Could we blast space debris out of harm's way with ion beams?

A rendering of a spacecraft moving a piece of space debris using an ion beam.

A new space debris removal project aims to blast hazardous junk out of harm's way from a distance, without the need for physical contact.

Called ALBATOR, the 3.9 million Euro ($4.6 million USD) early-stage concept is examining non-kinetic methods to move space junk out of the way of satellites or objects like the International Space Station before they threaten these spacecraft.