Towards a Circular Space Economy: Satellite Refurbishment and Upgrading Services for Orbital Sustainability
Programme
Preparation
Programme Reference
24-P-M-OPS-07-a
Contractor
Astroscale
Start Date
End Date
Status
Closed
Country
UK

Description
The In-Orbit Refurbishment and Upgrading Service (IRUS) is a first-of-its-kind refurbishment and upgrading mission concept, proposed by Astroscale and BAE Systems, aligned with ESA’s Circular Economy strategy. The outcome of the systems study was a servicer design, taking elements of Astroscale’s ELSA-M and COSMIC platforms, and a modified, prepared BAE Systems client platform. DHV Technology assessed the potential to refurbish and upgrade solar cells and solar arrays. This service will be the next step towards an in-orbit economy, underpinning future in-orbit servicing goals, such as in-orbit assembly, manufacturing, and recycling, and adding significant value to other services such as refuelling.
Technology Domain
8 - System Design & Verification
Executive summary