Rocket launch in November will test Purdue-developed drag sail that aims to reduce orbital debris – TechCrunch

When space launch startup Firefly’s first planned orbital flight takes off in November, it’ll carry an experimental payload developed by engineers from Purdue University: A drag sail that’s designed to haul a rocket back to Earth once it’s fulfilled its mission and deployed its cargo. Safely de-orbiting a spent launch vehicle would mean one less large piece of flotsam circling the globe in an increasingly high-traffic orbital area.
Most launch vehicles do safely de-orbit on their own — eventual…

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