Japan's 'space junk' collector in trouble

Seems like the the collector itself is destined to become space junk - how ironic.

A shame, space could use some cleaning.

Try again and again. Space has to be cleaned up. New technologies often take several/many tries before success.

A shame, space could use some cleaning.

The earth could use it a lot more.

Deregulation in the states does not favor clean up. Both NASA and the EPA have been gagged in different ways. A 100 million pieces of junk. Sounds like the next long bus ride kid's song...a really long ride.

Seems like the the collector itself is destined to become space junk - how ironic...

No. the tether is linked to the cargo ship (containing junk from the space ship), which will enter the Earth's atmosphere. So it will be burnt up.

No. the tether is linked to the cargo ship (containing junk from the space ship), which will enter the Earth's atmosphere. So it will be burnt up.

Errr... Not if the tether failed to deploy, which is the entire point of the article. If the tether doesn't deploy, then the mission to clean up space junk fails. And the failed equipment sent up to clean up space in turn becomes junk itself. Ironic, yes?