The Earth is surrounded by spacecraft which conduct important tasks such as delivering global communication, studying the climate, and providing navigation services. However, some of them are getting crowded and releasing deadly, fast-moving pieces of debris, posing risks to our future space missions.
Threats from Space Debris
Since the launch of the first satellite in 1957, space probes have created debris in Earth's orbits, which has increased exponentially in recent years. According to the 2023 annual Space Environment Report from the European Space Agency (ESA), more satellites were launched in 2022 than any previous year. The number of commercial satellites found in low-Earth orbit is expected to increase in the coming years.
Not all satellites leave the heavily congested orbits at the end of their lives. Those in their operational orbit risk being fragmented into dangerous junk clouds that can last years.
The alarming growth of space junk threatens the current and future space programs and urges the internal space community to develop different mitigation strategies. To avoid damage from collision, active satellites need to perform maneuvers to dodge out of the way of space debris fragments.
However, recent studies reveal that the commonly adopted mitigation strategies are insufficient in stabilizing the orbital environment. In addition, active debris removal (ADR) must also be carried out to secure a sustainable future in space.
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Clean Up Measures in Space
On February 19, Astroscale Japan Inc. announced the successful launch of the world's first space debris inspection probe. Known as Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan (ADRAS-J), this space probe was designed to rendezvous with and inspect the remains of a Japanese H2A rocket floating in orbit for the last 15 years.
H2A is a bus-size rocket from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched in 2009. Its upper stage rocket body's precise location and orbital position remains unknown. Using observation data from Earth, experts can determine its estimated location and assess its movements and condition.
JAXA chose the ADRAS-J space probe for the initial phase of its Commercial Removal of Debris Demonstration program, which aims to remove large space debris of Japanese origin. The satellite took off from New Zealand on February 18. According to project manager Eijiro Atarashi, Astroscale has successfully contacted the probe and is ready to begin its operations. One of the main goals of this mission is to survey and characterize a real piece of space junk using the innovative Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO) capabilities.
Space junk has been piling up for several decades, and the problems it brings will continue to accelerate in the coming years. Some of the potential solutions to address this problem include the use of a laser beam to push objects into a new orbit. Astroscale also has its own space "tow-truck," which uses a large magnet to gather and move satellites out of service.
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