Space Generation Advisory Council Research Articles

Lunar landing necessary building blocks and good practices for a sustainable development of human lunar activities

After almost 50 years from the last step on the Moon in 1972, Space Agencies and companies from all over the World are evaluating once again the need, potential, and benefits of human settlements on the Moon and beyond. Several spacecraft, landers, and rovers have already made their way on Earth’s only natural satellite, and more will come in the coming years, followed by or in parallel with human missions, with all the related challenges and issues to overcome. At first, Human activities will target specific locations on the lunar surface, mainly driven by scientific objectives. For these missions, the landing site will necessarily be close to the target areas until a surface transport infrastructure is put in place, such as a system of transport rovers or a rail network. As the interest and involvement of public and private actors grow, and depending on their mission objectives, we will see either massive landings with multiple spacecraft involved or specific pinpointed landings with relatively small assets, to perform local analyses without the need to bring a full settlement to the location. Therefore, it is fundamental to see which resources/terrain characteristics will act as an attractor for intensive human activities with multiple landings that will need traffic management regulations. One of the objectives of our research is to analyze those potential attractors and identify key factors that would make specific locations of the Moon more suitable for landing (e.g. surface characteristics, distance from points of interest). Once defined, the following objective is to evaluate what features and services a landing site should have in order to support exploration or exploitation missions and become an efficient spaceport. In parallel, as mentioned above, all these activities on and around the Moon’s surface need to be regulated and coordinated to avoid a “far west” scenario, with the related potential hazards that could affect the lunar environment, human settlements, and facilities. The last objective of our project is to evaluate and propose ideas on how future missions could be regulated, taking into account that the Moon is a different celestial body that, at the current moment, is not under any national or international significant traffic management regulation. The present abstract is submitted under the auspices of Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) Technical Unit Research for a Thriving Lunar Ecosystem (TURTLE).

The Space-Faring Africa: Commercial Space Industry and its Readiness for Innovation-Driven Investment

The African continent presents undeniable differentiating factors to play a key role in the space economy of this century. Over the past decades, its economic pulse has sustainably raised, fomenting research efforts and investment in the development of space technology. Evaluating these factors is a recurrent task for decision makers and investors, and it consists of a thorough and difficult process of gathering non-standardized data and economic indicators from different sources. This becomes significant when aiming at comparing distinct countries concerning their potential to succeed in the space sector. As such, we propose a novel approach to increase the understanding on the multitude of factors that make a country attractive from the investment perspective in the space sector. To do so, we gathered opinion-based data from young nationals by leveraging the Space Generation Advisory Council network in Africa. We reached for distinctive representatives of the network and showcased a methodology to formulate a qualitative classification according to the country's conditions to promote fruitful investments in the space sector. In this way, we introduce the Space Business Readiness Level — which showed that most of the interviewed countries currently present either favorable or increasing conditions for investment.

Waste Management for Lunar Resources Activities: Toward a Circular Lunar Economy

Space resources activities are currently the objective of a thriving cross-disciplinary global effort aimed at assessing their role and potential in the future of humankind. New innovative mission concepts, legal frameworks, and advanced technologies are being actively developed and proposed with the final goal of enabling profitable and efficient space resource utilization. The immediate location for these impacts is the Moon. In sight of this bright cohort of imminent perspectives, it is imperative for the global community to properly assess the potential effects and consequences of the forthcoming space resources activities, with the goal of including sustainability in the foundations of the ongoing progress and ensuring its enforcement in every future endeavor. Within this context, this article addresses the topics of Moon mining waste management and a lunar circular economy as key issues in the sustainable utilization of space resources. The most promising technologies are considered for lunar resources extraction and processing—with special focus on water—correlating their waste generation potential to the scale of the efforts implemented and to the projected availability of the resources of interest. Importance is also given to the corollary activities of space mining—such as logistics and transport operations—for their implications in waste management. Protocols and technologies with the lower waste generation potential are identified and further scenarios are elaborated for waste handling, reduction, reuse, and recycle, as well as end-of-life strategies for mining plants. This report's recommendations are proposed for the development of incremental regulation for waste management, including but not limited to the definition of common areas of noninterest for waste disposal and regulatory obligations for conducting impact assessments before the establishment of mining activities. Please note that this abstract is submitted under the auspices of the Space Generation Advisory Council, as part of the activities of the Space Exploration Project Group.

