Not really - it destroys the concept of bringing back commercial satellites, which are mostly in geosynchronous orbits (and which, as it correctly points out, n

Not really - it destroys the concept of bringing back commercial satellites, which are mostly in geosynchronous orbits (and which, as it correctly points out, nobody wants back anyway). This may have been the story they were selling the public at the time, but the driver of this requirement was the Air Force and what they really wanted it for was to bring back military satellites, which actually are in Low Earth Orbit. Of course, what they really really wanted was the capability to bring back Soviet military satellites (remember, SDI was just about to kick off). How they expected to pull this off without triggering Armageddon was never clear, but I guess a lot of people's budgets depended on them not pointing out the obvious insanity.