This article originally appeared in Orbital Debris Quarterly News, Volume 24, Issue 1, February 2020.

The latest version of the Orbital Debris Engineering Model, ORDEM 3.1, has been released. ORDEM 3.1 uses the same model framework as its predecessor, ORDEM 3.0. It incorporates the latest high-fidelity datasets to build and validate representative orbital debris populations encompassing low Earth orbit (LEO) to geosynchronous orbit (GEO) altitudes for the years 2016-2050. 

ORDEM 3.1 is appropriate for engineering solutions requiring knowledge and estimates of the Earth-related orbital debris environment (debris spatial density, flux, etc.). The model also can be used to predict ground-based debris measurement observations. ORDEM 3.1 is available from the NASA Software Catalog. To begin the process, click on the Request Now! button in the catalog at https://software.nasa.gov/software/MSC-25457-1, as shown in the figure. Approval for ORDEM is on a per project basis: approval encompasses activities and personnel working within the project scope identified in the application. A new approval form is required to download ORDEM 3.1, even if a current user has been approved for and has an earlier version.