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Astronomy is the study of the Universe and all the objects that it comprises. Our attention is therefore usually focused beyond Earth, home to the only form of life known today. However, how can we continue to explore the secrets of the…
The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) makes certain assumptions which guide all current search programs. To illustrate some, this includes (1) that interstellar flight is not possible (2) that the motivations of interstellar…
The European Strategy for Particle Physics (ESPP) - 2026 update is taking place in a turbulent international climate. Many of the norms that have governed relations between states for decades are being broken or challenged. The future…
FAIR principles have the intent to act as a guideline for those wishing to enhance the reusability of their data holdings and put specific emphasis on enhancing the ability of machines to automatically find and use the data, in addition to…
Education is a prerequisite to master the challenges of space science and technology. Efforts to understand and control space science and technology are necessarily intertwined with social expressions in the cultures where science and…
Human activities degrade the Earth environment at an unprecedented scale and pace, threatening Earth-system stability, resilience and life-support functions. We can of course deny the facts, get angry about them, or try to bargain. Or we…
Studying potential global catastrophes is vital. The high stakes of existential risk studies (ERS) necessitate serious scrutiny and self-reflection. We argue that existing approaches to studying existential risk are not yet fit for purpose,…
There is a growing appreciation that the environmental conditions that we call space weather impact the technological infrastructure that powers the coupled economies around the world. With that comes the need to better shield society…
Human activity continues to have an enormous negative impact on the ability of the planet to sustain human and other forms of life. Six out of the nine planetary boundaries have been crossed, a seventh is close to threshold. Prominent…
Climate change and environmental concerns represent a global crisis accompanied by significant economic challenges. Regular international conferences held to address these issues, such as in the UK (2021) and Egypt (2022), spark debate…
The existence of intelligent extraterrestrial life forms among the thousands of billions of galaxies that dance in the Universe is beyond doubt. Meeting with one of them is only a matter of time. SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial…
A recently discovered group of nearby co-orbital objects is an attractive location for extraterrestrial intelligence (ETI) to locate a probe to observe Earth while not being easily seen. These near-Earth objects provide an ideal way to…
The national space programs have an historic opportunity to help solve the global-scale economic and environmental problems of Earth while becoming more effective at science through the use of space resources. Space programs will be more…
The historical development of ground based astronomical telescopes leads us to expect that space-based astronomical telescopes will need to be operational for many decades. The exchange of scientific instruments in space will be a…
Research on fairness, accountability, transparency and ethics of AI-based interventions in society has gained much-needed momentum in recent years. However it lacks an explicit alignment with a set of normative values and principles that…
Militaries around the world have long been cognizant of the potential benefits associated with autonomous systems both in the conduct of warfare and in its prevention. This has lead to the declaration by some that this technology will lead…
Ours could realistically be the generation to discover evidence of life beyond Earth. With this privileged potential comes responsibility. The magnitude of the question, "are we alone?", and the public interest therein, opens the…
With the upcoming launch of large constellations of satellites in the low-Earth orbit (LEO) region it will become important to organize the physical space occupied by the different operating satellites in order to minimize critical…
Spaceborne systems, such as communication satellites, sensory, surveillance, GPS and a multitude of other functionalities, form an integral part of global ICT cyberinfrastructures. However, a focussed discourse highlighting the distinctive…
Astrophysics and planetary science are in crisis. The large missions we need for the next generation of observations cost too much to let us do more than one at a time. This spreads the science out onto a generational timescale, inhibiting…