E-SWAN Sustainability Webinar 4
Life cycle assessment in practice : the case of Athena X-ray Integral Field Unit
by Andreas Wolnievik (IRAP, Toulouse)
Wednesday, 20th November 2024
Abstract The X-ray Integral Field Unit (X-IFU) is a high-resolution X-ray spectrometer developed by twelve ESA member states and the United States and will be one of the two payloads aboard the Athena X-ray Observatory. To evaluate its environmental impact, X-IFU commissioned SCALIAN, a company specializing in environmental impact assessments, to perform a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The resulting report estimated the project's carbon footprint at 25,000 tons of CO2 equivalent.
During 2022, a redesign of the X-IFU project was called for following the System Requirements Review. In view of the changes, a Life cycle Assessment was decided to be carried inhouse at IRAP in France during 2024 to obtain an updated model and access understanding of the tools and processes used for carrying out an LCA on a large-scale space project. Completed in the autumn of 2024, the new study focused on the phases leading up to the launch campaign, incorporating more detailed data on areas previously identified as hotspots. The objective was to explore scenarios for reducing environmental impact while preserving the scientific integrity of the instrument.
Andreas Wolnievik completed his master’s degree at Luleå University in autumn 2024, specializing in space and atmosphere physics. Between 2019 and 2022, he contributed to the ASTER project, which launched on a sounding rocket as part of the REXUS programme during 2023. While in Sweden, he worked at Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) with the rocket and balloon launch team, and at LKAB, a company in the front edge of the green transition within the iron industry. In 2021, he studied in South Korea through an exchange program where he specialized in Thermal science. Most recently, he is conducting an LCA project at IRAP, France, in collaboration with Didier Barret and Jürgen Knödlseder, finishing in autumn of 2024.