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Researchers from Airbus and the University of Surrey, England, captured a small satellite in space using a net from another spacecraft.
Here are the pictures of the moment:
This makes Space Debris Catcher one of the coolest projects of the future.
But it's a possible solution to a very serious problem. The ongoing development of nanosatellite launches could result in a ten – fold increase in the number of spacecraft in low Earth orbit some years from now.
If space debris builds up, it could cause thousands of collisions – and it took only a small layer of paint at 34,500 kilometers an hour to break a window on the International Space Station.
Space startups are focusing on setting up more satellites in space. Cleaning up their mess – not nearly as attractive to venture capitalists – is almost entirely reserved for universities and scientific organizations.
Read more: NASA publishes photos of a lost probe on the moon 12 years ago
An Australian team is still working in lower orbits with lasers to burn them.
And then there is this net that you just watch in action. The Surrey Space Center team behind it calls RemDEB (RemoveDEBRIS) and co-funded by the European Commission.
The demonstration was put in place to prove that it works. You've seen the main satellite platform deploy a CubeSat, and then shoot a net to capture it. It took six years of experimentation in the chute towers and thermal vacuum chambers to get to this stage.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, Boeing, OneWeb and Samsung have threatened to add nearly 14,000 small satellites to LEO.
The next experience of RemDEB will be to deploy an implied harpoon and a dragsail to force him to return to the Earth 's atmosphere to burn.
"We are absolutely delighted with the result of the network's technology," said Professor Guglielmo Aglietti, director of the Surrey Space Center at the University of Surrey.
"Although it may seem simple, the complexity of using a net in space to capture debris has required many years of planning, engineering, and coordination between the Surrey Space Center, Airbus, and our partners. . completed.
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