Posted on 07/06/2015 10:29:20 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Scientists working on the CleanSpace One Project have revealed their clean-up satellite will capture a defunct small SwissCube satellite in a conical net, before destroying it in the Earth’s atmosphere.
They have been designing a clean-up satellite for three years that will be sent into orbit to recuperate SwissCube, and have now revealed the latest design.
The ‘Pac-Man’ will trap the small satellite ‘ghost’ and the two will combust together in the atmosphere.
But while this sounds like a simple, if somewhat expensive, solution, it is fraught with complications.
‘SwissCube is not only a 4-inch by 4-inch (10cm by 10cm) object that's tough to grasp, it also has darker and lighter parts that reflect sunlight differently, Christophe Paccolat, a PhD student working in LTS5 explained.
‘These variations can perturb the visual approach system and thus also the estimates of its speed and distance.’
Muriel Richard-Noca, head of the CleanSpace One project, said the mission is a delicate one.
‘It only takes one error in the calculation of the approach for SwissCube to bounce off CleanSpace One and rocket out into space.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I hope he keeps an eye out for Inky and Clyde...
Not seeing the problem if SwissCube rockets off into the vast emptiness of space vs. burning up on re-entry. Problem solved either way, I think.
Oh, I don’t see the problem with SwissCube in orbit anyway, but what the hey.
Oh nice. Now we need to worry about space-junk storms.
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