A UK-led mission aims to launch scientific instruments into low-Earth orbit (LEO) to mitigate risk from space weather phenomena.

Space weather is a consequence of the behaviour of the Sun, the nature of Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere, and our location in the Solar System. It drives changes in the electromagnetic and radiation environment in near-Earth space, in the atmosphere and at the surface. 

As such, it can represent a real threat to human technology, including satellites, power grids, communications, navigation and transport infrastructure. The most severe solar radiation storms can travel from the Sun to Earth in as little as 10 minutes.

Observations are critical to implementing timely strategies for mitigating potentially damaging space weather effects. 

At the Royal Astronomical Society’s National Astronomy Meeting being held in Durham, the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) RAL Space has proposed a new UK-led satellite mission concept called UK-ODESSI (UK-Orbital pathfinDEr for Space-borne, Space-weather Instrumentation).

The aim of UK-ODESSI is to host a suite of emergent UK-led space weather instrumentation on a small satellite platform in LEO, 500-600km altitude above Earth.

It will act as a pathfinder for a new generation of UK-developed space weather instruments to study and collect vital operational data on space weather phenomena.

It would carry a baseline payload including a solar coronagraph (SCOPE), developed at STFC RAL Space, and a high-energy particle instrument (HEPI), developed at the University of Surrey.

The SCOPE coronagraph will allow scientists to track coronal mass ejections (CME) from the Sun and forecast their arrival at Earth.

Accurate CME arrival forecasts are a central component of space weather mitigation strategies. Currently, Europe does not have this observational capability and relies on US-operated assets. 

Dr Jackie Davies, science lead for UK-ODESSI at STFC RAL Space and SCOPE instrument lead, said: “Testing a coronagraph, with its challenging stray-light requirements, is difficult on the ground.

“A low-cost LEO platform is an ideal test bed for performance verification, while also providing a level of resilience for current assets. With a validated coronagraph design, we would develop UK sovereign and European capability that could potentially be deployed on spacecraft in multiple locations.”

The other instrument onboard the mission – HEPI – will be used to measure highly energetic solar particles, specifically those with energies above 300MeV.

Professor Keith Ryden, director of Surrey Space Center at the University of Surrey and HEPI instrument lead, said: “These particles are hazardous because they are highly penetrating and can affect systems even on Earth’s surface or on aircraft.

“In situ observations of such particles are extremely limited, with data currently available from only a few locations in geostationary orbit. A validated instrument like HEPI, deployed on multiple spacecraft, would significantly improve current models used for forecasting particle radiation events.”

The mission would also serve as a test bed for other satellite technologies developed in the UK, and could help pave the way for future deployments beyond LEO.

While the development of the SCOPE and HEPI instruments are well underway, the UK-ODESSI mission is still at a conceptual level. 

If the mission is able to secure funding, a potential launch target could happen within five years.

Davies said: “Space weather is an acknowledged UK national risk. The development and deployment of instruments for forecasting, nowcasting and model validation is a critical element in the successful mitigation of this critical national risk.”

Earlier this year, a space weather monitor was installed in Cornwall, the first in over 40 years.

In June 2025, it was announced that the Orpheus satellite mission to shield UK comms from space weather is set for a 2027 launch.