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| Science & Technology |
| Giant robotic claws will grab dead satellites in space |
| 2026-10-26 |
| [FOX] Space is getting crowded, and I'm not talking about astronauts. Thousands of pieces of junk are circling Earth at incredible speeds. Some are dead satellites. Others are leftover rocket parts or fragments from past collisions. Any one of them could cause serious trouble if it hits a working spacecraft. Now Britain has a pretty wild solution. It's developing a robotic spacecraft with giant claws that can grab dead satellites and move them toward a fiery end in Earth's atmosphere. Think of a garbage truck in orbit, except this one has to track down its trash while both objects are traveling thousands of miles per hour. The UK is putting roughly $81 million behind the project. And if everything goes according to plan, the mission could change how we deal with the growing mess above our heads. The UK Space Agency has selected aerospace company ClearSpace UK to develop a spacecraft specifically designed to remove dead satellites from orbit. The contract is valued at approximately $81 million. The project is part of Britain's Active Debris Removal mission, known as UK ADR. The spacecraft is targeted for launch in 2029 from SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland's Shetland Islands. Its first job will be to remove two defunct UK-registered satellites from low Earth orbit. The government wants both satellites removed by 2032. If successful, the mission would demonstrate that one spacecraft can capture and dispose of multiple dead satellites without being sacrificed after its first cleanup. That could make future operations far more practical, especially as the number of satellites in orbit continues to grow. Catching a satellite sounds straightforward until you consider what's happening in orbit. Objects in low Earth orbit typically travel at roughly 17,000 mph or faster. Some dead satellites may also tumble, making them difficult to approach safely. That's where ClearSpace's robotic technology comes in. The spacecraft will use a specialized capture system to approach and secure an inactive satellite. First, it must carefully coordinate its movements with the target. Then its robotic capture mechanism will take hold of the object. Once the satellite is secured, the spacecraft will move it into a lower orbit and release it. Atmospheric drag will eventually pull the abandoned satellite down, causing it to reenter Earth's atmosphere, where it is expected to burn up. The cleanup spacecraft itself is being designed for potential refueling and reuse. That means it could remain in orbit for future work instead of ending its mission after disposing of one satellite. Of course, engineers still have to prove the technology can handle these demanding operations safely. You might assume there's plenty of room in space for a few broken satellites. Unfortunately, some of the orbital regions where satellites operate are becoming increasingly crowded. According to the European Space Agency's space debris statistics, updated October 14, 2026, approximately 47,140 objects are regularly tracked in Earth's orbit. That figure includes functioning satellites, inactive spacecraft, rocket bodies and debris. And those are only the objects large enough to track reliably. ESA estimates that millions of smaller pieces also surround Earth. The danger comes from their enormous speeds. A piece of debris measuring just one centimeter can carry enough energy to disable a spacecraft. ESA has also warned that an impact of that size could penetrate the protective shielding of the International Space Station. Now consider what happens when two large objects collide. They can break apart and produce many additional fragments, each capable of damaging something else. Scientists call this potential chain reaction the Kessler syndrome. If enough collisions occur, certain orbital regions could become extremely hazardous for future missions. ESA's 2026 Space Environment Report warns that active debris removal will be necessary to prevent long-term debris growth driven by collisions. |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #2 |
| Posted by: Adriane the Quark Critic . . . 2026-10-26 19:52 |
| #1 |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2026-10-26 00:27 |