Space debris used to only refer to asteroids, comets and meteoroids but now it can refer to the massive amount of space junk that is being held captive by the earth’s gravitational pull inside earth’s orbit. Bits of old satellites and used rocket stages as well as smaller pieces of space junk from rocket & satellite collisions also float aimlessly in our, once beautifully plain, earth orbit.

In July 2016, 17,852 artificial objects were tracked around the earth’s atmosphere in orbit. This included 1,419 operational satellites. The reason why we launch so many satellites into orbit is because they’re used for all-manner of things. A few of the main uses of satellites include:

Communication

Satellite map imaging

TV & radio broadcasting

Artificial Objects Around The Earth — Credit: NASA

As technology always moves on, consumers & businesses start asking for more services and we expect our technology to start doing more for us. To meet demand, more services are made and occasionally more satellites are sent up into space. While most satellites sent up these days have the ability to come back down again, or are taken back down externally, many older satellites have been floating around in orbit for years. Some perhaps have spent decades in space.

I believe that we’re slowly, but surely, trapping ourselves in a virtual prison.

To understand this theory, you’ll first need to understand this; there’s no friction in space. None at all. Therefore, an object that is moving in space (even if it’s moving really slowly!) will move forever, until:

The object hits a gravitational force , then the object would be attracted to the forces centre of gravity. So, say an alien threw a ball into deep space and it came across the earth, its momentum and direction would be determined by the earth’s gravitational force, as the ball would be attracted to the centre of the earth (the forces centre of gravity)

, then the object would be attracted to the forces centre of gravity. So, say an alien threw a ball into deep space and it came across the earth, its momentum and direction would be determined by the earth’s gravitational force, as the ball would be attracted to the centre of the earth (the forces centre of gravity) The object is interfered with, either by aliens or something else under Newton’s first law, which states that an objects motion will stay the same unless an external force (hence our alien) acts upon it. For example, our alien could push the ball, this would affect it’s momentum & direction. This sort of goes hand-in-hand with the above point.

Now, time for the ‘virtual prison’ part…

Let’s say that we have 20,000 satellites in space. We already have 17,852 so it’s close enough. Now, imagine if one of these satellites was moving into another at high-speed. This would cause high-speed debris, which would hit other satellites. Those that have seen the film Gravity might be having a deja vu moment. This wouldn’t only take-down most of our online services that rely on satellites to function, but an event of this scale would also cause high-speed flying debris to gather around our planet’s orbit. Debris that is constantly smashing and speeding each and every piece up. These are not exactly the best conditions for launching a rocket, through a high-speed debris field. If this event were to happen it might be the end of human space exploration as we know it, as the risk involved in launching any rocket would simply be too great. In a way, they’d be no point. Most shuttles would just be mere bits or heavily damaged by the time they’re properly out into space, not to mention the risks that the live crew subject themselves too. I don’t want to be asking myself the question: Is human loss of life too big a risk for space exploration?

Will We Be Able To Explore Space Further? — Credit: Pixabay

So, I’ve explained the problem, but instead of focusing on it any further, let’s go into some solutions that we could use to stop this event from ever happening. We have a few options. I think the first and most sensible option would to be simply remove the satellites we don’t use in orbit, I’m talking 1980’s style telescopes and older technology here. But, nothing in space is simple. Let’s see 3 main options when it comes to moving or destroying the satellites already in orbit:

Remotely controlled spaceships could be used to push the decommissioned satellites out into a ‘graveyard’ orbit. This doesn’t destroy the satellites, it just pushes them out of the way of working satellites so they can’t interfere. The fuel efficiency is also very good using this method as rockets already want to travel and float around in space due to the lack of friction.

could be used to push the decommissioned satellites out into a ‘graveyard’ orbit. This doesn’t destroy the satellites, it just pushes them out of the way of working satellites so they can’t interfere. The fuel efficiency is also very good using this method as rockets already want to travel and float around in space due to the lack of friction. Laser methods . Lasers could be used to vaporise satellites, so destroying them is possible with this method. Lasers could also be used to push satellites further out into space, again into a ‘graveyard’ orbit. So the best of both worlds are given with this method.

. Lasers could be used to vaporise satellites, so destroying them is possible with this method. Lasers could also be used to push satellites further out into space, again into a ‘graveyard’ orbit. So the best of both worlds are given with this method. Methods involving nets. While there have been failed operational tests reported for this method, I still think it could an effective method for cleaning up space junk. A shuttle could be sent out and retrieve any disused satellites, or parts of them, and even send them back any salvageable materials ready for recycling.

Personally, I believe that the methods involving nets would be quite effective and cheaper than the other two methods listed here. The ESA is also going to experiment with this method as part of their 2023 e.Deorbit mission. For me, this shows hope in that we won’t end up in the scenario I described above and that steps are being taken in the cleanup for our beautiful orbit that we’ll hopefully be able to not just see, but experience soon too!

This article was originally inspired by this Kurzgesagt YouTube video.