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Laser to zap space debris, funding for SKA

ANU team helps build a laser to move space debris; PM announces funding boost for astronomy.

space junk
This graphic of orbital debris, or “space junk" (any human-made object in orbit around the Earth that no longer serves a useful purpose) comes from 2009. The same year, a US communications satellite owned by a private company, Iridium, collided with a non-functioning Russian satellite. The collision destroyed both satellites and created a field of debris that endangered other orbiting satellites. Credit: NASA illustration, courtesy Orbital Debris Program Office.