Astroscale’s ELSA-d will be launched on GK’s cluster mission to remove space debris

Astroscale Japan Inc. has contracted with Glavkosmos/GK Launch Services to launch its ELSA-d satellite on a Soyuz-2 cluster mission from Baikonur Cosmodrome. The launch is currently scheduled for early 2020.
Astroscale Pte. Ltd. (ASTROSCALE) is the first private company to offer space debris removal services to secure long-term spaceflight safety for the benefit of future generations. Launching its corporate headquarters in Singapore in 2013, R&D office in Japan in 2015 and branch office in the United Kingdom in 2017, as well as a representative in Washington DC, US, ASTROSCALE is spreading its global market.
ELSA-d, which stands for End of Life Services by Astroscale (-demonstration), is an in-orbit demonstration of the rendezvous and docking technology for future semi-cooperative debris removal missions. ELSA-d consists of two spacecraft, a Chaser (160 kg) and a Target (20 kg), launched stacked together. The Chaser is equipped with proximity rendezvous technologies and a magnetic capture mechanism which enables it to dock with the Target’s Docking Plate.

(More details available at: http://bit.ly/Astroscale_ELSA-d_video)