India’s Push Towards Debris-Free Space by 2030

Syllabus: GS3/ Science and Technology

Context

• The Union Minister of State for Science and Technology announced a vision of achieving debris-free space by 2030 along with inaugurating Base 1, a space robotics facility established by Cosmoserve Space in Hyderabad.

What is Space Debris?

• Space debris is defined as all non-functional, man-made objects, including fragments and elements thereof, in Earth orbit or re-entering into Earth’s atmosphere.
• Kessler Syndrome: It is a theoretical scenario in which a cascade of collisions between artificial objects in low Earth orbit leads to a rapidly increasing amount of space debris, making the use of near-Earth space impossible for an extended period of time.

Dangers of space junk

• High Orbital Velocity: According to NASA, debris can travel at speeds of up to 18,000 mph, which is 10 times faster than the speed of a bullet.
• Collision Risks: High-speed debris can collide with operational satellites and spacecraft, damaging critical systems or rendering them non-functional.
• Threat to Human Spaceflight: Increases the risk to astronauts aboard spacecraft and space stations, including the International Space Station (ISS).
• Economic Losses: Can increase satellite replacement, repair, insurance and space mission costs.

International agreements on space debris

• The Space Liability Convention of 1972: It defines responsibility in case a space object causes harm.
  • The treaty states that “a launching State shall be absolutely liable to pay compensation for damage caused by its space objects on the surface of the earth or to aircraft,” and liable for damage due to its fault in space.
• Zero Debris Charter: Twelve nations and the European Space Agency (ESA) have signed the Zero Debris Charter at the ESA/EU Space Council. It aims to become debris neutral in space by 2030.

India’s Initiatives Towards Space Debris Management

• Active Debris Removal (ADR): India is developing indigenous capabilities to capture and remove non-functional satellites and other debris from orbit.
• Project NETRA (Network for space object Tracking and Analysis), an early warning system, was initiated by ISRO to help detect space hazards to Indian satellites.
  • The project is expected to give India its own capability in space situational awareness (SSA), something that other space powers already have.
  • The SSA is used to predict threats from debris to Indian satellites.
• The ISRO System for Safe and Sustainable Operations Management (IS4OM) was established in 2022 to continually monitor objects posing collision threats and to mitigate the risk posed by space debris.
• Mission EMBRACE was a 2026 space mission by Indian startup Cosmoserve Space that tested the world’s first in-orbit soft robotic capture mechanism aboard Skyroot Aerospace’s Vikram-1 rocket.
  • However, the robotic petals failed to deploy as intended due to an apparent mechanical issue under space conditions.

Challenges in Space Debris Removal

• High costs: Developing and deploying debris-removal missions involves substantial financial and technological investments.
• Regulatory issues: Under the Outer Space Treaty, space objects remain under the jurisdiction and control of their launching states, complicating their removal without consent.
• International coordination: Lack of universally binding and enforceable standards for debris removal creates coordination challenges.
• Dual-use concerns: Technologies used for debris removal could also have anti-satellite applications, raising security concerns.

Way Ahead

• Strengthen indigenous research in robotic capture, autonomous navigation and satellite servicing technologies.
• Develop internationally coordinated standards for responsible satellite disposal and active debris removal.
• Ensure compliance with the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines.
• Encourage Design for Demise, post-mission disposal and de-orbiting technologies to minimise the creation of future debris.

Source: PIB