Japanese Space Firm to Launch Satellite That Will Use Magnets to Clean Space Junk

Japanese private company Astroscale is set to launch the world's first satellite that will use magnets to collect space junk.

Using a pair of satellites called ELSA-d, Astroscale will be using the opportunity to demonstrate the first of its end-to-end testing of key technologies for clearing out space debris surrounding the planet. Through this, the Japanese firm aims to speed up the discussion and creation of government policies around the world toward addressing this space debris problem.

The 200-kilogram satellite will test the execution and feasibility of using magnetic systems to collect space debris floating in space near Earth. Once the tests are done, ELSA-d is expected to burn up upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere - but not before sending crucial data that is expected to guide future missions and policymaking.

Awaiting a New Launch Date

The Astroscale ELSA-d satellites are among the passengers in the Soyuz-2.1a, originally set for a March 20 (Saturday) launch. However, the rocket launch - also intended to carry a South Korean sensing satellite and other smaller payloads - was postponed to a later date after a problem in the rocket's upper stage was detected. The South Korean Ministry of Science and ICT, the primary customer for the ridesharing mission, first reported the postponement.

In a statement, the South Korean ministry reported finding a "Fregat control system problem" during the last-minute check-up of the three-stage Russian Rocket. Aside from the Astroscale load, among the payloads of the grounded launch is the half-ton CAS500-1 remote sensing satellite for the Korean space agency, Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI).

At the Russian Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the launch was grounded about an hour before its schedule, 11:07 AM local time.

A little while later, Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin confirmed the delay in the state-owned news outlet Sputnik, postponing the launch until Sunday, March 21. "There was a power surge, and we decided not to risk it," the Russian space agency head declared.

Tackling the Space Debris Problem

The increasing volume of space debris has become a significant problem for current space missions. Even the International Space Station is preparing evasive maneuvers if a piece of discarded spacecraft or any other space junk gets on a collision course with the station. Last September, the ISS relied on a Russian Progress resupply spacecraft for the evasive maneuver, even forcing the crew onboard to relocate a docked Soyuz spacecraft until the debris passed through.

Peter Beck, founder and CEO of American aerospace firm Rocket Lab recognized the threat of growing congestion in space. As an operator of space ridesharing services, Rocket Lab is feeling the difficulties of rocket launches having to "try and weave their way up," evading space debris and the thousands of satellites comprising various constellations in space.

This problem, known as the Kessler syndrome of the ablation cascade, was proposed as a theorized scenario as early as 1978 by NASA scientist Donald Kessler. It simply stated that space pollution - like debris and other man-made objects on low Earth orbit - would continue to increase and increase risks of collisions - even setting up a potential domino effect of space collisions.

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