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On 16 May 2025, ESA and the Spanish Space Agency (Agencia Espacial Espa\u00f1ola or AEE) confirmed their intent to collaborate on the proposed CApTure Payload Bay (CAT) in-orbit demonstration. The ESA CAT mission will test a standardised docking interface that will simplify satellite removal operations.<\/p>\n
ESA’s Director of Operations, Rolf Densing, and AEE’s Cecilia Hern\u00e1ndez Rodr\u00edguez,\u00a0Director of Programmes and Industry,\u00a0affirmed their intent to collaborate by considering the Spanish LUR-1 satellite as a candidate target for the CAT mission. As LUR-1 is already equipped with the Mechanical Interface for Capture at End-of-life (MICE), CAT could safely remove the LUR-1 satellite from its low-Earth orbit in a timely manner after it reaches its end-of-mission.<\/p>\n
Spain and ESA coming together to collaborate on the CAT in-orbit demonstration would form a key stepping stone to make the ESA Zero Debris goal possible and constitute significant progress in enhancing safety and sustainability in space.<\/p>\n
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