spacetoday.net: ClearSpace wins UK contract for debris removal mission

Posted: Sat, Oct 17, 2026, 11:35 AM ET (1535 GMT)
ClearSpace won a contract from the British government for a mission to deorbit two smallsats. Luxembourg-based ClearSpace beat out Japan-headquartered Astroscale and US-based Starfish Space for the contract announced Thursday, worth around 61 million British pounds ($80 million). It covers the final phase of an Active Debris Removal (ADR) program that is more than five years in the making. The mission, scheduled for launch in 2029, will approach two undisclosed UK-licensed satellites and grapple them, then maneuver to a lower orbit and release them. The servicer is similar to the one ClearSpace's Swiss unit is helping develop to remove the Proba-1 imaging satellite from LEO for the European Space Agency, an OHB-led mission slated to launch in 2029 after the UK ADR mission.