3 ms·
I think the issue is that actually collecting all those bits (if we needed to quickly clean up our orbits) would be extremely expensive. You'll need to adjust
by munk-a 5y ago
I think the issue is that actually collecting all those bits (if we needed to quickly clean up our orbits) would be extremely expensive. You'll need to adjust delta-v hundreds of times to match orbit and collect all these bits and pieces.
Basically - imagine dusting your place - except you're doing it in a car and you need to stop precisely over each dust mote to collect it. You're going to waste a whole lot of effort on manuvering and what to do with the junk once you've got it is actually a relatively simple problem[1].
1. You probably want to consolidate all the little bits of junk into one big bit of junk that, at some point in the future, you can scrap for orbital construction.
- bawana 5y agoWow, that's a great problem. Imagine putting up 10 junk collectors the consist of solar panels a super capacitor and a giant electromagnet-all bundled up in a little space drone. The earth tracks garbage maneuvers the drone near the orbital path of the junk, and when the junk comes close pulses the magnet. The junk decelerates, the drone accelerates and then eventually merge orbits. Junk captured. Onto the next one. As most of the acceleration and deceleration is provided by the kinetic energy of the space junk, the drone needs very little reaction mass as it only has to adjust its angular momentum now and then.