2024-05-09 23:30:40
The private Japanese satellite ADRAS-J, a technology demonstrator for in-orbit space debris inspection, has taken the first publicly released image of an object of this type.
This unprecedented image marks a crucial step towards understanding and responding to the challenges posed by space debris, driving progress towards a safer and more sustainable space environment.
The image was taken from several hundred meters behind the mission’s target space debris, which correspond to an upper stage of a Japanese HIIA rocket launched in 2009. “This unprecedented image marks a crucial step towards understanding and responding to the challenges posed by space debris, driving progress towards a safer and more sustainable space environment,” explained the company Astroscale, which operates the mission.
Encounter and proximity operations
The H2A rocket body does not provide any GPS data on its own, meaning the precise location and orbital position needed for a mission RPO (Encounter and proximity operations) Are not avaliables.
Launched on February 18, ADRAS-J (Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan) was selected by JAXA for Phase I of its commercial waste disposal demonstration (CRD2). Astroscale Japan is responsible for design, manufacturing, testing, launch and operations.
Safe and controlled approach
The mission recently achieved a key technical milestone: the successful safe and controlled approach to an unprepared space debris object at a relative distance of several hundred meters. Besides, ADRAS-J successfully demonstrated close approach rendezvous and proximity operations using a safety ellipse approach technique coupled with relative navigation inputs from the spacecraft’s rendezvous payload sensor suite.
In the next phase of the mission, ADRAS-J will attempt to capture additional images of the HIIA rocket’s upper stage through several controlled approach operations. The images and data collected are expected to be crucial to better understanding the debris and providing critical information for future removal efforts, the company said in a statement.
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