Plan to recover the 'oldest' satellite

Vanguard 1 reached orbit on March 17, 1958 as the second US satellite, only after the Explorer 1 satellite launched into space on January 31, 1958. However, Vanguard 1 is the first satellite to convert sunlight into electricity.

While Explorer 1 fell back into Earth's atmosphere in 1970, the small satellite Vanguard 1 of the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) remained. It even just celebrated 67 years of orbiting the blue planet.

Although Vanguard 1 has been decommissioned since 1964, when solar batteries no longer generated enough electricity, scientists still know its current location. This satellite is flying in an elliptical orbit with the closest point about 660 km from Earth, the farthest point about 3,822 km from Earth.

Now Vanguard 1 can claim another title: Oldest satellite ever recovered. Engineers and analysts from the American company Booz Allen Hamilton proposed to "capture" Vanguard 1 in orbit and return it to Earth, Space reported on April 6.

The team believes the best option is a two-phase mission: assessment and recall. First, Vanguard 1's condition needs to be assessed, possibly by a spacecraft equipped with a camera to take photos and make other measurements at close range. Another solution is to use radar and telescopes on the ground or in space, but it may not be able to capture images with the resolution needed for evaluation, according to research team member Chris Vanwy.

A major problem is the feasibility of capturing Vanguard 1, as many of its antennas are too fragile to be used as attachment points. In addition, the satellite also does not have a convenient connection mechanism or attachment point.

If the assessment shows recovery is feasible, the next stage is to consider whether to use a semi-autonomous vessel or send a crew to recover. As for the ship option, an upcoming test sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could demonstrate a suitable technique: NRL is attaching a robotic arm system, cameras and accompanying software to a spacecraft built by the company SpaceLogistics. The plan is to put the spacecraft into geosynchronous orbit later this year, reach some decommissioned communications satellites and attach jetpacks to them with robotic arms. It's possible that a similar spacecraft could capture Vanguard 1.

With the option of using a manned ship, SpaceX's modified Crew Dragon ship can be used, similar to the ship that once carried billionaire Jared Isaacman and three other passengers to space. During that flight, Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis took turns emerging from the Crew Dragon's nose to test the new SpaceX suit.

Because the ship's bow is large enough for Isaacman and Gillis to exit, the team thinks that future astronauts could carry Vanguard 1 into Dragon this way with some support equipment, then place it in a container to send back to Earth. Manual satellite retrieval can be more accurate but also increases costs.

In addition to its historical value, bringing back Vanguard 1 is attractive for many other reasons. One of them is the ability to develop and demonstrate techniques for capturing satellites in orbit. Additionally, for scientists and engineers studying materials and the effects of radiation, this will be an unprecedented opportunity to investigate the effects of long-term exposure to the space environment.

Thu Thao (According to Space, Aerospace America)