On 24-25 October 2024, the Institute of Political Science at the University of Wrocław will host the next edition of the HORIZONT MARS conference series. This time under the title: Środowisko kosmiczne i naturalne środowisko Ziemi. Ochrona, zrównoważony rozwój, bezpieczeństwo i współzależność.
After the Moon and Mars, the main theme of this edition of HORIZONT MARS will therefore become the condition of the space environment, and that in the form of both the orbits surrounding Earth and the celestial bodies closest to Earth. The multidisciplinary event will traditionally begin with an opening debate entitled ‘Wpływ człowieka na środowisko kosmiczne’. Between responsibility and greed. It will be attended by representatives of the scientific world specializing in space law (prof. Dagmara Kuźniar of the University of Rzeszow), planetary geology (dr Jakub Ciążela of the Institute of Geological Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences), as well as space industry specialists including those building satellites and their optical apparatus from Scanway Industry (Mikołaj Podgórski) and, in the name of on-orbit safety, tracking satellites and space debris from Sybilla Technologies (Mariusz Słonina). The debate will be moderated by dr hab. Bartosz Smolik, a political scientist specializing in space sector research. The debate will be listened to by invited experts from the space industry and related sectors.
The rest of the conference will feature speakers with papers from various disciplines, scientific communities, as well as institutions related to the space sector. Papers on such topics as the concept of a Polish Mars mission (prof. Jan Dziuban of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology) and a Polish lunar mission (mgr inż. Jeremiasz Merkel of the Polish Space Agency) promise to be interesting. Also to be presented will be papers on the breeding of extraterrestrial extremophiles (dr Weronika Urbańska of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology, and mgr inż. Ewa Borowska of Extremo Technologies) and aquaponic systems combining aquaponic cultivation with fish farming (mgr inż. Mikołaj Gąbka). In this way, the conference will demonstrate the comprehensive usefulness of the relevant research also in terms of protection of the Earth’s environment and reclamation of hard-to-reach areas on the planet in accordance with the motto: space for Earth.
A lot of space will also be devoted to geological studies of the space environment including the Moon (dr Anna Łosiak of the Institute of Geological Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, prof. Tadeusz Przylibski of Wrocław University of Science and Technology), micrometeorites (dr Grzegorz Ziemniak of the University of Wrocław). In this way, the conference will continue previously initiated themes of geological research, including those of preparation for exploration and exploitation of the Silver Globe. Exploration of other celestial bodies will also be devoted to papers on the use of cold plasma (dr inż. Krzysztof Zaraska of the Institute of Microelectronics and Photonics from Kraków) and power systems on spacecraft (dr Krzysztof Lewandowski of the Mars Society Poland). A huge highlight of the first day of the conference is expected to be the presentation of the Scorpio 8 rover built by students from the Wrocław University of Science and Technology.
The title issue of space environmental sustainability is also of considerable interest to representatives of political science and legal science. The papers of political scientists will be devoted to the issues of international competition for the Moon (dr Agnieszka Zaręba from the Catholic University of Lublin), the use of satellite systems to support the demand for the borders of the European Union (dr Anna Szachoń-Pszenny from the Catholic University of Lublin), cooperation of the Visegrad Group countries in the space sector (dr Aneta Bąk-Pitucha), European initiatives for sustainable space (dr hab. Bartosz Smolik), the prospects for US-Russian cooperation in space after the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine (prof. Paweł Frankowski of Jagiellonian University), and finally space issues in the thought and activities of the Polish People’s Party (dr Radosław Kubicki of Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce). A whole group of papers on the security and militarization of space are also scheduled for the second day (dr Rafal Kopeć and dr Tomasz Wójtowicz from the Pedagogical University of Cracow, dr Ridwan Biriiev from the University of Warsaw).
On the second day of the conference, the problem of militarization of space will also appear in some papers by lawyers. In this context, the problem of including military activity from under international regulations, as well as the performance of military missions by private entities will be shown (prof. Katarzyna Malinowska of Kozminski University). Other papers, meanwhile, will deal with activities for the environmental security of space and, indirectly, the Earth (prof. Dagmara Kuźniar), space production as a factor in the creation of astrogravity law (mgr Kamil Muzyka from the “Prawo i Kosmos” portal), the application of human rights in space and the space sector (dr hab. Zuzanna Kulinska-Kępa from the University of Warsaw). There will also be a paper on cosmic mythology by dr hab. Barbara Rogowska (University of Wrocław).
A kind of introduction to the ethical aspects of space will be a paper presenting a feminist critique of space exploration (prof. Konrad Szocik from the University of Information Technology and Management based in Rzeszów). Ethical issues will be further developed in the closing debate entitled: Etyka ekspansji kosmicznej. It will be attended by dr Anna Cichecka, dr Urszula Lisowska (from the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Wrocłąw), as well as prof. Konrad Szocik, mgr Kamil Muzyka. The debate will be moderated by dr Wojciech Ufel of the standing of the Anthropocene Political Research Team. It promises to be a lively and interesting discussion on the human presence in space.
It should be noted that the conference was held under the honorary patronage of the Minister of Science and Higher Education, the Polish Space Agency, the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences, the Marshal of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is also co-financed by the Wrocław Academic Center. Its main organiser is the Mars Society Poland, in addition to the UWr Institute of Political Science it is also co-organized by the Polish Society for European Studies branch in Wrocław and the Polish Society for Political Science branch in Wrocław. Audience registration has already been launched on the conference website: horyzontmars.pl. Regardless, anyone who would like to learn more about the space environment issues discussed during the conference is invited.
