The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has started a programme, called Phoenix, which will find ways to recycle space junk thousands of miles above the Earth.
According to DARPA director Regina Dugan, if the Phoenix programme becomes successful, space debris could become a resource.
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According to estimates, more than $300bn worth of satellites in the geosynchronous orbit still carry valuable components, such as antennas, that could last much longer than the life of the satellite.
DARPA’s Phoenix programme seeks to develop technologies to cooperatively harvest and re-use valuable components from retired and obsolete satellites in the geosynchronous orbit to create new space systems at reduced cost.
The programme will specifically seek technologies for developing a new class of small satlets or nanosatellites, which can be sent more economically into orbit through existing ride-along services with commercial satellite launches.
The satellites can be robotically attached to the antenna of a non-functional cooperating satellite to create a new space system.
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By GlobalData
