ELSA-M to Carry the Astra Carta Seal: A Milestone for Sustainable Space Operations

This week at the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) Roundtables & Exhibition, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced that the Astra Carta seal will be incorporated onto Astroscale’s ELSA-M spacecraft – a symbol of the Astra Carta’s mission to champion sustainability and responsible activity beyond Earth. For Astroscale, this moment embodies our commitment to leading the way in responsible space operations.

ELSA-M (End of Life Services by Astroscale – Multiple) is Astroscale’s commercial satellite service designed to remove inactive satellites from orbit. The in-orbit demonstration mission is a partnership programme led by Astroscale and supported by the UK Space Agency, ESA, and the commercial satellite operator Eutelsat through the Sunrise Partnership Project, a public–private partnership between ESA and Eutelsat Group.

The mission will safely approach and dock with a Eutelsat OneWeb communications satellite at its end of life, then remove it from orbit. This world first commercial ‘de-orbit as a service’ demonstration showcases the technologies and operational capability needed to reduce collision risk in Earth’s increasingly crowded Low Earth Orbit.

Satellites support essential services – from communications and navigation to weather forecasting, climate monitoring and national security. As the number of active and inactive satellites continues to grow, so does the importance of responsible management throughout the satellite lifecycle. By enabling the safe removal of spacecraft at the end of their mission, ELSA-M helps protect the infrastructure that society relies on and supports the transition toward a more sustainable and circular space economy.

The Astra Carta extends the sustainability principles of the Terra Carta into space, championing stewardship, innovation and shared responsibility beyond Earth. Incorporating the Astra Carta seal onto ELSAM signals how these values are being put into practice – demonstrating the role that collaboration and technical leadership play in safeguarding the orbital environment for future generations.

Astroscale is proud to contribute to this shared vision. With ELSA-M, we are advancing the technologies that will help keep space safe, sustainable and accessible as reliance on the orbital domain continues to grow.