Call for tenders for the assessment of satellite collision risks

The European Union’s Space Surveillance and Tracking office, EU SST, has launched a call for tenders aimed at assessing near-miss events in near-Earth space.

The procurement is managed by the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES), and the deadline for submissions is 6 May 2026 at 12:00 (CEST).

Hopefully, actors within our network will also be interested in submitting a proposal!

There are currently more than 10,000 active satellites orbiting Earth. When inactive, malfunctioning, or otherwise decommissioned satellites, rocket components, and other pieces of space debris larger than 10 cm are included, the total rises to approximately 35,000 objects.

The objective is to develop methods for analysing and combining all available close-approach data on satellites and space debris into a single, reliable assessment of collision risks. This is essential for EU SST’s Collision Avoidance service, which provides users with daily warnings of high-risk conjunctions.

The growing number of objects in orbit, along with the expected significant increase in space traffic in the near future, is driving the need for more advanced analytical methods.

The tender will be conducted as a single-stage process, and the selected contractor will work under CNES leadership for a period of 18 months.