Space Junk

In February, 2006, NASA presented the world with a computer generated graphic (below) showing the accumulation of orbital debris - space junk - surrounding our planet. It is not a pretty sight. Talk about fouling our nest! The first man-made object was launched into space by the Soviets 49 years ago (Sputnik I - 1957), and we've been ruthlessly tossing our refuse overboard ever since, treating space the way we've been treating our oceans for millenia - as a big garbage dump. The result is that there are now over 13,000 pieces of man-made junk over four inches in diameter, and hundreds of thousands of smaller pieces, all trapped in orbit around Earth, and moving at an average deadly speed of 22,000 miles per hour (35,000 kph). This has made low Earth orbit an extremely hazardous place, for vital communication and scientific satellites, the International Space Station, and future Shuttle missions.

The good news is that space agencies around the world have determined to do something about the problem. NASA now has an entire department devoted solely to the issue of orbital debris: the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office. As well, Russia, Japan, France, and the European Space Agency have all developed guidelines to reduce or eliminate future debris, and there is work underway to try and clean up the mess already there. We can only hope it isn't too late.

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