Space is getting crowded. Every day, more satellites are launched into Earth’s orbit. Over 11,000 satellites are already active, with thousands more on the way. Add in 1.2 million pieces of space debris larger than one centimeter, and the risk of collision is no longer hypothetical.
For satellite operators, avoiding collisions is now a regular part of the job. This is why the European Space Agency (ESA) is backing a project that could help prevent chaos. The mission is called CREAM – Collision Risk Estimation and Automated Mitigation.
Developed under ESA’s Space Safety Program, CREAM is designed to lighten the load on satellite operators, reduce false alarms, speed up decisions, and ultimately make spaceflight safer.
Automating a messy process
Risk assessments and avoidance plans currently require a lot of human attention. Communicating between satellite operators is often difficult. Sometimes it doesn’t happen at all. And when it does, it’s usually improvised. The CREAM system aims to change that.
The vision is simple: let software handle as much of the process as possible. CREAM can evaluate potential collisions, draft maneuver plans, help operators make decisions, and support communication between parties. It can even make it easier for future space regulators to keep track of everything.
A unique part of the system is being built specifically to help different players in the space industry talk to each other more easily.
Whether it’s operators, service providers, regulators, or observers, CREAM is designed to bring them together on the same platform. This level of collaboration is especially useful when the potential collision involves two functioning satellites, not just debris.
In many cases, CREAM may help operators negotiate solutions with minimal back-and-forth. And when disagreements arise, it doesn’t just freeze up.
CREAM can escalate disputes to a mediation service, ensuring fairness and flexibility while keeping space assets safe.
CREAM readies for space trials
The prototype system – built by GMV and Guardtime – is currently operational from the ground. It can already send out collision alerts, suggest avoidance maneuvers, and support communication between operators. Now, the system is moving into a new phase of testing.
The next step will expand how the system is used and add more decision-making capabilities. At the same time, real-life space tests are in the works.
Some of these tests are “piggyback missions,” where the system will fly as part of another satellite’s payload. Others involve a full, dedicated demonstration mission.
The team behind CREAM believes the system can do more than prevent crashes. It could also support future efforts to set rules for traffic in orbit.
“The problem with establishing any kind of ‘rules of the road’ depends not only on the need to find consensus on such rules, but also on the availability of the technologies to make them a reality – a kind of chicken-and-egg problem,” the researchers said.
CREAM isn’t just about day-to-day collision avoidance. It’s also built with long-term change in mind – including how future space traffic might be managed and regulated.
“CREAM can support future space traffic management frameworks by offering a standardized toolset allowing operators to comply with best practices and rules, and regulators to monitor compliance,” the team explained.
“It is designed to be highly adaptable, allowing non-technical users to define evolving standards within the system. This flexibility ensures long-term relevance as best practice, international norms, and technologies will mature.”
Managing the satellite surge
The number of satellites in orbit is expected to grow dramatically in the next decade. That means more data, more services, and more opportunity – but also more risk. Managing all of it with current tools isn’t realistic.
CREAM is just one example of how space safety is evolving to meet future demands. It is not only helping solve today’s coordination issues, but also laying the foundation for what comes next: traffic rules, shared standards, and global systems that can scale.
Space isn’t lawless, but it is complex. Systems like CREAM make it easier to stay ahead of problems, instead of cleaning up after them.
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