posted 06-20-2018 12:42 PM               

NanoRacks Deploys Largest Satellite From International Space Station To Date

RemoveDEBRIS Now in Orbit

Early this morning [June 20], NanoRacks successfully deployed the RemoveDEBRIS satellite from the International Space Station via the Company's commercially developed Kaber Microsatellite Deployer (Kaber). This is the third major microsatellite deployment for NanoRacks, and the largest satellite to ever be deployed from the International Space Station.

RemoveDEBRIS, one of the world's first attempts to address the build-up of dangerous space debris orbiting Earth, was launched to the Space Station via NanoRacks on the 14th SpaceX Commercial Resupply Mission in early April.

The satellite was designed, built and manufactured by a consortium of leading space companies and research institutions, led by the Surrey Space Centre at the University of Surrey and funded in part by the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement #607099. The consortium consists of: Airbus, Ariane Group (France); Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (United Kingdom); Innovative Solutions In Space (Netherlands); CSEM (Switzerland); Inria (France); and Stellenbosch University (South Africa).

NanoRacks created the Kaber system to accommodate the increasing customer demand for commercial opportunities to deploy MicroSats from the International Space Station. Kaber offers deployments for satellites up to approximately 85 kilograms, and NanoRacks is able to provide Kaber launches on both SpaceX and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (previously Orbital ATK) commercial resupply missions.

The RemoveDEBRIS mission will perform four experiments, which will be tested on two CubeSats to-be-deployed from the larger satellite, acting as artificial targets. These experiments include both the first harpoon capture in orbit and a net that will be used on a deployed target. The team will also test a vision-based navigation system that uses cameras and LiDaR technology to observe CubeSats that will be released from the main spacecraft. Finally, the RemoveDEBRIS craft will deploy a large drag sail that will cause the orbit of the spacecraft to rapidly decay until it destroys in the Earth's atmosphere.

"It's wonderful to have helped facilitate this ground-breaking mission," says NanoRacks External Payloads Manager, Conor Brown. "RemoveDEBRIS is demonstrating some extremely exciting active debris removal technologies that could have a major impact to how we manage space debris moving forward. This program is an excellent example of how small satellite capabilities have grown and how the Space Station can serve as a platform for missions of this scale. We're all excited to see the results of the experiments and impact this project may have in the coming years."

Thank you to NASA's International Space Station Program Office and JAXA for their continued support of NanoRacks' International Space Station satellite deployment programs.

posted 06-21-2018 07:08 AM               

The function of the dragsail is to, when deployed, to allow the satellite to de-orbit quicker, and to burn up faster in the Earth’s atmosphere much quicker than if the dragsail were not deployed.

posted 06-27-2018 08:20 AM               

On June 20, 2018 at 11:35:00 UTC, NanoRacks released the RemoveDEBRIS satellite from the Company's Kaber Deployer on the International Space Station. Filmed by Astronaut Ricky Arnold.

posted 09-19-2018 12:51 PM               

First video of the Net experiment successfully capturing the deployed cubesat.

posted 02-15-2019 09:50 AM               

Harpoon successfully captures space debris

The RemoveDEBRIS satellite, one of the world's first attempts to address the build-up of dangerous space debris, has successfully used its on-board harpoon-capture system in orbit.

The Airbus Stevenage designed harpoon featured a 1.5 metre boom deployed from the main RemoveDEBRIS spacecraft with a piece of satellite panel on the end. The harpoon was fired at 20 metres/sec to penetrate the target and demonstrate the ability of a harpoon to capture debris.

This marks the third successful experiment for the RemoveDEBRIS project. It previously used its on-board net to capture a simulated piece of debris, and then trialled its state-of-the-art LiDAR and camera based vision navigation system to identify space junk.

The team is now preparing for the final experiment, which is set to take place in March and will see RemoveDEBRIS inflate a sail that will drag the satellite into Earth's atmosphere where it will be destroyed.

Professor Guglielmo Aglietti, Director of the Surrey Space Centre at the University of Surrey, said: "This is RemoveDEBRIS' most demanding experiment and the fact that it was a success is testament to all involved. The RemoveDEBRIS project provides strong evidence of what can be achieved with the power of collaboration – pooling together the experience across industry and the research field to achieve something truly remarkable."

Chris Burgess, Harpoon Lead Engineer at Airbus Defence and Space, said: "Successful in space demonstration of the harpoon technology is a significant step towards solving the growing issue of space debris."

Chris Skidmore MP, Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation, said: "Space debris can have serious consequences for our communications systems if it smashes into satellites. This inspiring project shows that UK experts are coming up with answers for this potential problem using a harpoon, a tool people have used throughout history.

"This mission is a powerful example of the UK's expertise in space technology and that by working together our world-class universities and innovative companies can hugely contribute to the government's aims for a highly skilled economy through our modern Industrial Strategy."