A Japanese Space Junk Removal Experiment Has Failed in Orbit

An experimental space junk "collector" has glitched during its first orbital test. The system, designed by the Japanese space agency (JAXA) and a fishing net company, should have unfurled a 700-meter (2,300 ft) tether from a space station resupply vehicle that was returning to Earth. According to JAXA scientists, however, the system appears to have faltered. Space junk is a growing problem in low-Earth orbit. Since the beginning of the space age, debris as small as flecks of paint and as large as whole satellites and parts of rocket boosters... More

(Source: Seeker - Feb 1)