Nick Shave joined Astroscale in June 2022 to lead the development of the Astroscale business in the UK and Europe, in particular the Active Debris Removal, Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO), and End of Life servicing business areas. He is a senior leader with extensive experience built up over 30 years in the UK and European space industry. Over the last 3 years, Astroscale UK has grown to become one of the largest and most innovative companies in the UK space industry and a major player in global space sector.

Prior to Astroscale, Nick was Vice President at Inmarsat, the global satellite operator, and previously held senior managerial and engineering roles at CGI, Logica, Thales Alenia Space France, Airbus Space & Defence UK, and the UK MOD Defence Research Agency.

Nick was Chair of UKspace from 2020 to 2022. In this role, he led the industrial engagement with the Government on the first National Space Strategy which was published in September 2021. He was Chair of the UKspace In-Orbit Servicing and Manufacturing (IOSM) Committee from 2022 to 2024 during which time the emergent In-orbit Servicing, Assembly & Manufacturing (ISAM) market was identified as one of five national capability goals in the UK Government Space Industrial Plan.

Nick is educated to MBA level and holds a Masters in Space Systems Engineering from University College London. He is a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and a Trustee of the charity UK Students for Exploration and Development of Space. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Earth and Space Sustainability Initiative (ESSI).

Nick was awarded the Geofrey Pardoe Space Award for “Long and Valued Service to the Space Industry” by the Royal Aeronautical Society in December 2023.

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Julia Balm is a Research Associate at the Freeman Air and Space Institute in the School of Security Studies, King’s College London.

She researches contemporary space power with a particular focus on the needs and motivations of current and emerging space powers. She held the first fully-funded FASI studentship from 2020-2023 for a thesis building a theoretical framework for the New Space Age. The result of this research project is a space power theory that utilizes interdisciplinary methods. Julia has advocated for an interdisciplinary approach to the space domain, working across the House of Lords, Ministry of Defence, Secretary of State's Office for Net Assessments and Challenge, and the Defence Academy to deliver research on cross sector strategy and pan-governmental approaches to security challenges.

Julia is a Junior Non-Resident Associate Fellow in the NATO Defence College. She also teaches officer courses on air and space power at the Joint Services Command and Staff College for the Royal Air Force.

Julia holds a PhD in space strategy and an MA in Non-Proliferation and International Security from King’s College London as well as an Honours BA from the University of Toronto.

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