Astroscale said its UK subsidiary received a £15 million contract from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for Project LEDA to study how spacecraft might counter rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) threats.
Astroscale Ltd is the prime contractor, and the company named BAE Systems and Open Cosmos as key partners. The announcement says the work will include building, launching and operating a spacecraft. Rear Admiral Tony Williams, Director Space Systems Portfolio, NADG, said LEDA would contribute to UK understanding of orbital warfare and possible spacecraft responses to RPO threats. The announcement did not detail the spacecraft’s design or give a mission schedule.
Williams separately described protecting the space capabilities relied on by the UK economy, society and armed forces as a broader policy objective.
The UK Space Strategy allocates £880 million to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and Space Control activities from 2026-27 through 2029-30. It presents space control as involving defensive measures as well as offensive operations. The MoD and the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) are to develop a roadmap, but the strategy gives no date for it.
Separately, the European Commission selected TAC, coordinated by French company OSMOS X, under the European Defence Fund’s 2025 calls. The proposed servicer would inspect and capture spacecraft, then attach to them through a welding-based process. The Commission lists asset protection, relocation, deorbiting and modular attachment as possible missions.
TAC is a 30-month project for studies and design. Its estimated total cost is €3,999,732.99, with a maximum EU contribution of €3,999,732.82. OSMOS X says the project involves seven partners across five European countries. EDF’s 2025 selections span 57 projects, with €1.07 billion in planned EU investment.
Astroscale says its earlier ELSA-d mission demonstrated rendezvous and magnetic capture of a client spacecraft. In 2024, its ADRAS-J mission inspected a non-cooperative rocket body from less than 15 meters away.
The European Commission said it aimed to sign grant agreements for the selected projects before the end of 2026.
