In previous weeks, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's company Stratolaunch Systems unveiled its plan to launch rockets into space using a specially-designed airplane by 2016. This comes on the heels of news that SpaceX's Dragon capsule will be the first privately-made module to dock with the International Space Station and Virgin Galactic's plans to start launching into space as soon as next year.
With these recent announcements about long-term private space ventures becoming a reality, many writers (including myself) have been very optimistic about the future of space travel. However, there is one glaring problem these private firms haven't addressed: The dangers posed by space junk accumulating in the Earth's orbit. Not only will the space junk problem slow down the growth of space travel technology, but it will also lead to necessary governmental regulations on private space travel to curb the further growth of debris.
According to a recent study by the National Research Council, the Earth's orbit has reached a "tipping point" in space junk accumulation where items such as parts from old satellites and rocket boosters can continually collide with other pieces to create more debris. While many pieces fall back into the Earth's atmosphere and burn up in the process, at least 20,000 pieces of soda can-sized space junk are still in low-Earth orbit. The velocity of these orbiting pieces of debris can potentially damage and destroy satellites and spaceships, and in the process create even more debris. The problem has reached the point where some scientists believe that in 10 to 30 years, the accumulating junk could make some regions of the atmosphere off-limits to space travel.
As more and more countries and corporations develop their own space capabilities, some sort of international system to monitor space junk will need to develop in order to prevent accidents that could create more debris in the Earth's orbit. Nicholas L. Johnson, NASA’s chief scientist for orbital debris, has called for international cooperation to deal with the orbiting debris, and an Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee exists to unite these efforts.
The Federal Aviation Administration is faced with licensing companies for space travel and a substantial number of laws already exist in the U.S. regulating commercial space flight. If the accumulation of space debris continues at a growing rate, the FAA and similar organizations worldwide may impose stricter requirements on spaceship designs, launch procedures, and flight durations. While increased regulations would reduce the likelihood of a catastrophic accident in space, they would also increase the costs of already expensive private space programs, decrease the number new investors, and reduce the speed of technological innovation overall.
Despite sentiments from Virgin Galactic Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Steve Iskaowitz, space is not entirely "wide open" and serious measures need to be taken to ensure that we will be able to develop sustainable space travel without completely trashing the upper reaches of the atmosphere for future generations.
Instead of space tourism, perhaps Virgin Galactic, SpaceX, and Stratolaunch would be better off investing in space garbage collection.
Photo Credit: NASA
The Discussion
Space junk will not restrict the growth of the space industry. The cost of space flight is trending downward, and as this continues the market will open and more people will want to participate. Serious strategies, such as nets to catch the junk, are on the table. If there is money, there is a way.
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Global warming is created by heating up the 32 degrees below zero upper atsmosphere and the only thing us humans use up there that is very hot is turbo jet engine airplanes whose exhaust is 500 degrees for passenger planes and 1800 to 2300 for military jets. Yearly in the upper atmosphere these jets heat up an area of approx. 103,320,000,000 super size stadiums with hot air. We MUST go back to propeller airplanes! Read www.mybetteramericaplan.com
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DARPA recently asked the aerospace community to submit proposals for dealing with the issue. I think Boeing is currently working on a system to track and categorize whatever all is up there.
While it is true that other nations have contributed to the problem, the US has probably contributed the most followed by Russia (and the old Soviet Union) due to the scale of our space programs.
What's alarming is the fact that few people have actually heard about this issue. There needs to be some more public awareness for this problem before it becomes an untenable situation for the future.
The Air Force has a commercial about space junk..Just saw it for the 1st time today. Interesting.
The pollution is astounding but I think you bring up an interesting point as well concerning the ISS. With the number of private companies interested in space travel and thus having to dock at the ISS, it will more than likely become a public park. But a park has to be maintained. Not good.
Interesting. I've never heard of this issue, but it certainly makes sense. I get the feeling this issue could play out like a "Kyoto Treaty in space," with the United States lamenting the pollution in low-Earth orbit but balking if and when a substantial international solution materializes.
20,000 pieces? tipping point? seriously? Do we understand the limited size of the "junks" orbital "ring"?
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All my life people in the Indian community have joked about the white man polluting space once he got there. I never imagined it could be true.
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This is a classic problem of the commons. Private companies would be more than happy to contract with governments who pay them to do the work. But the estimated costs are enormous, and the governments of space-faring nations are wary of others free-riding on their clean-up efforts. I doubt any progress can be made with space junk in the absence of an international treaty, and that's much easier said than done.
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