Elecnor Deimos to Build the ‘Claw’ for the UK Space Agency’s Mission to Clear Space Debris
30th Nov 2020Across the space industry, there’s growing concern about the increasing amounts of space junk. With many more commercial companies launching satellites annually, interstellar debris is increasing at an alarming rate. With that problem in mind, the UK Space Agency has commissioned Elecnor Deimos to build a satellite for the purpose of clearing it up.
The satellite will be responsible for clearing the debris and it’s going to be made in the UK. Such innovation is bound to impact the industry and set the UK ahead of many other space races.
2025 is the year the UK Space Agency hopes to release an innovative satellite, for the Clearspace-1 mission. Its first mission will see the satellite focus on a particular object in space. Much to the delight of many researchers, this satellite will lead to a better space environment.
How Elecnor Deimos and UK Space Agency Satellite will Work
Many who’ve heard of this satellite concept have nicknamed it the ‘Claw’ for a reason. It’s designed like a claw and will use a pincer technique to gather the debris from space. After completing this task, the Elecnor Deimos satellite will re-enter the earth in a controlled manner and decompose without affecting any life forms.
Where Elecnor Deimos comes into play is designing its AOCS (Attitude and Orbit Control Systems). The AOCS plays a crucial role in helping to orient and safely deliver the satellite to the right location. From there, it can start gathering debris by using its set systems. The central systems that will help power the ‘Claw’ are thrusters, antennas, and generators.
The quantity of space debris is growing at an alarming rate and this is evident, even from the first rocket launch back in 1957. There are an estimated more than 150 million items floating in space, most of which need urgent clearing to understand this better.
All the items in space come in all shapes and sizes, as acknowledged by the UK Space Agency. Most are now breaking down into debris and it’s the role of the UK Space Agency to clear them. Elecnor Deimos and the UK Space Agency plan to lead the pack in solving this vast issue.
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