Space debris, including defunct satellites, chunks of spacecraft, and abandoned rocket stages, is piling up in orbit at an alarming rate. At a conference held this week by the European Space Agency (ESA), researchers suggested various ways to tackle the problem — including harpoons, nets, and junk-busting lasers.
The density of space debris has become so severe, recent research has warned, that a disastrous in-orbit collision could occur every five to nine years. And that estimate is "an optimistic look" modeled on the assumption that most space agencies comply with an agreement to remove their equipment from orbit within 25 years of mission completion. Most notably, potential collisions threaten to interfere with communication and...
via The Verge - All Posts http://www.theverge.com/2013/4/25/4265854/harpoons-nets-and-lasers-might-attack-space-junk
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