IEEE - Aerospace and Electronic Systems - March 2023 - 50

News & Information
DOI. No. 10.1109/MAES.2022.3222611
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Europe and Space: Time to Accelerate IEEE Radar Conference, 22 March 2022
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Elena Grifoni Winters and Wolfgang Rathgeber , European Space Agency
Headquarters, 75345 Paris, France
Good morning to all and-first of all-thank you to the
organizers of this conference-Lorenzo Lo Monte in particular,
and also Alfonso Farina for the opportunity to
speak here at the occasion of the IEEE Radar Conference
2022.
I am Elena Grifoni Winters from the European Space
Agency, and I am speaking on behalf of the ESA Director
General, whose Cabinet I am heading.
The IEEE Radar Conference is a key event for the
worldwide radar community, an important gathering of
top-level scientists and engineers in this domain, and a
prime opportunity to exchange views, to take stock of current
trends and to discuss new developments.
Fully acknowledging the key role of radar in space-
and I will come back to this-I would like to provide a
broader picture of Europe's approach to space and the
contributions of radar in this context. This is why I chose
the title " Europe and Space: Time to Accelerate " for my
intervention. I hope to be able to convey some basic messages
about the policy setup of European space activities
and how radar plugs in.
Let me start by recalling that space is not just nice
to have. Space is indispensable for our everyday lives
in domains like economy, security, technology, medicine,
transport, or entertainment. Among other things,
space provides infrastructures that would be too costly
or complex to realize terrestrially. Without space there
would be no exact timing, no reliable meteorological
forecast, and no financial transactions, just to name a
few examples.
At the same time space applications, such as telecommunication,
navigation, or Earth observation, have become
Authors' current address: The authors are with the
European Space Agency Headquarters, 75345 Paris,
France (e-mail: elena.grifoni.winters@esa.int; wolfgang.
rathgeber@esa.int).
Manuscript received 28 March 2022; accepted 4
November 2022, and ready for publication 13 February
2023.
Review handled by Daniel O'Hagan.
0885-8985/22/$26.00 ß 2023 IEEE
50
On the nontechnical side, we are seeing new
actors-often private ones from outside the traditional
space sector, new business models, new sources
of funding like venture capital, and an evolving
political and regulatory context.
In parallel, commercial space activities are growing
quickly. New Space approaches have led to a smaller,
IEEE A&E SYSTEMS MAGAZINE
MARCH 2023
so commonplace that usually we do not even notice any
more when we use them.
If space has traditionally been its own domain, it is
becoming more and more interwoven with all other
aspects of civilization and society. Space has an enormous
geo-strategic significance. Excellence in space mirrors
global political and economic leadership.
Space also has an important economic dimension. The
global space industry could generate revenue ofUS$ 1 trillion
or more in 2040, up from currently US$ 350 billion.
And, last but not least, there is the security and military
dimension ofspace, an aspect that has become even more evident
in the context ofthe Ukrainian warwe are witnessing.
Against this backdrop Europe is firmly decided to step
up its ambition in space, to reflect its political and economic
standing, and to take a leading role in the global
space community. Europe aspires to do so not just for its
own sake, but for the benefit of the whole planet and its
inhabitants.
ESA is ready to play its part in this endeavor. It is
worth noting that ESA runs its space activities for its
Member States and in support of higher level political and
strategic objectives, such as the Paris Agreement, the U.N.
Sustainable Development Goals, or the European Green
Deal.
Space is witnessing global changes and undergoing a
fundamental transformation. This evolution, or even revolution,
is often referred to as " New Space. " It comprises
various elements such as the following.
On the technical side, it features new trends and
challenges like mini or nano satellites, mega constellations,
and the use of artificial intelligence and
machine learning.
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6869-6030 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3247-2427
IEEE - Aerospace and Electronic Systems - March 2023

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