A New Kind of Space Rescue Mission
Later this year, a microwave-sized spacecraft will attempt a first-of-its-kind orbital rendezvous that could redefine how we manage aging satellites and space junk. Starfish Space’s Otter Pup 2, a diminutive “space tug,” is scheduled to launch in mid-June aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare mission. Once in orbit, it will chase down and dock with another satellite that was never designed to be caught. In a feat akin to latching onto a car that lacks a hitch, the Otter Pup 2 will rendezvous with a D-Orbit ION space tug and attempt to attach itself to a flat side panel of that satellite – no special docking port,
