Astroscale space junk removal satellite nearly catches target in orbital test

A satellite designed to test technologies that could one day help clean up Earth orbit has been busy the past few days zooming in on a simulated piece of debris using its onboard sensors. The experiment, by Japanese company Astroscale, however, stopped short of catching the target as engineers detected "anomalous spacecraft conditions." Astroscale, which plans to provide space cleanup services commercially as early as 2024, said in a statement that the demonstration, part of the End-of-Life Services by Astroscale-demonstration (ELSA-d) mission, was a success despite the last-minute hitch. More

(Source: Space.com - May 7)