ADR Needs Better Integration: NSR; Astroscale Demo Mission Launches

In-orbit services such as orbital debris removal are a vital part of end-to-end responsible mission operations, but the market remains challenged due to costs and technological readiness, Northern Sky Research analyst Dallas Kasaboski blogged Tuesday. He said as the tech develops and in-orbit demos continue, active debris removal's attractiveness will grow. Moving beyond being a fringe business requires such clean-up being better integrated into the space marketplace through such things as collaboration and mergers, he said. Satellite servicing company Astroscale said its End-of-Life Services by Astroscale demo successfully launched Monday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. It said the demo mission -- involving a "servicer" satellite and a "client" satellite playing the role of orbital debris -- will see the servicer docking with the client under various scenarios.