STRATEGY FOR THE ECONOMICAL REMOVAL OF NUMEROUS LARGER DEBRIS OBJECTS FROM EARTH ORBITS

The number of man-made objects in Earth orbits will soon reach a critical level, if spaceflight activities are continued as in the past. Interactive collisions then could become the main source for the generation of orbital debris endangering all spaceflight activities. In addition, a steady increase of the number of objects in Earth orbits will always lead to a chain reaction of collisions. Hence, the Earth orbiting population must be limited in any case-and the level should be as low as possible. Preventive measures (avoidance of debris) are preferable, because subsequent active removal is always much more difficult and expensive. But if it is not possible to limit the population in time, active removal of numerous larger objects from higher altitudes is the only way to reduce an unacceptable or critical high population level. In this paper a basically new strategy for the economical debris removal is presented, which is, nevertheless, feasible by using only techniques expected to be available in the near future. This strategy of a cycle consisting of energy transfer and conversion with the help of a conductive space tether will reduce drastically the propellant consumption for the necessary rendezvous and de-orbit manoeuvres.