Space research: The key to cosmic environmental stewardship

COSPAR, because of its broad coverage of the various scientific disciplines that benefit from space and of its close proximity to all space exploration stakeholders, is the ideal body where to develop and implement this win-win partnership between Science and Exploration. For 67 years, COSPAR has led international scientific cooperation in space, promoting peace and collaboration on a global scale.

Founded during the Cold War as a neutral forum, COSPAR has consistently facilitated vital dialogue and partnerships across the global space community. In today’s rapidly advancing space sector, COSPAR’s role is more crucial than ever. While COSPAR mainly represents space scientists and space sciences, its effective collaboration with other stakeholders is essential to ensure that the latest scientific knowledge informs space policy and regulations. In particular, partnerships between industry and research organizations, key to strengthening the space ecosystem—uniting expertise, resources, and innovation to accelerate progress in technology and exploration, are vigorously discussed within its Committee on Industrial Relations (CIR).

COSPAR was also one key partner in a recent initiative to define so-called ‘Sites of Special Scientific Interest’ (SSSI) on the Moon. The objective is to agree with all concerned stakeholders on an international process to define SSSI and enforce their preservation, taking stock of existing scientific as well as industrial constraints and requirements. The related discussion with several partners, the International Astronomical Union (IAU), the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and the Moon Village Association (MVA-GEGSLA), has led to the submission of a Conference Room Paper on this matter, which was delivered by COSPAR, IAU, IAA and MVA at the February 2025 meeting of UNCOPUOS’ Scientific and Technical Subcommittee.¹

With 48 national scientific institutions and 13 international scientific unions, COSPAR draws on the expertise of over 14,000 space scientists. Its eight scientific commissions span all disciplines of space science, offering unique fora where to discuss all the components of science contributing to exploration, while 16 panels and task groups address specialized topics, driving progress through biennial Scientific Assemblies, symposia, space projects, roadmaps, and publications.

The COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection (PPP) has, for over six decades, upheld the principles of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. It provides guidance on avoiding biological contamination of celestial bodies and protecting Earth from extraterrestrial matter, by developing and disseminating international standards. This work is carried out in collaboration with space agencies, scientists, industry, and UNCOPUOS representatives. COSPAR recently released its updated Planetary Protection Policy.² The COSPAR Panel on Potentially Environmentally Detrimental Activities in Space (PEDAS) tackles space debris issues, including research on upper atmosphere contamination and policy development for managing cislunar space debris.

The COSPAR Panel on Exploration (PEX) represents the interests of scientists from all disciplines and from all countries in an exploration endeavor which is naturally led by public, international and more and more private entities, i.e. the “stakeholders”, and is therefore only partly “science driven”. Building on the heritage of the previous COSPAR Exploration RoadMap³, it will coordinate the drafting of a new edition of this COSPAR Exploration RoadMap that will address three overarching goals:

• A - Promote Space Sciences (or science in space) as Key Drivers of Space Exploration (without limiting them to natural sciences)
• B - Maximize the Scientific Return of space exploration by stimulating International Cooperation for the benefit of all sciences in space
• C - Promote Environmental Stewardship in Space Exploration

In addition to COSPAR, other organizations such as the Secure World Foundation, the Lunar Policy Platform and several others are drawing attention to our ethical and moral obligations towards sustainable space exploration.

The imminent involvement of commercial interests—while a valuable source of resources—heightens the need to establish appropriate boundary conditions, a topic several of the authors explore with support from the John Templeton Foundation. In a recent article, Peeters & Ehrenfreund (2025) proposed the key elements and steps needed to support future space exploration strategies and reach a balanced agreement⁴:

• Advancing innovative space ecosystem funding
• Accelerating regulatory frameworks for fast implementation
• Encouraging cross-cultural and interdisciplinary cooperation
• Driving progress in sustainable and ethical practices
• Enhancing communication with societal stakeholders

As the first permanent organization granted observer status to UNCOPUOS in 1962, COSPAR closely supports the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) through its integration into UN technical committees. Other COSPAR panels—like Innovative Solutions (PoIS) and Capacity Building—develop technologies and strengthen global engagement in sustainable space initiatives.

In conclusion, COSPAR's multifaceted efforts to promote knowledge exchange, foster innovation and build partnerships underscore its dedication to integrating the latest scientific research into policy and regulatory frameworks and establishing agile and effective coordination mechanisms for the environmental stewardship of celestial bodies. COSPAR intends in particular to contribute to the establishment of systematic environmental impact assessments ahead of mission planning. Through this multi‑panel, science-driven framework, COSPAR plays a pivotal role in defining, researching, and advocating sustainability standards in space—integrating environmental integrity, scientific preservation, and global policy coordination.

Authors:

P. Ehrenfreund¹, M. Blanc², N. Hedman³, T. Masson-Zwaan⁴, W. Peeters⁵, J.C. Worms^3
1 Space Policy Institute, George Washington University, Washington DC
² Research Institute in Astrophysics and Planetology (IRAP), CNRS-University Toulouse III – CNES, Toulouse, France
³ Committee on Space Research COSPAR, Paris, France
⁴ Leiden University, International Institute of Air and Space Law, The Netherlands
⁵ International Space University, Illkirch Graffenstaden, France

Footnotes:

¹ https://www.unoosa.org/res/oosadoc/data/documents/2025/aac_105c_12025crp/aac_105c_12025crp_18_0_html/AC105_C1_2025_CRP18E.pdf

²  https://cosparhq.cnes.fr/assets/uploads/2024/07/PP-Policy_SRT_220-July2024.pdf

³  https://cosparhq.cnes.fr/assets/uploads/2024/01/Roadmap_Exploration_Final-as-Published-in-ASR.pdf

⁴  https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/space.2024.0041