COMPASS AND SPIRE LABS AT THE 9TH EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON SPACE DEBRIS

Recently, members of the COMPASS and SPIRE Labs from the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology at the Politecnico di Milano (DAER) took part in the 9th European Conference on Space Debris, held in Bonn from April 1st to 4th, 2025.

Space debris refers to non-functional objects orbiting Earth, such as satellites which are no more operational, exhausted rocket stages, and fragments generated by collisions.

As the number of space missions continues to grow, so does the risk of debris interfering with operational satellites or threatening future missions.

Ensuring the sustainability of space activities is therefore essential to preserve safe and secure access to space for future generations.

DAER researchers had the opportunity to engage with international professionals in the field, reaffirming Politecnico di Milano leading role in the sector by contributing with 5 oral presentations and 6 posters, addressing a wide range of topics including space environment capacity assessment, launch traffic modeling, fragmentation cloud characterization, orbital population evolution, maneuver detection, end-of-life disposal in cislunar space, orbital region risk ranking, cislunar space situational awareness, orbit determination and resident space objects characterization.

In addition, Prof. Camilla Colombo was invited to represent the European academic community in a press conference addressing the topic "Space debris: is it really a crisis?", while Prof. Pierluigi Di Lizia took part in a panel discussion titled "Why is cislunar debris a concern?", reinforcing our presence in both scientific and strategic conversations on space safety and sustainability.

We are proud to have contributed to such an important event and remain committed to advancing research for a safer, more sustainable use of space.