SpaceX Hauls Harpoon to Orbit to Hunt Space Junk

This 14th mission of SpaceX was used to carry some 2.5 tons of supply to the station, including a new HP printer to replace the decades-old one used by the astronauts. But perhaps the most interesting cargo of the launch was the so-called RemoveDebris platform.

Developed by the Surrey Space Centre (SSC), University of Surrey, UK, RemoveDebris is to act as a vacuum cleaner of sorts and clear the junk from Earth’s lower orbit.

Since the creators of the technology do not yet know which system would be the most appropriate to remove space junk, several methods would be tried in a series of tests that are set to begin soon. Testing, however, would not be done on existing debris, but on newly-created ones.

When ready, RemoveDebris would deploy two miniaturized satellites called CubeSats to act as artificial targets. Then, several technologies would be used to either capture or de-orbit them: capture by using a net, capture using a harpoon, or drag sail de-orbit.

The net system to be tested is supposed to act as any such system acts: the net wraps around and the target and catches it. Motor-driven winches reel in the neck of the net preventing it from re-opening.

For the harpoon, the best operating range is of 1.5 meters (5 feet). From that distance, the harpoon could hit a 10x10 cm (4x4 inches) target. It would be shot at the debris and capture it.

The drag sail is meant to allow the satellite to de-orbit quicker and burn up faster in the Earth’s atmosphere.

All these capturing techniques are detailed in the video below.

Before getting to all that experimenting, RemoveDebris would have to be assembled. The system has been shipped to the ISS packed in boxes, and they would have to be unpacked and assembled.