The Chinese news agency Xinhua reported that on Tuesday, the Changzheng-6 rocket launched several satellites into low-earth orbit, and a prototype robot NEO-01, which, using a large network, can collect space debris, and is also equipped with a telescope for observing small celestial bodies in deep space.

Launched into orbit, NEO-30, a 01-kilogram robot created by the Shenzhen-based startup Origin Space, is no longer the first space scavenger. About a month ago, Japan’s Astroscale launched its ELSA-d spacecraft into orbit, which uses magnets to collect space debris. In contrast, China’s NEO-01 will rely on a grid and then incinerate the trash with its electric jet engine.

Disposable cleaner Astroscale ELSA-d

Recently, the US Space Force in a report to Congress called China the main threat to the country in space, paying special attention to another experimental satellite, Shijian-17, designed to combat space debris and armed with a robotic arm. Nevertheless, the problem of space debris is constantly aggravated, so in any case it will have to be solved, no matter how political opponents are.

In 2019, Roskosmos issued a statement on the deterioration of the situation with space debris in near-earth space, which poses a great threat to satellites in orbit, cargo and manned spacecraft. A collision with an object larger than 10 centimeters can lead to the complete destruction of the spacecraft. Even more compact objects can do a lot of harm.

“Currently, the number of objects of so-called space debris in orbit, the size of which exceeds one centimeter in diameter, is, according to various estimates, from 600 to 700 thousand. The situation is aggravated by the recently sharply increased intensity of space activities “– said then the director of the strategic management department of “Roscosmos” Yuri Makarov.

To track space debris, Roskosmos has deployed a specialized optoelectronic complex in South Africa. A similar radar was recently launched in Costa Rica by a private company.

Russian Easar has developed a spacecraft for burning debris in orbit and has received a patent for its method. Another patent for a network trap and waste incinerator was obtained by Maria Barkova, an employee of the Russian Space Systems company. Last year, the Aeronet working group announced plans to create a multifunctional 80 kg tug powered by electric jet engines, which will be able to serve satellites, lift objects weighing up to 150 kg in the desired orbits to an altitude of up to 1500 km and remove space debris.

Also, the Central Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the Roscosmos Corporation is working on the creation of the Milky Way space system for tracking dangerous comets and asteroids, as well as controlling the movement of satellites in conditions of near-Earth space clogging.

At the same time, the European Space Agency has signed the first contract for the cleaning of space debris with the Swiss startup ClearSpace SA. It involves the allocation of € 86 million to create a disposable vehicle to destroy the payload left over from the Vega launch vehicle since 2013. The ClearSpace-1 apparatus will receive giant tentacles to capture the object and will complete the mission in 2025.