Проблемы правового регулирования добычи космических ресурсов с учетом норм международного права

The article analyzes the problem of international legal regulation of the exploiting natural resources in outer space. Special attention is paid to innovative proposals to amend current legislation offered by ague Space Resources Governance Working Group and Space Generation Advisory Council. The need to establish a distinction between the legal regimes of celestial bodies and resources of outer space is emphasized. Arising from the research, a conclusion about the need to update the existing rules of international space law and concretize the concepts such as celestial bodies, space resources, common heritage of mankind and use of outer space is formulated.

Experience in Asteroid Search using Astrometrica Software

The present work of this research consists of the analysis of telescopic images provided by the International Astronomical Search Collaboration (IASC) to find asteroids that can be named. The concern in searching for asteroids helps the scientific community that promotes the collaboration of young students and astronomy fans get experience in finding asteroids through campaigns related to these. The Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) campaign in partnership with IASC has found around 1500 asteroids since the beginning of October 2006 as each year more than 1000 teams from different countries participate. The Astrometrica software was used which is in charge of receiving the images in FITS format. The configuration of the selected telescope is carried out so that they are later analyzed in greater detail. Finally, a clean and precise Minor Planet Center (MPC) report is made, which is what the campaign requires so that it can go on to a preliminary phase and subsequently be accepted by the international astronomical union. The asteroids that become named will be registered in the catalog of official minor planets of the world. In the campaign related to this study, one finds 28 possible asteroids.

Actividades latinoamericanas en el espacio ultraterrestre en el siglo XXI : una actualización.

En el siglo XXI, los países latinoamericanos han hecho esfuerzos significativos para avanzar en sus programas espaciales. Estos esfuerzos han abarcado desde una indagatoria sobre la instalación de un sistema de satélites, como es el caso en Colombia, hasta el lanzamiento de satélites con la ayuda de gobiernos extranjeros, en el caso de Brasil, Argentina y Bolivia. En todos estos casos, la falta de un marco jurídico coherente que apoye un programa espacial sólido que proporcione comunicaciones por satélite a las poblaciones más vulnerables es uno de los desafíos más apremiantes. El Consejo Asesor de Generación Espacial (SGAC) podría resolver este problema mediante un proyecto unificador que pondrá todas las mentes y desarrolladores en el objetivo común de alcanzar la autonomía espacial para América Latina.

TYCHO: Demonstrator and operational satellite mission to Earth–Moon-Libration point EML-4 for communication relay provision as a service

In the current wake of mission plans to the Moon and to Earth–Moon Libration points (EML) by several agencies and organizations, TYCHO identifies the key role of telecommunication provision for the future path of lunar exploration. It demonstrates an interesting extension to existing communication methods to the Moon and beyond by combining innovative technology with a next frontier location and the commercial space communication sector.It is evident that all communication systems will rely on direct communication to Earth ground stations. In case of EML-2 missions around HALO orbits or bases on the far side of the Moon, it has to be extended by communication links via relay stations. The innovative approach is that TYCHO provides this relay communication to those out-of-sight lunar missions as a service. TYCHO will establish a new infrastructure for future missions and even create a new market for add-on relay services.The TMA-0 satellite is TYCHO׳s first phase and a proposed demonstrator mission to the Earth–Moon Libration point EML-4. It demonstrates relay services needed for automated exploratory and manned missions (Moon bases) on the rim (>90°E and >90°W) and far side surface, to lunar orbits and even to EML-2 halo orbits (satellites and space stations). Its main advantage is the permanent availability of communication coverage. This will provide full access to scientific and telemetry data and furthermore to crucial medical monitoring and safety. The communication subsystem is a platform for conventional communication but also a test-bed for optical communication with high data-rate LASER links to serve the future needs of manned bases and periodic burst data-transfer from lunar poles.The operational TMA-1 satellite is a stand-alone mission integrated into existing space communication networks to provide open communication service to external lunar missions. Therefore the long-time stable libration points EML-4 and -5 are selected to guarantee an operation time of up to 10 years. It also enables measurements of the libration point environment with the scientific payloads. This includes sensors for space dust, solar and cosmic radiation activity for satellite lifetime estimation and lunar crew protection by providing early-warning systems.The paper describes the mission concept and the pre-design of the demonstrator satellite according to the operational mission requirements, advantages and benefits of this service. The concept was awarded with the Space Generation Advisory Council and OHB Scholarship in 2011 and the concept study is conducted at the Institute of Space Systems (IRS) [1] of the University of Stuttgart and OHB-System, Bremen [2].▪

