Dark Horse will release Makoto Yukimura's acclaimed hard sci-fi manga Planetes in an omnibus format, debuting in December. The listing was spotted on Amazon by Brian Ruh, and then confirmed by Anime News Network.

The series centers on the crew of the Toy Box, orbital debris collectors tasked with snaring and disposing of any "trash" -- from screws to old satellites -- that could possibly damage or destroy space stations and spacecraft. Both the manga and its anime adaptation won prestigious Seiun Awards for speculative fiction.

Tokyopop previously licensed Planetes in North America, and published all four volumes between 2003 and 2005.

As Dark Horse editor Brendan Wright suggests in a statement to Crunchyroll, Planetes has served as more than one reader's gateway to manga (it was one of my first titles).

"Planetes is one of the series that made me a manga fan," he says, "at once startlingly realistic in its scientific detail, moving in its relateable human drama, and hilarious in the personalities of its diverse cast of astronauts. I was saddened to think it might fade from American comics shops after Tokyopop’s demise, so it’s a joy and an honor to reintroduce it at Dark Horse in the edition I’d want as a fan, with superior source materials and all the color pages included.”

Priced at $19.99, the Planetes omnibus edition is scheduled to arrive Dec. 22 in bookstores and Dec. 23 in the direct market.