Britain will work with partners from around the globe to assist in the clean-up of dangerous space debris floating in orbit.

The UK Space Agency has announced a partnership with the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) to “support the next stage of international efforts” to promote sustainability in space.

Funding from the Agency will support a “collaborative effort” to advance global awareness on space sustainability and the best way to implement UN Guidelines for the Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities.

Space exploration firms Astroscale and ClearSpace have been awarded funding for research into the removal of space debris, supporting the government’s ambitions to be a leading nation in tackling the problem.

The Agency is also joining forces with US-based company Numerica Corporation to provide space surveillance and tracking (SST) data from a global network of optical telescopes and software to help keep UK satellites safely operating.

Commenting on the new collaboration, Science Minister George Freeman said: “Growing reliance on satellites for a range of everyday utilities from SatNav to meteorology is making the space tech sector increasingly valuable to the UK economy.

“Our National Space Strategy sets out our vision for a thriving UK space sector that pushes the boundaries of innovation including a specific commitment to lead in clearing space debris.

“These new projects will support our leading role in cleaning up our orbit, which has been neglected for far too long, and will help keep satellites operating safely so they can continue to provide vital services such as communications and climate change monitoring.”

Floating debris and congestion in orbit are two of the biggest challenges facing the global space sector. There are estimated to be around 900,000 pieces of debris, such as satellites, old rocket bodies and astronaut’s tools.

Without a proper clean-up attempt, it can float in orbit for hundreds of years and present a real danger to new satellites being launched each year.

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In 2020, the UK Space Agency awarded seven UK companies a share of over £1m to help track debris in space.

IT services firm Fujitsu UK announced a new project in July to optimise space junk removal using combined quantum-inspired computing and AI.

The partnership with the University of Glasgow, Amazon Web Services and Astroscale UK looks to improve mission planning to allow a spacecraft to efficiently select pieces of space debris at a much faster rate than is currently possible.

Scottish space firm Skyrora conducted a series of successful trials of a ‘space tug’ which it said could play a “crucial role” in tackling the issue of space junk.

The firm said that its Orbit Transfer Vehicle, which is part of its Skyrora XL rocket, could clear debris, reposition satellites and remove defunct satellites from orbit.

Simonetta Di Pippo, Director of UNOOSA, said: “The democratization and intensification we see in the space sector represent encouraging news for the future.

“The sustainability challenges this new era creates must be addressed as a priority to ensure that the space sector can thrive.

“We must look at every action we take in space through the lens of sustainability, for which the LTS Guidelines provide an outstanding framework.”

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