ESA/ESOC, Darmstadt, Germany | 24 - 26 January 2023

Space safety is of growing concern for all spacefaring nations. The increasing number of artificial space objects, accelerating launch rates and the near-Earth object (NEO) population pose a serious threat to our infrastructure in orbit and on ground.

Our ESOC operations centre in Darmstadt, Germany coordinates ESA’s Space Safety Programme and will host the Agency’s second conference to bring together the NEO and Space debris observation communities in January 2023.

The three-day conference will focus on recent progress made by exploring the synergies between space debris and NEO search programmes, telescopes and radar systems, observation techniques, data processing approaches and the standardisation of data exchange.

The conference will highlight all classical and new disciplines of NEO and Debris Detection Research, including:

•    Observation strategies - technology improvements of radar, passive optical, and laser systems

•    Instrumentation component developments (CCDs, CMOS, ...)

•    New telescope & radar projects (e.g. flyeye telescope)

•    Space-based observation concepts

•    Space surveillance system architectures & applications for space traffic management

•    Detection systems for fireball and other events

•    Orbit prediction & determination in near-Earth and cislunar space

•    On-orbit & re-entry risk assessments

•    Data processing concepts

•    Data exchange mechanisms & standardisation

Details on the conference venue, scope, registration, accommodation, abstract & paper submission and important dates can be found on the conference website.

The deadline for the submission of abstracts is 1 October 2022.

Registration to attend the conference opens on 1 October 2022. 

Please note: The pandemic situation may imply the need to change the conference planning. A final decision for an in-person or virtual event will be taken on 1 October 2022.