UK to test-remove OneWeb satellite from space
December 6, 2024
By Chris Forrester
Japan’s UK subsidiary of its Astroscale is getting itself ready with its Critical Design Review of a ‘space tug’ which is planned to remove a OneWeb satellite from its low Earth orbit.
The timeframe is 2026 and Astroscale’s UK MD Nick Shave says it is currently acquiring components for its ‘flatsat’ assembly (where the various components are laid out prior to assembly) for the project.
The end result will be a 500 kgs space tub service craft which will attach itself to the OneWeb craft using a capture mechanism that’s compatible with magnetic docking plates on most of UK-based OneWeb’s more than 600 orbiting craft.
The Astroscale satellite should launch in Q2 2026.
The UK Space Agency and European Space Agency have stumped up about $35 million in funding, he said, with Astroscale itself financing “well over 50 per cent” of the mission.
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