Switzerland to Launch 'Janitor' Satellite to Collect Pieces of Space Junk

Space junk is an ongoing problem for the world’s space administrations as decades worth of satellite launches and space missions have filled the Earth’s orbit with trash such as fuel tanks, lost tools and parts of derelict satellites.

They hope to have this system in place by 2020 to systematically remove large derbies.

this is good news, finding a way to clean the parts of the environment most of us cannot reach, i'm glad there are people who feel obligated to take part in our world.

Besides with the growing commercial demand for spaceflight we need to pick up a little bit if we dont want any collisions.



www.goodnewsnetwork.org...

reply to post by hknudzkknexnt


I wonder where the funding is coming from. I would not hold my breath.

Nice idea, but expensive!

P

reply to post by pheonix358


how expensive is anything when they first come out with it

If people thought they same of computers they would still fill an entire room

hknudzkknexnt
reply to post by pheonix358

 

how expensive is anything when they first come out with it

If people thought they same of computers they would still fill an entire room

The development of computers was profit driven with large corporations seeing a computer road paved with gold.

Not so much here. I can't see Switzerland doing this. I was not aware they even had a space program.

Let me guess, they will try to get funding from the European Space Agency. Good luck on that score!

P

reply to post by hknudzkknexnt


Quite so!

On the matter of the Swiss plan for this space junk... I rather think that the best way to deal with the problem of space waste, is to collect it all, as a resource for future space missions. There's an awful lot of material up there. Can you imagine if they were able to figure out a way of stripping all the useful stuff out?

If they could do this, then they could build quite a space station with the weight of material that is up there. If you get the chance, look up the estimated weight of man made crap in space, and then look up the weight of the ISS. It boggles the mind!

It's about time somebody took up my idea! I've been saying this for 2 yrs now. Even tried to give it away many time's, most never emailed me back and some.......................................................!

Do you know actually how much money is floating up there in space junk, and brokened down Sat's. More cask to top the market and even build a repair ship for the ones that need some tune-up's!

A tow- truck in space! Enough money there to build a docking port in space, Oh the possiblilties!!!!!!!!!! Glad to hear someone looked into the matter and found my reasoning.

I really am telling the truth!

I just saw this on Yahoo news. It's going to happen in 2018 with help from Canada.

A Switzerland-based spaceflight company is finalizing plans with Canada over a potential launch site for a new private space plane, which is slated to launch a satellite to clean up space junk by 2018.

The company, Swiss Space Systems (S3), plans to launch the new Clean Space One satellite using the European Suborbital Reusable Shuttle, a small space plane the firm is developing for low-cost launches off the back of a modified Airbus A300 jumbo jet.

Yahoo

This is the first space junk thread I found via search. Anyway, the U.K. is now netting and harpooning space junk - go UK go!



www.theverge.com...

And, NASA is not far behind as I am sure other countries will follow suit soon as satellites are much less expensive now, we can get the job done.

Sounds good.

I bet they could get some cash for that junk.

originally posted by: UncleTomahawk
Sounds good.

I bet they could get some cash for that junk.

Sounds like an entrepreneurial endeavour.

Eventually we'll be sending up robots to attach little thrusters to dead satellites/rocket boosters, and direct them to a clean burn-up.

a reply to: TrueBrit

Capturing space junk is a noble endevour but is highly problematic. Changing the orbit of a spacecraft is no minor matter.

Look at it this way. The satellite is traveling in that direction at 17,000 mph. To change it to a different direction one needs to overcome a lot of inertia. The term used is "Delta V", change in velocity. This includes something as seemingly simple as changing orbital altitude. To move to a higher orbit takes thrust, to move to a lower orbit takes thrust. Thrust requires fuel. Fuel is weight. Weight is expensive to get into orbit in the first place.

If one has a target in mind at launch, that's one thing. That's what happens when docking with the ISS. If one wants to get this piece of junk, then that piece, then that piece over there, that's a whole other thing.