Vehicle traffic going into space, Earth orbit, and beyond has grown significantly in the last decade. The diversity of today’s space traffic has increased dramatically over the last 50 years and now includes a variety of companies and nations with different goals, motives, and business/operating models. As growth continues, there is an increasing need to ensure access to space and safe operations from initial launch of the vehicle through mission completion. ASCEND seeks to provide a collaborative forum to advance these issues related to technologies, operations, regulations, and standards development for commercial, governmental (civil and military), or educational applications.

Sessions are invited that offer non-technology-based methods as well (policy, best practices, lessons learned, etc.) that assess the appropriate roles of organizations (international bodies, national governments, and nongovernmental organizations, etc.) in providing space situational awareness, traffic management, and control services. Regulatory clarity regarding the on-orbit authorities of government agencies – as-yet largely undefined – is a timely subject. Attention to evolving regulatory frameworks and priority preferences for air traffic operations amidst the increasing launch/reentry cadence are of particular interest.

Submissions may relate to items, such as:

• Space access and safe operations from initial launch through mission completion/return
• Regulatory requirements and methods to manage certification of Commercial Launch Systems
• Orbital debris identification; notification; management
• Autonomous space domain tracking and reporting tools

Recent analyses suggest that a fully developed space-based economy is poised to dwarf the current economic activities on Earth. Realizing the full promise and possibility of that growth—a forecasted $1 trillion globally by 2040—demands bringing together business leaders, academics, innovators, investors, technical experts, government stakeholders and decision-makers to envision, design, and build the future of space commerce, together.  ASCEND seek sessions that may dig into these topics to support this community and help inspire new approaches and lessons learned from relevant markets.

Submissions may relate to items, such as:

• Emerging commercial services and capabilities in progress (like On-Orbit Servicing)
• Market research products
• Business plans and opportunities to enable synergistic implementation and exploitation.
• Major cost drivers and potential solutions (for establishment and expansion of space commerce)
• Strategies and success stories for public awareness

Throughout human history, we have pondered the great mysteries, such as the formation of the universe and our solar system, the existence of life on other planets, and how we can better understand the complex systems of the Earth. Within the past century, however, advances in space technology have allowed us to make great leaps in our understanding of these and other scientific frontiers.

As we seek to further accelerate the growth of the space economy and make strides toward our off-world future, it is imperative that we leverage the resultant new technologies and capabilities to expand our understanding of the solar system and the universe.  We must address the most crucial scientific questions that remain unanswered. This topic focuses attention on these questions, as prioritized by the scientific community in publications, such as the U.S. NASA-requested decadal surveys, and to identify opportunities and challenges that can be addressed through increased activities and human presence in space.

 

ASCEND seeks dialogue-generating panels and workshops to foster outcomes shaping the future utilization and protection of space. Space activities support all aspects of daily life, thus the overlap between efforts to produce value in space, efforts to manage the increasingly crowded space domain, and efforts to protect our ability to operate freely in space form a nexus for the space community.

ASCEND wishes to form sessions around space-based capabilities, sensor and system technologies, space traffic management, space domain awareness, and the protection of space assets. Content covering cislunar ventures provides insights into the growth beyond the traditional Earth orbit focus.  Additionally, experiences in commercialization partnerships and public private partnerships inform the evolution and approaches to providing the systems necessary to protect, defend, and enable the continued open use of space for the benefit of all humankind in an environment that is becoming increasingly crowded, dangerous, and essential.

The awe-inspiring capability and rapid growth within the space enterprise suggests a discussion of sustainability might be needed. ASCEND promotes a comprehensive understanding of the intersection between the space enterprise and maintenance of a suitable environment for Earth and other bodies is of interest. This includes both the impacts that the space enterprise has on global environments and the risks that a changing climate impose on the space enterprise. Understanding the impact that spaceflight has on planetary environments and the risks to spaceflight from changing environments are fundamental for a sustainable, safe, and economical multi-planet astronautics industry.

The recent explosive growth in the commercial space industry has led to one of the most dynamic and exciting periods of expansion of the aerospace workforce. However, this vitality and growth has not come without challenges: workforce retention and management has become a first-order concern, prevalent across the industry. At the same time, our industry is becoming increasingly conscious of the critical importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and in our schools, and yet challenged to impart significant traction in this regard. Emergent technological needs in areas like artificial intelligence, human-robot teaming and cybersecurity are driving our system requirements and capabilities, resulting in significant changes in the educational needs of modern-day aerospace engineers. ASCEND seeks sessions to shed light on all these issues and help our industry wrap its arms around these huge challenges.

Submissions may relate to items, such as:

• Educational approaches and curriculum strategies
• Workforce development, retention, and management
• Outreach initiatives and programs
• Diversity, advocacy, equality, and inclusion
• Synergistic approaches by academia, government, and industry