The Workshop
Following a series of successful workshops in the domain of space debris modelling, risk and mitigation analyses, we are warmly inviting everyone to join the next edition this year to:
- bring together the observers and modelling communities to continue our exchanges on how our work shapes our understanding of the space debris population.
- introduce to the community the most recent changes for MASTER-9.
- offer dedicated sessions to learn about the MASTER model, its application in the DRAMA software, and to engage with the developers and experts on the detailed aspects of analyses we do with MASTER.
The workshop will begin with a final presentation of a currently on-going major upgrade of the space debris model MASTER (Meteoroid And Space debris Terrestrial Environment Reference), followed by a session facilitating exchanges between space debris observers and modelling groups in the context of how measurements, data, and modelling efforts shape our understanding of a validated space debris population. On the second day of the workshop, we would like to talk with everyone about what should be our future pathways in MASTER model maintenance, and what to prioritise. Furthermore, we want to offer to everyone interested some dedicated sessions to learn more about MASTER.
We invite everyone directly or indirectly involved in observing space debris and related modelling efforts to participate to the workshop! Moreover, we would like to ask you already beforehand to share your ideas with us on how the model developments should continue, mainly as input for the second day. You can share them with us via email, or also via the dedicated space debris forum thread.
Last but not least, we invite members of the community, if they wish, to submit proposals on the topics of modelling and/or observing the space debris environment for talks which can be used to guide the workshop discussions on how to bridge the two worlds. Short abstracts can be submitted as part of the registration.
Concept
We believe that addressing space debris modelling and mitigation activities through a participatory process is more likely to be accepted as a reference solution by the community. At the same time, when stakeholders with various knowledge, skills, and resources are facilitated to give creative and critical input which is then translated into action, a culture of shared responsibility and ownership is being established, further reinforcing the consent on models and methodologies applied by the community.
The event will be in-person mainly, with certain sessions also streamed online. The number of participants at ESOC in Darmstadt will be limited to about 80, and we will confirm on-site attendance after the registration phase has concluded on September 18. Participation in the workshop is free of charge.
Background
Every satellite put into orbit today is exposed to the space debris environment for the time it is being operated but also during the ensuing disposal phase, which may add many more years of on-orbit presence. The environment is only expected to grow in terms of object numbers, especially in orbital regions that are already strongly affected by space debris pollution today. This means that space missions will be more difficult to operate by today’s standards (e.g. having to address more close encounters) and collisional breakup events, mainly between non-operational objects, are more likely to occur with time. This trend is exacerbated with the dramatically increased launch activity over the last few years and the deployment of large satellite constellations.
Space debris risk assessments targeting primarily the share of small non-trackable objects are informed by space debris models, such as the European Meteoroid and Space Debris Terrestrial Environment Reference (MASTER) model. Increasingly, such models are also being used to gauge interactions with the trackable population for space traffic coordination and collision avoidance planning. In order to assess compliance with recommendations, guidelines and requirements, a set of software tools has been developed since the early 2000s and bundled under the Debris Risk Assessment and Mitigation Analysis (DRAMA) suite, which relies significantly on MASTER's background population. The MASTER and DRAMA user community has grown considerably within the past few years. In the exchanges with engineers, operators, students, regulators, and many more, we have always valued the various collaborations as the models continue to be developed.
ESA has always played a major role in leading many of the research activities related to space debris observation, modelling, and mitigation, at the same time recognising the significant contributions by other institutions and the coordination efforts primarily by the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC). With space activities mostly conducted by public entities for many decades, ESA and other agencies developing space debris models, associated debris risk and mitigation analysis frameworks, as well as compliance verification means, were most of the time assuming the role of the customer and the user simultaneously. Over the past two decades the roles have shifted significantly, especially in view of the on-going commercialisation of space, and many new entities to get involved in space activities. Continuing the maintenance and the development of the MASTER and DRAMA model and tool suite, the Space Debris Office has recognised that it remained the customer while the user roles have been distributed all over the globe.