For more than a decade, a derelict piece of a Japanese rocket has been speeding uncontrollably around Earth, risking colliding with active satellites and wreaking havoc in orbit.
Now, a Tokyo-based startup led by a veteran of McKinsey & Co. and Japan’s Finance Ministry is sending a spacecraft to inspect the debris, an important step in the effort to counter the threats posed by space debris created by The man represents for the multimillion-dollar systems that Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and others are implementing.
An Astroscale Holdings Inc. spacecraft, which lifted off aboard an Electron rocket from Rocket Lab USA Inc.’s launch complex in New Zealand on Feb. 19, will soon attempt the first close-up study of large orbital debris from the world.
Once it completes testing to ensure the equipment is working properly after launch, Astroscale aims to send the vehicle 100 meters (328 feet) away. from the upper stage of a rocket left in orbit by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in 2009, one of the many pieces left in space by countries such as the United States, China and Russia.
As part of the Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan (ADRAS-J) mission, the spacecraft will circle the old rocket, measure the speed at which it rotates and make other observations, a task that is not easy when the target weighs approximately three tons. , 600 kilometers above the Earth and crossing space at a speed of eight kilometers per second.
If ADRAS-J can achieve this, Astroscale will take a major step toward its long-term goal of deploying garbage disposal vehicles, according to founder and CEO Nobu Okada, who started Astroscale in 2013 with $200,000, half of his total savings. . .
“The space industry has simply been a throwaway culture,” he said. “The world needs our services.”
Okada, a 50-year-old former IT entrepreneur and strategic consultant, founded Astroscale after attending a conference in Germany where the debris issue was a hot topic. He settled in Singapore, where he had run another software startup, and opened a small office in a garage in Tokyo. In 2019, he moved Astroscale’s headquarters to Tokyo.
Last year, a funding round raised $83.6 million and valued Astroscale at $954 million, with investors including Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, Mizuho Bank Ltd., Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and the Development Bank of Japan.
The company’s first attempt to measure a small piece of debris in low-Earth orbit failed in 2017, but a follow-up mission in 2021 successfully docked with a 17-kilogram (37-pound) satellite put into orbit for testing.
Risky orbits
According to the European Space Agency, there are around 36,500 pieces of debris larger than 10 centimeters circling the Earth, creating the risk of collision with satellites from SpaceX’s Starlink constellations and Amazon.com Inc’s Project Kuiper. ., as well as with other spacecraft such as China’s spacecraft. season.
To reduce the danger, regulators want satellite operators to develop deorbit plans for satellites once they become inactive.
“Ten years ago, no one knew about space debris, but today it’s different,” Okada said. “We see real market growth, because we see the regulations coming.”
Read more: FAA proposes space debris cleanup rule to tidy up Earth’s orbit
Okada plans to expand into other types of satellite services, including refueling and repair. The satellite services market is estimated to reach $5.1 billion by 2030, according to MarketsandMarkets Research.
Okada’s early start has helped him win contracts from five governments, including a $25.5 million deal with the U.S. Space Force to design a satellite that can refuel other satellites in space.
ADRAS–The J mission, to conduct what is called Rendezvous and Proximity Operations, has an undisclosed amount of funding from JAXA’s commercial debris removal demonstration program, which the space agency introduced in 2019 to encourage private companies to develop debris removal technologies.
“RPOs are a big challenge for spacecraft,” said Caleb Henry, research director at analytics firm Quilty Space. “If Astroscale is successful with ADRAS-J, it will demonstrate the technical feasibility of commercial waste disposal and could encourage customers to purchase such services.”
tow trucks
While JAXA chose Astroscale for the first phase of the program, JAXA has yet to select a company for the next phase of the program: a demonstration of the ability to capture space debris and remove it from its current position.
Okada’s goal is to make satellite disposal and other in-orbit operations commonplace. “By 2030, we want all maintenance services to be routine,” he said. “Look at the garbage truck or the crane. They get the job done every day.”
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