A harpoon meant to collect space debris has been tested in space for the first time as part of the space debris removal mission called RemoveDEBRIS. The titanium harpoon developed by Airbus engineers in the U.K. hit the satellite panel target at a speed of 20 meters per second. The harpoon captured the target from orbit and brought it into the spacecraft. It has the potential to gather more space junk just outside the Earth's atmosphere, reducing the threat it may pose to orbiting satellites. To ensure the experiment went as smoothly as planned, the ground control team had to wait three days to download all the data.
The project's satellite fired a net at a piece of space junk in September. The net journeyed six meters and covered up around a CubeSat - which was used as part of the test. To make sure the net can wrap around the target. Deployment masses were fitted at the end of the net, and motor driven winches were put in place to keep the net from opening. Researchers made it so the net would cause the target to go out of orbit with a balloon that has a large surface area, making it drop down to the atmosphere and burn up in the process.
Rick Arnold loads up the spacecraft into an airlock on the space station. (Image Credit: NASA/NanoRacks)
RemoveDEBRIS also has cameras and scanners attached to collect data about the debris and to measure how fast it's going past the spacecraft. This was tested in October to track a test target before burning up in the atmosphere. A final mission in March will involve bringing the net back down to Earth with an inflatable sail fitted with a mechanism that deploys to a length of one meter and will self-harden. The sail will drag the spacecraft into the atmosphere which will then break up into chunks and burn up. RemoveDEBRIS was sent up to the International Space Station in 2018 where it was unpacked and installed by astronauts. The spacecraft was then sent outside the station by a large robotic arm and placed in a certain direction to complete its mission.
The spacecraft will eventually burn up in the atmosphere. (Image Credit: NASA)
Researchers are hoping the mission with help to address concerns with space debris orbiting Earth. More than 7,600 tonnes of space debris is in orbit and some of it could travel faster than a bullet. Even the smallest piece of debris could have a significant impact on any functional satellite because of the tremendous amount of damage it poses. To make matters worse, there are over 500,000 pieces of debris larger than a marble speeding around, but there are millions of pieces too small to be tracked. If a tiny fragment were to collide into a communication satellite, the impact could affect internet connections, navigational systems and mobile phone coverage.
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