The Zero Debris Charter

The European Space Agency (ESA), Airbus Defence and Space, OHB SE and Thales Alenia Space demonstrated their commitment to promoting the safety and long-term sustainability of space operations at the Paris Air Show 2023 today.

Satellites in orbit underpin our modern lives. They are used for space science, Earth observation, meteorology, climate research, telecommunication, navigation and much more.

But swirling fragments of past space endeavours are trapped in orbit around Earth, threatening our future in space. Over time, the number and mass of these debris objects grow steadily, boosting the risk to active satellites.

Encouraged by its Member States to implement “a Zero Debris approach for its missions; and to encourage partners and other actors to pursue similar paths”, ESA is updating its internal space debris mitigation standards.

“We are calling upon all stakeholders from across the European space ecosystem, including new space actors, to display a strong commitment towards achieving global leadership in space debris mitigation and remediation, through the Zero Debris Charter initiative,” said ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher.

The Zero Debris Charter aims to bridge previous ESA initiatives aiming to shape global consensus on space sustainability and the agency’s technical work on the technologies and solutions enabling safe and sustainable space operations.

Click here to read more about the Charter, ESA’s ‘PROTECT accelerator’ and the commitments made by leading members of the European space industry.

Panel members in this photo, left to right:

Anthea Comellini, Thales Alenia Space debris expert & member of ESA Astronaut Reserve; Hervé Derrey, CEO, Thales Alenia Space; Josef Aschbacher, Director General, ESA; Jean-Marc Nasr, Head of Space Systems, Airbus Defence and Space; Lutz Bertling, Member of the Board of OHB SE, OHB Chief Strategy & Development Officer, Chief Digital Officer; Rolf Densing, Director of Operations, ESA