Support space operations for a sustainable future

Team fundraiser

Gaia Roncalli and 5 others are organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

THIS CROWDFUNDING IS CLOSED

⭐️ The initial goal of our crowdfunding was €5000. Thanks to your extreme generosity and because it is open until January 15th, we have decided to add a special level of 7500 euros.

This will allow us to pay additional expenses related to the creation of our company in the Netherlands.

Whatever the outcome of this new level, our first goal has already been reached and we send you a thousand thanks for that! ⭐️

Ecosmic is the story of six students and young professionals passionate about space safety and sustainability. Our adventure started in the middle of 2021, and with time, we decided to evolve Ecosmic and our ambitions.

The main problem that we want to tackle is space debris. Currently, there are 5000 active satellites in orbit with a 30% growth rate and an estimated 100 million pieces of space debris, which travel at very high speed and risk colliding with and destroying operational satellites.

Detecting these potential collisions is a complex process that results in many false alarms and dramatically affects the work of satellite operators. To address this issue, the main innovation of Ecosmic is the System to Avoid Fatal Events (SAFE), which is the result of one of the members’ master thesis. SAFE is Ecosmic’s first product: this ground-based software presents itself with an interface that space operators can easily use to enhance and speed up the collision avoidance process.

For the moment, all the members of Ecosmic (who are graduates or soon-to-be graduates) are leading this adventure in their free time and with passion. We hope to be able to make this project even more concrete over time. Since the creation of the group a year and a half ago, we have participated in many events, incubators, and competitions and won some grants to help us in our activity.

Unfortunately, we cannot use the support provided by these different grants because we are not established as a company.

Establishing ourselves as a company involves costs that we cannot afford yet. These costs are legal charges, events to publicize ourselves, but also renting premises in Noordwijk. It is also impossible for us to use the grant money for this.

This is why we need your support and are appealing to your generosity to help us found our company and access the aid we have earned. We also need your help to make Ecosmic evolve serenely so we can consider carrying out this project professionally.

You can find more information about our team, the use of the campaign and the rewards below :)

What is Ecosmic?

Ecosmic is the story of six students and young professionals passionate about space safety and sustainability. Our adventure started in the middle of 2021, thanks to a business start-up competition at the TU Delft aerospace faculty in the Netherlands. During this competition, Ecosmic was born and grew to 6 members, 5 of whom came from the faculty.

With time, we decided to evolve Ecosmic and our ambitions. The team comprises five engineers and one graphic designer to make this project a reality. We are also accompanied by a professor of TU Delft who supports us as advisor.

The main problem that Ecosmic wants to tackle is space debris. Currently, there are 5000 active satellites in orbit with a 30% growth rate, and an estimated 100 million pieces of space debris, which travel at very high speed and risk colliding and destroying operational satellites.

Debris and satellites travel approximately at 25000 km/h, and most are concentrated in the same orbits and altitudes. Additionally, in most cases, we don’t know precisely the position of the debris. Imagine driving a car in a high-speed highway with your eyes closed - this is how space operators feel daily.

What is Ecosmic doing?

To address this issue, our main innovation is SAFE, which results from one of the members’ master thesis. SAFE is Ecosmic’s first product: this ground-based software presents itself with an interface that space operators can easily use to enhance and speed up the collision avoidance process. Operators input characteristics of their spacecraft, such as mass, state and state uncertainty, and SAFE provides collision probability estimation, using an innovative in-house developed algorithm and, if necessary, also performs an optimization process based on the clients needs to suggest collision avoidance maneuvers.

Compared to similar solutions, the main advantage of this algorithm is that it provides better accuracy when computing the collision risk for a wide range of scenarios. This reduces overestimation in the detection of collision risk and limits the number of false alarms, and reduces the burden on satellite operators.

left: diagram of how the SAFE software works

right: diagram of how the SAFE hardware software works

What is the state of Ecosmic now?

Since the creation of the group a year and a half ago, we have participated in many events, incubators and competitions.

The first highlight for our team from an economic point of view is that we won the Take Off grant. This grant was awarded to us by the Netherlands Research Council, the most significant scientific funding body in the Netherlands.

Why do we need your help?

The problem is that we cannot use the support provided by this grant because we are not established as a company.

