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BERLIN (AP) – The European Space Agency announced Thursday that it will sign a contract for 86 million euros (102 million dollars) with a Swiss company to bring a large chunk of space junk to Earth.
The agency said the contract with ClearSpace SA will lead to the “first active debris removal mission” in 2025, when a purpose-built spacecraft will capture and land part of a rocket used to put a satellite into orbit.
For years, experts have warned that the hundreds of thousands of pieces of junk orbiting the planet – including an astronaut’s lost mirror – pose a danger to satellites and even the International Space Station. Several teams are studying how to deal with the problem.
The object to be removed from orbit is a so-called Vespa charging adapter used to hold and then release a satellite in 2013. It weighs around 112 kilos.
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