Astroscale Holdings Inc., a Japanese developer of on-orbit servicing and related solutions, has secured the lead for Phase II of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Commercial Removal of Debris Demonstration (CRD2) contract.

The CRD2 program involves removing the Japanese H2-A rocket's upper stage from Earth's orbit to address the growing problem of space debris. The contract (including taxes) is valued at around CNY 13 billion (~USD 90.3 million).

The CRD2 will feature ​​the next ADRAS-J2 spacecraft, which will approach the same rocket using Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO), capture further images, and remove and deorbit the rocket with Astroscale's robotic arm technologies.

Analyst QuickTake: Astroscale was also selected for Phase I of the CRD2 program in April 2024 and recently , in July 2024, completed a fly-around and the first global RPO endeavor to reach and examine the state of an existing large piece of debris (the H-2A upper stage).