Establishing ourselves as a company involves costs that we cannot afford. These costs are legal charges, events to publicize ourselves, and the payment of premises within Noordwijk. It is also impossible for us to use the grant money for this. This is why we are currently stuck at a crucial stage in our evolution. If taken, this step would allow us to take a big step and make Ecosmic a reality, which we have all worked on for more than a year.

Concretely, what will it fund?

We aim for this donation campaign for 5,000 euros, spread over three levels. This amount will be used to pay for various items:

First level at 1,500 euros:

This first level will allow us to open the company, which is expensive as there are six members of Ecosmic in different countries.

This level will also be used to pay the charges linked to the creation of the company and the registration at the Chamber of Commerce.

Second level at 3,500 euros:

This second level will allow us to set up offices on a part-time basis, to carry out our activity and to have a place to develop our product thanks to the help provided by our grants.

Third level at 5,000 euros:

The third level will help us to establish our network as a real company in events and conferences, which we have been attending so far by paying from our own pocket.

This support may allow us to participate in events not as an audience but as an exhibitor.

Fourth exceptional level at 7,500 euros

This level will allow us to pay additional expenses related to the creation of our company in the Netherlands.

In return

⭐️Important: In accordance with GoFundMe's data protection policy, we are unable to contact you by email.

Please keep an eye on your GoFundMe email, especially around January 15 (the end date of the crowdfunding), as the GoFundMe email platform is our only way of getting in touch with you and sending you the rewards.⭐️

We have chosen not to offer any physical goodies as rewards so that the actions of this crowdfunding remain in line with our desire for sustainability. However, we have thought about symbolic rewards to involve you in our adventure and share with you our gratitude! Here is what we propose in return, according to different degrees of donations:

For all donors, whatever the amount, you will receive a digital illustration by our scientific illustrator on the theme of space sustainability. You will also receive a newsletter on our evolution, including polls and participative quizzes if you wish to be involved in Ecosmic's evolution :)
For all donors above 20 euros, you will also receive a logbook, which deals with the life and evolution of the team from a more personal point of view, including photos and illustrations.
The top 3 donors will also receive by post a print by our scientific illustrator on the theme of space sustainability and the opportunity to chat for an hour online with one or more of our experts of your choice.
The top donor will also be invited to our future offices in the Netherlands to spend time with the team and tour the premises.

Who is behind Ecosmic?

Ecosmic comprises six young professionals from different backgrounds who met each other during internships or at school. Here is a more detailed presentation of the members of this beautiful team:

Benedetta studied aerospace engineering in Italy and then graduated with a MSc in Space Flight at TU Delft. As the CEO, she takes care of the management of the team and external relations. At the same time, she stays involved in the product technical development.

She loves sports, such as hiking, skiing, climbing, running, and even doing (half) marathons! She likes to cook and definitely tries to avoid any Italian restaurants abroad.

Mireia studied aerospace engineering in Spain and then went on to do the Master's degree in Space Flight at TU Delft. Mireia is the technical manager of the team, she created our product during her Master thesis and is in charge of the advice for all the technical parts. She loves camping and climbing, although now that she lives in Paris she has started to appreciate the offer and bustle of city life.

Salvatore also studied space engineering in Italy and did a Master in Space Flight in Delft. He is the business developer of Ecosmic. He supports the business part and is in charge of finding investments. He loves playing sports, especially running and swimming, but also goes on adventures, hiking in nature and discovering other countries!

Enrique, who has the same background as Mireia, is a GNC engineer in the technical team and will be in charge of developing the Ecosmic product.

He likes cooking, to the team's delight, but also climbing a lot (maybe we should create a climbing start-up after all?).

Gaia studied space engineering in Italy and then did a Master in Space Flight in Delft. She is the COO of Ecosmic; she manages the business part, the organization and the contacts with potential partners and clients. Finally, she is in charge of the strategic choices for the future of Ecosmic.

She loves the mountains, which is not very practical as she lives in the Netherlands. Fortunately, she also loves contemporary art and reading, especially classical literature.

Sacha studied design and specialized in scientific illustration design during a Master. Within Ecosmic, she manages the communication and graphic content. She is in charge of making complex concepts accessible and giving an identity to the start-up. She loves science, especially astronomy, music, and going out into nature to walk and draw her surroundings.