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Space junk is becoming a massive problem as satellites disintegrate, with 4300 tonnes now orbiting Earth
- A communications satellite, Intelsat 33e, has come apart in orbit, affecting users across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. The cause of the break-up is so far unknown. Problems had previously affected Intelsat 33e while in orbit, as with the company’s 702 MP satellite similarly named EpicNG, which was lost in 2019.
- Orbiting debris continues to accumulate and is becoming an increasing hazard to other satellites and space-ships. Currently, there are over 130 million items less than 1cm wide in orbit and over 40,000 above 10cm. Almost a third of the total mass of man-made objects in orbit around the Earth is debris (a total of 4,300 tonnes).
- The amount of discarded satellites and other objects orbiting Earth is posing an increasing risk to the International Space Station which, according to NASA’s Orbital Debris Program, could produce over 220m debris fragments if broken up in orbit.
- When space debris is created, the country that launched the object into space is responsible for cleaning it up, although there is little accountability in reality. There have been moves to try to address the issue and planners are said to be making provision for the de-orbiting of the International Space Station, scheduled to take place at the end of its operational life in 2030.
- The total mass of human-made space objects in Earth orbit is some 13,000 tonnes. That’s about the same mass as 90 adult male blue whales. About one third of this mass is debris (4,300 tonnes), mostly in the form of leftover rocket bodies.
- The sudden failure of a satellite is always somewhat surprising and there are concerns that the density of satellites in orbit is making collisions more likely. China launched its 23rd navigation satellite this year, with every satellite adding to the risk of space accidents.
- The larger a space object the larger the amount of debris it produces when it breaks up. Both the Intelsat and its sister satellite presented such a risk.
- The breakup of the Intelsat communications satellite highlights the growing amount of debris in space causing potential hazards for the International Space Station and other satellites and space ships. It is not yet known whether the recent event will have any impact on other space objects.
- Almost a third of the total mass of man-made objects in orbit around the Earth is debris, mostly in the form of leftover rocket bodies, which makes tracking and identifying space debris a challenging task.
- When satellites are decommissioned, they either need to be brought safely down to Earth or sent into what is called a "graveyard orbit" at an altitude where they are unlikely to have a detrimental impact on other space objects.
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