Apocalypse Tomorrow
-
No Way Back Space Debris. Space pollution poses existential threat
-
No Way Back: Trash. Inside the global waste crisis
-
No Way Back: Heat. Climate change’s effects and workable solutions
-
No Way Back: Water . Water Crisis of the Anthropogenic Age
-
No Way Back: The Animal Kingdom. Bringing the Grey Whale population from the brink of extinction
No Way Back Space Debris. Space pollution poses existential threat
Since the start of space exploration, countless spacecraft have disintegrated in outer space, leaving a ring of space debris orbiting planet Earth. The international space community has slowly woken up to the fact that littering space is not a victimless crime.

Space debris poses a threat to orbital stations. The International Space Station (ISS) moves in space at a speed of 8 km per second. At such speeds, objects of any size become as dangerous as flying bullets. For example, in May 2016, a very small fragment, measuring only a few hundredths of a millimeter, left a chip about 7mm in diameter on the illuminator of the ISS. If the ISS is confronted with just a 10cm piece of debris, it is likely to become fatal for the whole orbital program. According to the calculations of the European Space Agency, more than 29,000 particles over 10cm are already in low Earth orbit. In a collision, each one of them is guaranteed to destroy any spacecraft or orbital station.

To understand the scale of the problem posed by space junk, RTD speaks to specialists from NASA and Roscosmos. These include Don Kessler, who first highlighted the dangers posed by the multiplication of space junk and became head of NASA’s new Orbital Debris Program Office. The retired NASA engineer explains why the smallest particles represent the greatest threat to the orbiting satellites on which the Internet-age economy depends. Meanwhile Anton Shkaplerov, a Russian cosmonaut, recalls how he and his crew-mates dodged debris while on the ISS.

RTD also visits D-Orbit, an Italian company developing ways to decommission satellites properly. Its founder Luca Rossettini, talks about the challenges involved in cleaning up lower orbital space junk. But could the simplest solution involve recycling flying matter?

-
26:06388126 November 2014 00:00
-
50:06219711 April 2018 00:00
-
27:182000706 February 2017 00:00
-
27:25463714 November 2016 00:00
-
25:541134505 October 2015 00:00