Space Junk 3D Page #3

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orbital debris travelling at these

speeds poses a very real threat.

Because of this, the International

Space Station features extra shielding,

as shown in red, over the

areas most likely to be hit.

To further protect the

ISS, its orbit is monitored

within what is referred

to as a "pizza box,"

creating a safe zone on all sides

to help keep it out of harm's way.

That's the job of the US

Space Surveillance Network,

where they detect and

catalogue man-made objects.

Utilising a vast array

of RADARs and sensors,

we're able to track thousands of pieces

of space junk larger than a softball.

Some of them, like rocket boosters,

are the size of a school bus.

But what's far more troubling is

all the debris that can't be tracked.

Debris the size of marbles,

among them waste from

rocket propellant and

fragments from collisions,

is capable of inflicting lethal damage.

Millions of particles the size

of darts are far beyond detection.

But the craters they produce on

spacecraft are well-documented.

Most importantly, the network

charts the orbital paths of the

catalogued debris and issues

collision alerts to station keepers.

So where do we go from here?

Forces of nature and natural collisions

will continue to shape our universe.

But man-made collisions?

Perhaps those we can

do something about...

The good news is that people have

begun to come up with new ideas to

bring back the pristine environment

that we would like space to be.

Scientists and engineers are

developing breakthrough innovations to

help us begin cleaning

up space someday soon.

The question is:
How do we

catch up to and capture

debris tumbling through Low-Earth

Orbit at thousands of miles an hour?

And then, how do we slow it down,

so that it falls out of orbit

and burns up in the atmosphere?

One fascinating concept involves

the use of electro-dynamic tether,

which would deal with the

spacecraft by generating drag,

through interactions between currents in

the tether and the Earth's magnetic field.

This increased drag would lower

the spacecraft out of orbit

until it re-enters the

atmosphere and burns up.

We may also be able to

capture debris with a net.

Japan's Space Agency has been working

with a fishing net manufacturer

to look at creating a "space

fishing net," which, like the tether,

could be powered using

the earth's magnetosphere.

Imagine that...

A centuries-old fishing

tool might just become

a brand-new tool for cleaning up space.

Lasers could one day sweep

space, striking smaller objects,

slowing them down and causing

them to tumble into the atmosphere.

Solar sails could someday be

part of the satellites we launch,

helping them to de-orbit once

their work in space is done.

Space-faring nations are now working

to develop sustainable methods to

explore space and new technology to

reclaim what has been left in orbit.

As we continue to launch our

dreams into space, what if one day

objects in space were located

and captured by a garbage vehicle?

The vehicle could then dock

at a recycling facility,

a place where space debris could be

stored and recycled to create new parts.

Imagine...

Aluminium and fuel from

centuries old upper-stage rockets

recovered and poured into an

industrial outer space post...

Industrialising space is never

and issue of science fiction.

It's more of a question

of do we want to do it and

when do we have the infrastructure

established so that we can do it.

It's work we will do in the

future as move out into space.

Space-based recycling could

someday become a reality,

launching a new, greener

era of space exploration.

For as long as humans

have walked the planet,

we've looked at the heavens to help

us define our role in the universe.

The celestial bodies in our skies

and the constellations they form

have forever shaped our

notions of time and place.

Today, constellations of our

own making fill the night skies

as we continue to push skyward, relying

on what the universe has taught us.

Where would we be, if we

couldn't consult the stars?

Growing up, it was my fantasy

that I would get to see humanity

spread off of the Earth and

throughout the Solar System.

So do I think this snowballing

event will actually happen?

I can't imagine after

dreaming and working toward

space flight and after 50

years of having achieved it,

that we would ever cut

ourselves off from space.

That does against everything that

humanity has ever strived for.

My legacy will probably always include

being knows as the father of "space junk."

What I hope that means is

that we continue to maintain

access to space and learn more

about life and the environment.

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