In order to help operators subject to the FSOA to comply with the requirements of the Technical Regulations (RT), or to demonstrate compliance in the context of an request for authorisation, CNES provides them with a best practice guide (GBP) referred to under article 54 of the Technical Regulations.
Use of this guide is not mandatory, but serves as a guide for operators who need solutions to meet the FSOA criteria. Compliance with the French Technical Regulations is thus presumed if the recommendations of the GBP are respected.
This guide, written by a group of CNES experts in consultation with operators and manufacturers in the sector, is based on practices validated by experience gained in the development, operation and control of space systems. It refers, in particular, to standards and normative technical specifications, as well as standards recognised by stakeholders in the space sector on the safety of property, individuals, public health and the environment when conducting space
It includes recommendations on orbital system design (design of space objects, choice of orbits) and recommendations on operations (collision avoidance management, passivation and de-orbiting strategy).
It contains methods for calculating or assessing the quantities associated with certain articles, such as the probability of successful operations for disposal, re-entry times, ground risk, environmental impact, etc. The guide also describes the software tools (STELA, DEBRISK, ELECTRA) that can be used to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of these articles, and explains how they work and how to configure them, though it is not a replacement for the user manuals, which CNES also makes available to users.
All the articles of the Technical Regulations, with the exception of those that do not require further clarification, are covered in the GBP. A correspondence matrix with hypertext links at the beginning of the document enables the reader to easily find the chapter that corresponds to a given article of the Technical Regulations.
This guide has been completely updated and incorporates the latest developments in the French Technical Regulations applicable from July 2024. New chapters have been added, such as those dealing with on-orbit servicing, constellations and mission extensions. Against a backdrop of increasing space traffic density, the chapter on collision avoidance management has also been expanded and improved.
This guide can therefore be seen as a kind of review of space objects claiming to respect the orbital and terrestrial environment, in the context of a changing landscape due to the emergence of NewSpace. Updates will be made in line with changes to the orbital context and the French Technical Regulation.
It is available in the Orbital Systems Documentation section of this site or directly by clicking on the image below.
