04/06/2025, 10:05

Title: Sensing and Modelling Planetary Dust Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and their Effects on Space Missions by High-Fidelity ROS-Activated Dust Simulants

Christos D. Georgiou M.Sc., Ph.D.1 and Elias Chatzitheodoridis M.Sc., Ph.D.2

1,2 Co-Chiefs of Science & Technology Innovations & Operations, Stellar Discoveries, Greece
1 Oral presentation

Abstract
Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS:...

10. Experimental investigations of impact processes on the metal asteroid 16 Psyche

Danielle Vosper (European Space Agency)

04/06/2025, 10:35

Short pitch

Metal asteroids are a topic of increasing interest within both the public and private space sectors, as the in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) and asteroid mining communities continue to develop. As 16 Psyche is the largest known M-class asteroid in the main asteroid belt, it can be considered a prime target for further investigation. Despite this heightened level of interest, many...

28. Design and Development of Phobos Surface Simulants: Preparation for MMX

Danielle Vosper (European Space Agency)

Short pitch

.The origin of the moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, has long been debated. The two leading theories are that they are either captured asteroids or the result of ejected material from a giant impactor. The upcoming JAXA mission Mars Moons eXplorer (MMX) aims to clarify key unknowns regarding the composition, minerology and surface structure, and thus help to unravel the mystery of the origin...