Paladin Space aims to clean up satellite debris

Paladin Space will use a $100,000 South Australian government grant to progress its work into reducing the risk posed to spacecraft by space debris including defunct satellites, rocket parts and much smaller items floating in the Earth’s orbit.

Harrison Box, the founder of Paladin Space, is developing an advanced reusable space debris remover that will benefit commercial satellite owners, the defence industry and government space agencies.

Box is a former graduate of UniSA’s Venture Catalyst Space Program.

Working with the Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML), Paladin Space will use a $100,000 Seed-Start grant to develop new image processing techniques to help identify space debris using artificial intelligence.

Box said: “With an estimated 9,000 metric tons of space debris currently scattered in orbit, and moving at extremely high speeds, a piece as small as a pen lid could easily damage any satellite in its way and put astronauts at risk.

“Our Seed-Start grant will help us explore new image processing techniques with support from the Australian Institute for Machine Learning, refine our novel capture design technology, and demonstrate our debris removal capability on a global stage.”

The grant will also help refine its novel capture design technology and finalise a prototype for demonstration by mid-2025, accelerating the pathway to market and attracting further investment funding.

Paladin Space will join eight other SA startups as part of an Australian
delegation to the US from 27 October to 2 November.

Sponsored by the SA Government and hosted by Tribe Global Ventures, Paladin Space will pursue business development opportunities, including meeting with Space X and NASA to pitch its debris removal technology.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis for Seed-Start provides grant funding for high-growth potential businesses through the South Australian Government’s Research and Innovation Fund.

Image: Paladin Space