Dr Rachael Craufurd Smith and Dr Michael Picard are co-leads on the Green Toolkit for Space (GTxS) project, supported by recent Edinburgh Law School graduate Hercules Wessels.

The team also draws on technical expertise of an interdisciplinary nature to assist in its development, notably through the University of Edinburgh Space and Satellites team and its industry partner Interstellar Space Technologies.

The project is a partnership between the Universities of Edinburgh, Hull, Southampton and York St John, funded by the UK Space Agency.

The GTxS will help users mitigate the resource costs associated with increased regulation and sustainability concerns. It will offer a repository of applicable sustainability standards and laws relevant to sustainable design and mission choices across the entire life-cycle of space activities.

Dr Craufurd Smith said: “Through the GTxS we aim to provide greater transparency on sustainable standards and laws and thereby contribute to the long-term sustainability of space activities.”

Dr Picard added: “The GTxS will contribute towards a life cycle analysis of space activities to help SMEs understand how they might align their design choices with emerging circular economy and net-zero regulation within the UK and Scotland.”