Abstract: The deterioration of the space environment due to the increasing number of space debris calls for the development of low-cost and high-efficiency methods for deorbiting the space debris. One of the passive technologies for removing the space debris in the low Earth orbit, namely, the electrodynamic tether system, is analyzed in this paper. The research progress of the electrodynamic tether system in China and other countries is reviewed firstly. Then the dynamics and the control, as well as the design of the deorbiting device and the prediction of the deorbiting time of the electrodynamic tether system are discussed. The development of the deorbiting technology with the electrodynamic tether is prospected in the end.