An Overview of the Space Servicing Requirements in a Sustainable Space Age

Space-based services are flourishing motivated by new needs in fields like communication, navigationNavigation \b and Earth observation. The increasing demand for space infrastructureInfrastructure \i has stimulated the deployment of innovative technological solutions; however, among the latest developments, on-orbit servicing of spacecraft is not yet implemented in most commercial programs. This chapter explores the opportunities for developing a sustainable and economically viable solution based on on-orbit servicing to extend spacecraft life-time and to reconfigure its main payloads to adapt to new needs. The last section proposes a roadmap for the development and progressive application of the new technologies, aiming at implementing on-orbit servicing on a regular basis for commercial spacecraft.