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VASIMR Orbital Sweeper for Space Debris Removal

 
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Bud Brewster
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013
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Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Fri Dec 21, 2018 2:47 pm    Post subject: VASIMR Orbital Sweeper for Space Debris Removal Reply with quote




Well, praise the Lord, there ARE plans for automated space junk sweepers that can clean up the region that surrounds the Earth.

This is VERY good news! Very Happy
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VASIMR Orbital Sweeper for Space Debris Removal


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___ 5 Strange Ways to Clean Up Our Space Junk


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_______ Space Debris removal mission animation


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Robert (Butch) Day
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 21, 2018 11:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Shouldn't something similar be carried on future manned space flights?
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Gord Green
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 22, 2018 1:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Low Earth Orbit is sop full of space junk! It's about time they got as garbage man to clean up the trash!
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Bud Brewster
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013
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Location: North Carolina

PostPosted: Sat Dec 22, 2018 10:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Robert (Butch) Day wrote:
Shouldn't something similar be carried on future manned space flights?

Manned missions? I don't think so. Here's why.

The beauty of these different concepts, Butch, is that hundreds of the "garbage drones" can be deployed and stay up there for years, with no lives being endangered by anything which might happen to the drones.

After all, it will take years to even put a dent in this gigantic problem, so we'll need many drones in orbit, working constantly to dispose of the larger pieces of space junk. Unfortunately there's probably no way to get rid of the tiny bits of paint and small objects in orbit, and those are the objects that have already done damage to satellites and the ISS. Sad

However, if we ever build a real space station, populated by a few hundred people living in a pleasant environment with artificial gravity (from a spinning section), it could be the base for a team whose job it would be to go out in spacecraft and service the garbage drones when they have mechanical problems.

Drones that can still maneuver despite their mechanical problems could be ordered to dock with the station and be repaired "in house".

This would be the "house", of course. Very Happy




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