Or, the EDDE can deliver the object closer to Earth where it will orbit out of harm's way and eventually decay.

Better yet, it can be reused in space to build a variety of useful structures, Pearson said. "So you'd be mining aluminum in orbit mainly," he said. Four EDDEs could collect enough metal and other material to build a structure the size of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., which could be used to host crews or store equipment, he said.

Pearson acknowledges a number of challenges to the idea behind EDDE. For instance, with 12 or more EDDEs zipping around, "we may need space traffic control," he said. Just like the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration regulates U.S. airspace, that agency has already begun looking at ways it might monitor space, requiring vehicles like EDDEs to file flight plans, he said.

Another possibly significant issue is that while Pearson is proposing the use of EDDEs to clean up garbage, they could potentially be used for more sinister purposes, and that has already raised alarms in China. For instance, an EDDE could be used for military purposes to remove a satellite from orbit.

Because of those concerns, Space Inc. is working on shifting the project to NASA rather than DARPA, which is part of the U.S. Department of Defense, Pearson said.