Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, with reference to the Department’s press release entitled World-first mission puts UK expertise to work to help clean up space, published on 15 October 2026, what contingency plans are in place if the spacecraft fails to capture either of the targeted satellites or is unable to complete their controlled de-orbiting.

If the chosen satellites for removal (the targets) are unsuitable, or capture proves too difficult due to unforeseen circumstances, there are contingency targets selected.

In case of spacecraft failure there are multiple backup systems onboard the spacecraft to ensure reliability and therefore mission success.

The chosen targets are intact at present, if any spacecraft operation risks damaging the targets, mission will be aborted. A primary mission objective is safety and to ensure no debris is created – we would rather take no action and conduct solo testing and derisking of novel systems and sensors, utilising the crucial space heritage that the mission provides, than risk damaging the targets or creating debris.