Capture Bags

Recently, the California-based space startup TransAstra demonstrated major progress in asteroid-mining technology using “Capture Bags,” flexible inflatable enclosures designed to safely trap and transport objects in space.

• The term “Capture Bag” refers to an aerospace-grade inflatable device, made from materials like Kevlar and aluminium, engineered to envelop and secure objects ranging from small rocks to multi-thousand-ton boulders in microgravity.
• It means that a single, adaptable enclosure can be deployed around irregular, spinning, or fast-moving objects, enabling the safe capture of asteroids or space debris without relying on complex robotics or rigid mechanisms.
• Capture Bags address four core challenges of asteroid ....