World’s First Commercial Satellite Tracking Sub-Millimeter Sized Debris IDEA OSG 1 Scheduled to Launch on November 28

【日本語のプレスリリースは最下段より】

ASTROSCALE PTE. LTD. (ASTROSCALE), a company with a mission to secure

long-term spaceflight safety by developing debris monitoring and removal services, will launch IDEA OSG 1 on November 28 at 14:41:46 (JST) from Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome with the Russian State Space Corporation Roscosmos meteorology mission Meteor-M №2-1. Shipped from Japan in the end of September, IDEA OSG 1, the world’s first in-situ space debris monitoring microsatellite in lowEarth orbit, now awaits checkout before rocket integration at the launch site.

As the first private company to attempt to mitigate space debris through technology, business model, and regulatory solutions, ASTROSCALE plans to contribute to the sustainable use of space. Founded in 2013, ASTROSCALE’s first satellite took only two and half years to manufacture from its conception. The microsatellite will be placed in an elliptical low-Earth orbit at an altitude of 600 - 800km, and will monitor the size and position of space debris to create debris distribution maps to better understand the space environment.

The launch details of IDEA OSG 1 are as follows:

Launch Date: November 28, 2017 (JST)

Launch Time: 14:41:46 (JST)

Launch Station: Vostochny Cosmodrome, Russia

*Launch date and time are subject to change.

IDEA OSG 1 Official Sponsors

OSG Corporation https://www.osg.co.jp/en/

POCARI SWEAT (Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.) https://www.otsuka.co.jp/en/product/pocarisweat/

END