Stories about the problems posed by trash in orbit, and initiatives from both governments and industry to clean it up.
If you’ve been wondering how you can contribute to space debris mitigation efforts, you may be in luck. Privateer, a space debris tracking startup founded by Alex Fielding, Steve Wozniak, and Moriba Jah, has taken space sustainability efforts unto itself through its collision risk assessment tool, Wayfinder. Yesterday, Privateer announced it has partnered with consumer […]
It seems like every agency in Washington is taking a closer look at satellite constellations these days. That extra attention may lead to new hoops for satellite operators to jump through. Last week, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on megaconstellations. GAO noted that new, growing fleets of satellites drive direct value […]
The UK has decided it’s ready to kickstart space junk removal missions. On Monday, the UK Space Agency announced that it had awarded two active debris removal (ADR) Phase B demo contracts to ClearSpace and Astroscale. The contracts awarded are worth £2.25M ($2.4M) and £1.7M ($1.8M), respectively. Beware that the dollar conversion may rapidly sink […]
This is the third installment of our deep dive on orbital debris. Read Part One and Part Two. – Space is getting more crowded, especially in the regions where satellite operators vie for the best orbits. The density of operational satellites is increasing faster each year. And as for the debris already up there? It’s […]
This week, Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Roger Wicker (R-MS) introduced the Orbital Sustainability (ORBITS) Act on the Congress floor. The bipartisan bill is aimed at developing active debris removal (ADR) technology, with the eventual goal of removing dangerous debris objects from orbit. The debris problem: 100M+ individual pieces […]
In an attempt to get as many space operators communicating on the same platform as possible to lower collision risks in space, Slingshot Aerospace today announced that it plans to offer a version of its Beacon space situational awareness (SSA) platform for free. “We just feel a grand responsibility here, since we do have the […]
The FCC is cracking down on spent satellites left in LEO. In a draft report and order released yesterday, the commission revealed plans to cut the post-mission disposal time from the currently recommended 25 years to five years. The growing debris problem: The DoD’s Space Surveillance Network currently tracks ~27,000 pieces of debris larger than […]
Scotland’s space program is making moves to encourage a more sustainable approach to spaceflight. Space Scotland has published a roadmap to grow its space sector in a sustainable way through strategically funding greener space technologies. The ultimate goal: reaching net zero emissions and space debris neutrality by 2045. Scotland in space: The country’s space initiatives […]
Earlier this week, space safety company Kayhan Space launched the next tier of its space traffic management (STM) platform, Pathfinder Pro. Kayhan’s ultimate goal is to fully automate all collision avoidance maneuvers in orbit, cofounder and CTO Araz Feyzi told Payload. LEO, in particular, is poised to get a lot more crowded over the coming […]
Benchmark Space Systems is ready to bring a last-minute collision avoidance kit to market, the Vermont startup said this morning. Dubbed COLA, the tiny thruster system is designed compactly so it can be retrofitted onto satellites that already have finalized designs, Benchmark EVP Chris Carella told Payload. All that junk out there: The orbital environment […]
The White House has decided it’s time to do something about space junk. On Friday, the National Science and Technology Council released a 44-point national orbital debris implementation plan that aims to nip the littering problem in the bud before it threatens the safe operation of satellites in orbit. Multiple US agencies are currently involved […]
We’ve made it halfway through 2022. The year has flown by, but it’s been filled with big news and firsts for the space industry. Here’s our recap of the off-Earth goings-on during these last six months. Q1 The year started off with a bang as JWST unfolded successfully, reached its new home a million miles […]
