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Transcript/ScriptThe Week in Space (TV)
HEADLINE: Arcade Game-Style Gripper May One Day Claw Orbiting Space Junk
TEASER:
PUBLISHED AT: 3/21/24 at 3:15pm
BYLINE: Arash Arabasadi
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: REUTERS/ Astroscale/ SpaceX/ Airbus/ ESA/ AP/ NASA
SCRIPT EDITORS: sb, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): REUTERS/ Astroscale/ SpaceX/ Airbus/ ESA/ AP/ NASA
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO __
TRT: 2:43
NOTE:
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVPKG
UPDATE: ))
((INTRO))
A high-tech solution for tackling space clutter, photography tips for the upcoming solar eclipse, and we remember a spaceflight pioneer. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us The Week in Space.]]
((mandatory cg: Astroscale))
((NARRATOR))
We begin this week with a modern solution to the very modern problem of space junk.
As humans launch more satellites and spacecraft from our planet, more chunks and leftover pieces litter the Earth’s orbit.
[RADIO TRACK: ...as Astroscale UK Managing Director Nick Shave tells Reuters.]
((Nick Shave, Astroscale UK Managing Director))
“Since the start of the space age in 1957, we’ve had a throwaway culture in space. We’ve put lots of objects in space, and we’ve basically not removed them. We’ve not recycled them or anything else.”
((mandatory cg: SpaceX))
((NARRATOR))
So, when companies – like SpaceX – put rockets into orbit, there tends to be leftover material that stays there, posing a risk to future space missions and hardware.
((mandatory cg: ESA))
((NARRATOR))
The Natural History Museum in London estimates there are around 34-thousand pieces of space junk bigger than 10 centimeters orbiting our planet, and millions of smaller pieces.
((mandatory cg: Astroscale))
((NARRATOR))
Enter: a robotic gripper by Japanese company Astroscale.
Much like the arcade game that stole all my money as a kid, the robotic arm seeks to capture space junk and nudge it toward Earth so that it burns up in the atmosphere instead of just littering the neighborhood.
Aerospace company Airbus built the arm. Robotics team lead Elie Allouis ((pron. eh-LEE ah-loo-EE)) tells Reuters it’s tricky, to say the least.
((Elie Allouis, Airbus Robotics Expert)) ((MAN, ENGLISH))
“To go and grab a client spacecraft, we need to perform a complex space ballet where we have the servicer approaching and grabbing the client. And to do this, we have a range of systems, including the manipulator that’s meant to go and place a gripper in very tight locations.”
((mandatory cg: Airbus))
((NARRATOR))
Astroscale calls it “active debris removal.” Officials say it could help stop dangerous overcrowding in space.
And if you’re not worried because you’re not an astronaut,
((Mandatory courtesy: ESA))
experts consider space junk a threat to the satellites that run your GPS, text messaging, internet, and cell phone service. Yes, it’s that serious.
((mandatory cg: NASA))
((NARRATOR))
Also this week, we remember NASA astronaut
((mandatory cg: NASA))
Thomas P. Stafford, who commanded a dress rehearsal for the 1969 moon landing.
He flew aboard the Apollo 10 mission. Its return trip to Earth set a record for the fastest speed by a crewed vehicle, at just shy of 40-thousand kilometers per hour. [39,897 kph].
Stafford was one of 12 NASA astronauts who flew to the moon but never touched it. He died at a hospital in Florida at age 93.
Finally this week, we’ve been telling you for some time about an upcoming total solar eclipse over North America.
It’s coming in April and should last nearly four-and-a-half minutes, about twice as long as the one that blocked out the sun in 2017.
If you’re planning to photograph the event, however, treat your camera like you would treat your eyes, as NASA says you need a proper solar filter on the lens.
Arash Arabasadi, VOA News
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateMarch 21, 2024 16:02 EDT
Byline
Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.
Washington D. C.
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English, Voice of America
