Commission receives and greenlights joint proposal of 15 EU Member States for setting up EU SST Partnership

On 5 October 2022, the Commission greenlighted the joint proposal it received from 15 EU Member States to set up the EU SST Partnership. These are two major milestones for the EU SST subcomponent, an important initiative to keep space assets safe from in-orbit collisions in light of increasing space activities. It follows the adoption of the EU Space Regulation less than 1.5 years ago and of the Commission Implementing Decision on the EU SST Partnership less than three months ago as well as the submission of a joint proposal by 15 EU Member States for an EU SST Partnership over the summer. 

15 EU Member States put their heads together to submit a joint proposal for an EU SST Partnership over the summer. The Commission, supported by external experts, assessed this joint proposal and, today, deemed it compliant with its Implementing Decision adopted less than three months ago. Such efficient timing was made possible thanks to close cooperation and coordination between EU Member States, DG DEFIS and others, thereby allowing to achieve several milestones in such short sequences. 

Upcoming milestones for the EU SST subcomponent include:  

• signature of the EU SST Partnership Agreement
• transfer of the SST Front Desk to the EU Agency for the Space Programme
• handover of provision of SST services to the EU SST Partnership
• award of the next EU SST Grant co-financing the activities of the EU SST Partnership 

Background 

EU SST is a subcomponent of the Space Situational Awareness (SSA) component of the EU Space Programme. It safeguards space assets, especially EU Space Programme satellites such as Galileo, EGNOS, Copernicus, GOVSATCOM and in the future IRIS², along with the space assets of EU Member States and other space operators.  

EU SST uses a network of ground-based sensors capable of surveying and tracking space objects and processing capabilities aimed at improving, operating, and providing data, information and services on space objects orbiting the Earth. This helps to mitigate the risk of a collision between space assets and other spacecraft and debris, in-orbit fragmentations and uncontrolled re-entries of space objects into the Earth’s atmosphere. 

More information 

• Regulation (EU) 2021/696
• Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/1245
• Commission Decision C(2022)6942
• EU Space Surveillance and Tracking - European Commission
• EU SST – EU Space Surveillance and Tracking
• Commission adopts Decision outlining steps for Member States’ participation in EU SST sub-component of the EU Space Programme