The UK Space Agency has allocated funding for studies exploring new supply systems for its national space debris removal mission. This mission, scheduled for 2026, aims to prolong the life of satellities and prevent further damage to the space environment. Feasibility studies trying to find out how to supply a commercial satellite will have acsess to a portion of a £2 milion fund.
With over 130 milion space debris objects posing a growing threat for the satellite economy, the mission has become vital to ensuring the long-term sustainability of the sector, said the UK Science Minister, George Freeman.
Freeman claimed that, “milions of fragments of space debris and 3,000 decommissioned satellites pose a growing threat to the economy of satellites, on which we now rely daily, from telecumunications services to navigation, air traffic control and science climatic.”
He added that British companies such as Astroscale and ClearSpace, engaged in the development of in-flight supplies, maintenance and other satellite support services, play a key role in reducing space debris, increasing spatial resilience and ensuring the prosperity of the space services industry.
ClearSpace, founded in 2028, was selected by the European Space Agency to lead a debris removal mission into orbit. In 2021, UKSA, which operates as the executive agency of the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, also commissioned this company to develop a feasibility study for the removal and restoration of two objects in low Earth orbit. Currently, the study is in the revision phase, having completed the design phase last month.
This new funding programme is in addition to UKSA’s initiatives to promote the long-term sustainability of the space environment, including surveillance and space tracking projects. The announcement precedes the UK space conference in Belfast later this month, which will bring together international space actors to discuss ideas and partnerships to strengthen the space sector.
