A Hybrid Framework for Space Debris Mitigation: Combining Feedback Control and Detailed Environment Models

The rapid expansion of space activities has brought concerns over the long-term sustainability of Earth’s orbital environment, which requires carefully planned and effectively implemented mitigation strategies. While high-fidelity environmental models enable detailed scenario analyses, their complexity limits the applicability of control-based methods for automated mitigation planning. To bridge this gap, this work integrates a nonlinear feedback controller with an extended particle-in-a-box model to automatically determine optimal allocations of post-mission disposal compliance and active debris removal rates. These control-derived mitigation profiles are then transferred to COMETA, a high-resolution debris evolution simulator, to assess their performance in a realistic setting. Results show that the controlled PIB model captures the key mechanisms governing long-term debris population dynamics and produces mitigation strategies that remain effective when applied to the detailed simulator, especially within the actively managed orbital region. This hybrid modeling and control framework offers a scalable foundation for future research, supports the development of policy-relevant mitigation planning, and provides a promising pathway toward automated and data-driven management of the orbital environment.