, to approach the adapter, carefully close itself around the debris, and then fly down to Earth with its payload in tow.It now appears that another random piece of space junk has hit the adapter, creatingspace junk — as well as junking the ESA's goal to remove the 250 pound VESPA in one piece. It's terrible luck, but also a perfect illustration of the perils of our detritis-filled orbit.
Although the collision wasn't directly observed, all evidence indicates the "hypervelocity impact of a small, untracked object" that smashed into the adapter and senBut not all may be lost. Followup observations have revealed that the adapter is still mostly intact, and that its orbit was not significantly altered. Its fragments also don't appear to pose any risk to other orbiting spacecraft.
On top of that, there should be plenty of time to adjust, as Clearspace-1's launch is slated for 2026. For now, the ESA says it's "carefully evaluating the event's impact on the mission." The mission is currently continuing as planned while more data is gathered, but it will be weeks until a full analysis can be completed.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
A Space Junk Removal Mission Got Struck By Space JunkThe ClearSpace-1 mission was going to chuck a defunct payload adapter to its fiery death, but another piece of space debris got to it first.
Source: Gizmodo - 🏆 556. / 51 Read more »
Starfinder: Angels Of The Drift #2 Preview: Magic, Guns, & Space JunkDon your space boots and gear up for another interstellar ride as Starfinder: Angels Of The Drift 2 gears up to deliver more space shenanigans.
Source: bleedingcool - 🏆 20. / 69 Read more »
Space Junk Targeted For Removal May Already Have Been Struck... by Space JunkWe have a problem.
Source: ScienceAlert - 🏆 63. / 68 Read more »
Clearspace-1 space debris cleanup target in orbit just got struck by space debrisSpace junk does seem to be a growing problem.
Source: SPACEdotcom - 🏆 92. / 67 Read more »
The Irony. ClearSpace-1 Couldn't Clean up Space Debris Because its Target Already Got hit by Space Debris, Creating Even More Space Debris.The European Space Agency's ClearSpace-1 satellite was zeroing in on the spent payload adaptor from a 2013 rocket launch. Its task would be to extend arms, grab the chunk of debris, hug it tightly, and then pull it back into the Earth's atmosphere, de-orbiting and removing it from low-Earth orbit. On August 10th, mission controllers detected multiple pieces of space debris near its target - debris that was probably dislodged from it in the recent past. They're now scrutinizing the situation to plan their next step in the mission.
Source: universetoday - 🏆 297. / 63 Read more »
Space debris targeted for orbital cleanup has been hit, possibly by other space debrisThe payload adaptor from a 2013 launch by the European Space Agency has been fragmented by a collision in orbit, officials say
Source: TheStarPhoenix - 🏆 253. / 63 Read more »