Expected Outcome:

This support activity aims at enabling a sustainable, highly automated, flexible and economically viable space infrastructure in a holistic approach, prepared to maximise commercial opportunities in space and on earth: the future space ecosystem. A paradigm shift from conventional concepts towards more adaptive and intelligent solutions, which are strongly required to explore new business opportunities for European actors in space.

This requires a targeted evolution of the Future Space Ecosystem (FSE) roadmap that identifies and describes pathways to innovative and promising applications and services in the fields of in-space services. It shall consider new space approaches, enabling technologies (e.g. electric propulsion, automation & robotics, AI, high-performance and reliable avionics) and synergies with terrestrial sectors, strengthened by continuous market and trend analyses.

Not only enabling technology is required to foster future business in space, but also a suitable, sustainable framework, providing enough flexibility to let businesses emerge and grow in the field of On-Orbit Services (OOS).

Therefore, the project is expected to contribute to the following outcomes:

• Future Space Ecosystem roadmap focussing on in-space services, that take advantages of enabling technologies and of synergies between cluster 4 destinations and activities for the future space ecosystem maximising the market opportunities and benefits;
• Coherent principles, guidelines and standards for On-Orbit Services (e.g. life-extension, maintenance, assembly, logistics, etc.) supporting European actors implementing their business in this domain ensuring consideration of sustainability, safety and competitiveness.

Scope:

To ensure the safe and economically viable use of space and space-based assets in the long term, technologies need to be identified, a roadmap established and acceptable rules, standards and methodologies defined. Therefore, this coordination and support action shall:

• Identify and describe pathways to innovative and promising applications and services as elements in the further developed FSE roadmap, using feedback of relevant stakeholders and taking into account new space approaches, enabling technologies (e.g. electric propulsion, robotics, AI, high-performance and reliable avionics), synergies with terrestrial sectors while making use of continuous market and trend analyses;
• Identify and select the most promising technologies (game-changer/key technologies) and create a pathway for quick maturation and space qualification;
• Closely follow the project(s) of other calls related to the Future Space Ecosystem in order to support decisions regarding programmatic and strategy questions in the field and to verify the applicability of the existing principles and guidelines for future missions;
• Contribute to the international dialogue on recommendations for guidelines and standards for In-Space Services based on the work done in the European Operations Framework (EOF)^[1] in H2020 supporting the European Commission in policy and standards development and fostering interoperability of EU space systems to access the rising global OOS market.
• Carry out targeted dissemination and outreach activities for FSE activities to showcase the paradigm shift and to facilitate support of European stakeholders with regards to OOS and to promote EU Space R&I activities in the future space ecosystem.

The above-mentioned activities should take into account modularisation, standardisation, digitalisation and new industrial processes and production tools to the fullest extent possible to maximise the business opportunities.

Active participation of industrial actors including SMEs in the consortium is expected.

In this topic the integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content is not a mandatory requirement.

[1] www.h2020-peraspera.eu/EOF