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Astroscale satellite successfully removes space debris in first demo

Unveiled back in March, Astroscale developed a magnetic satellite capable of removing debris orbiting our planet. This week it has successfully completed its first outer space demo.

This week, scientists hit a major milestone in the aim of removing space junk from our atmosphere.

Back in March, we covered a story on Japanese-UK space solutions company Astroscale and its vision to create a magnetic satellite capable of removing decommissioned hardware cluttering Earth’s orbit lanes.

Despite being launched into Zero-G from Kazakhstan months ago, the ELSA-d and its client spacecraft – designed to test the docking magnet’s effectiveness at grabbing and releasing space debris – had been dormant up until a breakthrough moment on Wednesday (August 28th).

Just as engineers at Astroscale had hoped, the 400lb device was able to successfully capture and release a mock piece of debris autonomously in outer space.

 

‘This test demonstration served as a successful validation of ELSA-d’s ability to dock with a client, such as a defunct satellite,’ the company explained.

Now that the training wheels are fully off, three more ‘capture-and-release’ trials must be ticked off before any potential full-scale commission.

The first will see the docking magnet attempt to grab the client from a further distance, and the second will repeat the process but with the client simulating an erratic tumbling state – rolling over itself on its vertical axis, think of ‘topspin’ on a tennis ball.

If the experiments play out as expected, a final demonstration will see the satellite inspect the client from a close distance, move away, and then approach again for re-capture. This will validate claims that all AI navigation systems are good to go in the wild.

Provided something doesn’t go horribly wrong in the following weeks and months, Astroscale’s magnum opus will be put to work making a dent in the purported 27,000 pieces of debris floating around planet – according to NASA.

With multiple units deployed along three cluttered orbit lanes between 500km and 550km above Earth, ELSA-d satellites will automatically seek out discarded hardware from missions past, and will drag  items into lower orbit where they will burn up and perish upon re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere.

Sounds blissfully satisfying doesn’t it?

As the costs of developing and launching spacecrafts continue to decline, associated projects are predicted to grow at a ridiculous rate. Without establishing ways of clearing existing junk, future space research will almost certainly become unpredictable, risky, and downright dangerous.

As you’re reading this, billionaire tech tycoons like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are racing to establish their own low-orbit internet constellations for Space X and Amazon.

Pair these endless droves of satellites with many emerging climate change innovations, and we’re looking at around 1,000 units being launched every year throughout the 2020s.

While these stats are obviously alarming, it’s promising to see progress being made in improving space sustainability in both government reform and practical solutions.

An international framework drawn up by the UN has set out criteria for space agencies to manage space-traffic and ensure that clearing our atmosphere remains a realistic project.

On that front, it’s looking like the ELSA-d will kickstart our initial clean-up efforts.

 

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