GNSS and SBAS System of Systems: Considerations for Applications in the Arctic

Youth for GNSS (YGNSS) is a team created by the Space Generation Advisory Council on GNSS and the International Committee on GNSS (ICG). Composed of students and young professionals, Youth for GNSS aims to recognize and promote the ways in which Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and Satellite Based Augmentation Systems (SBAS) can benefit society. With the future and health of our planet and its citizens a primary concern, YGNSS aims to secure and optimize how GNSS-based applications and technology will benefit society by promoting compatibility and interoperability of GNSS through a network of systems. In addition to the development and improvement of technology, applications, education, and outreach in regions where GNSS is already established, it is the goal of YGNSS to analyze and promote the importance and impact of GNSS technology in areas with less developed infrastructure, such as in developing countries and in the Arctic. In this paper, drivers of change in the Arctic are discussed based on the impact of GNSS as tools for scientific applications and for strengthening and promoting interoperability of navigation, positioning, and timing systems. Topics such as surveying, mapping, engineering and construction, aviation, maritime and space weather monitoring are discussed. Due to the high ecological sensitivity and extreme weather conditions in Arctic regions, accidents there could cause great environmental damage and also threaten human lives. Navigation integrity is therefore of particular importance in this region.

National Space Legislation for Emerging Space Capable Nations

The Space Generation Advisory Council is a non-profit organization that aims to represent the international group of young professionals and students from around the world interested in all aspects of humankind’s understanding, exploration, and utilization of outer space. Within the SGAC membership, those interested in and pursuing education and training related to the legal aspects of outer space established a Space Law Working Group in the summer of 2012. One of the focuses of the group is investigating the role and importance of national space legislation. In addition to many large and established space-faring nations with large space agencies and long heritages of space capability, many more nations are becoming space capable. In the African continent, Nigeria, South Africa, and Maghreb countries are cooperating and coordinating their space activities. In Europe, ESA membership is growing, with Poland to become the 19th Member State in the fall of 2012. Domestic European space agencies are also growing in size and capability. In the future, many new companies and many more countries will increase the size and scope of the space field, including nations with limited space experience. Consequently, the need for rational, efficient, and balanced national space legislation for countries previously lacking it will become more clear and urgent. This paper will first examine existing national space legislation, looking to see common themes and crucial hallmarks. Insights from existing national experience, along with cross-disciplinary takeaways from international relations theory and space policy, and the overriding requirements from public international space law, should intelligently inform the drafting of national space legislation.

The role of space related non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in capacity building

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a unique role in international affairs, providing access to resources, expertise, and assistance to supplement State resources. Sometimes the diplomatic skills and unofficial access of NGOs to policymakers through Track Two diplomacy can move a previously stalled critical issue forward and assist policymakers from different countries to find common ground outside official channels. Because they work outside of official channels, they are not bound by State policy that may inhibit negotiations between States. Some also have a convening power that sometimes makes it possible for State representatives to meet discipline experts and each other for informal discussions on issues of mutual interest. Finally, NGOs can draw attention to issues that may be overlooked or avoided by State organizations. This paper examines the ways in which NGOs can assist in building scientific, technical, educational, and legal and policy expertise related to space and Earth science, technology and governance of space activities. In particular, it will explore and analyze the ways in which organizations such as the Space Generation Advisory Council, EURISY, the Planetary Society and Secure World Foundation contribute to building capacity in developing countries.