A piece of unwanted debris left by humans in Earth’s low orbit has become the equivalent of a “new plastic island adrift” in outer space, an expert has warned.
Scientific models estimate that there are more than 128 million pieces of space debris exceeding 1 mm and 34,000 pieces of more than 10 cm.
These range from old parts of rockets to paint flakes that have broken the satellites
Now, Ekaterini Kavvada, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Industry and Defense Space, has warned that this space junk “is not a theoretical threat but a reality”, similar to the threat of plastic islands floating in the oceans. of the Earth.
He added that the waste could cause damage to active and other European satellites, and added that if we do not react safely and in a timely manner, the consequences will be “harmful”.
A piece of unwanted debris left by humans in Earth’s lower orbit has become the equivalent of a “new drifting plastic island” in outer space, an expert warned (printing the artist)
Speaking at the 13th European Space Conference, Ms. Kavvada said: “Orbiting space debris has become the new drifting plastic island (if I had to make the comparison), which poses an imminent threat to the safety and security of all traffic and space sustainability “.
Fragments of space debris up to 1 cm can completely destroy satellites due to the speed at which they travel.
Artificial satellites are used in communications, such as satellite TV and telephone calls, and in navigation, which includes the Global Positioning System (GPS).
These types of spacecraft also play an important role in weather forecasting, storm tracking, and pollution and astronomy.
Kavvada said that as of January 2019, there were more than 5,000 satellites in space, but only 2,000 are still active.
She said: “Hopefully, and that’s why we cross our fingers every day, it’s possible that these satellites could become exorbitant and burn especially in the atmosphere when their useful life ends.”
However, Ms. Kavvada warned that there are still about 3,000 inactive satellites drifting in space, with recent data suggesting that there have been more than 500 ruptures or explosions of these spacecraft, which has caused fragmentation.
He said that adding networks of satellite satellites, known as mega constellations, to space could result in Kessler syndrome, a chain reaction where more and more objects collide to create new space debris. to the point where the Earth’s orbit became unusable.
Ms Kavvada said: “This already looks like a disaster waiting to happen.”
Rolf Densing, director of operations at the European Space Agency, who also spoke at the space conference, said: “We live in a time when mega constellations and the population of orbiting objects are accumulating in our around it grows thousands per year.
So right now we have about 1,000 Starlink satellites in orbit.
“By the end of the decade, we’ll be talking about tens of thousands of satellites in orbit around us.”
Densing said ESA’s European Space Operations Center (ESOC) receives “hundreds of collision alerts” on a fleet of about 20 satellites the agency operates.
He said: “Every two weeks, on average, we will have to fly the collision avoidance maneuver.”
Kavvada said it is necessary to limit the production of space debris, avoid the generation of new waste and develop instruments to eliminate existing space debris to “ensure a long-term sustainable use of space.”
She said: “Even in a theoretical scenario where no more objects are added to the space environment, the results of simulations derived from ESA and NASA show that the critical density achieved in LEO (low orbit of the Earth) is such that mitigation alone is no longer enough. ”
It is estimated that there are 170 million pieces of the so-called “space junk”, but only 22,000 are tracked (artist’s impression)
Ms Kavvada added: “Therefore, today, if we do not react safely and in a timely manner … the consequences will be detrimental.”
Last year, the UK government awarded seven million pounds to private companies to help track space debris as part of its space surveillance and monitoring (SST) program.
The UK will also play a critical role in building The Claw, which will be the first satellite to remove space debris.
Part of ESA’s Clearspace-1 mission scheduled for 2025, The Claw will use a clamp movement to collect debris, before giving it a controlled re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, which will allow it to decompose safely. and away from life.
WHAT IS JUNK SPACE? MORE THAN 170 MILLION PIECES OF DEAD SATELLITE, SPENT ROCKETS AND PAINT FLAKES POWER “THREAT” TO SPACE INDUSTRY
It is estimated that there are 170 million pieces of the so-called “space junk”, left after missions that can be as large as stages of spent rockets or as small as paint flakes, orbiting with about 700 billion of US dollars (555 billion pounds) of space infrastructure. .
But only 22,000 are tracked, and with fragments capable of traveling at speeds in excess of 27,000 km / h, even small pieces could damage or destroy satellites.
However, traditional methods of adhesion do not work in space, as suction cups do not work in a vacuum and temperatures are too cold for substances such as tape and glue.
Tweezers based around magnets are useless because most debris orbiting the Earth is not magnetic.
Today, around 500,000 pieces of man-made debris (artist’s impression) revolve around our planet, made up of disused satellites, pieces of spacecraft and worn-out rockets.
Most of the proposed solutions, including debris harpoons, require or cause a forceful interaction with the debris, which could push these objects in unforeseen and unforeseen directions.
Scientists point to two events that have greatly worsened the problem of space debris.
The first was in February 2009, when a telecommunications satellite Iridium and Kosmos-2251, a Russian military satellite, accidentally collided.
The second was in January 2007, when China tested an anti-satellite weapon on an old Fengyun weather satellite.
Experts also pointed to two sites that have been disturbingly messy.
One is low Earth orbit, which is used by Satnav satellites, the ISS, China’s manned missions, and the Hubble Telescope, among others.
The other is in geostationary orbit and is used by communications, meteorological and surveillance satellites that must maintain a fixed position with respect to the Earth.