{"id":45932,"date":"2023-08-31T21:20:06","date_gmt":"2023-08-31T13:20:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/space-junk-is-on-the-rise-and-no-one-is-in-charge-of-cleaning-it-up\/"},"modified":"2023-08-31T21:20:06","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T13:20:06","slug":"space-junk-is-on-the-rise-and-no-one-is-in-charge-of-cleaning-it-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/space-junk-is-on-the-rise-and-no-one-is-in-charge-of-cleaning-it-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Space junk is on the rise, and no one is in charge of cleaning it up"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a lot of trash on the Moon right now\u2014including nearly 100 bags of human waste\u2014and with countries around the globe traveling to the Moon, there\u2019s going to be a lot more, both on the lunar surface and in Earth\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n

In August 2023, Russia\u2019s Luna-25 probe crashed into the Moon\u2019s surface, while India\u2019s Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully landed in the southern polar region, making India the fourth country to land on the Moon.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Indian<\/p>\n

Students celebrating and dancing after the Chandrayaan3 Vikram Lander successfully landed on the Moon at Kartvayapath on August 23, 2023, in New Delhi, India.<\/p>\n

Credit:
\n Hindustan Times via Getty<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

With more countries landing on the Moon, people back on Earth will have to think about what happens to all the landers, waste, and miscellaneous debris left on the lunar surface and in orbit.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a professor of astronomy who has written a book about the future of space travel, articles about our future off-Earth, conflict in space, space congestion, and the ethics of space exploration. Like many other space experts, I\u2019m concerned about the lack of governance around space debris.<\/p>\n

Space is getting crowded<\/h2>\n

People think of space as vast and empty, but the near-Earth environment is starting to get crowded. As many as 100 lunar missions are planned over the next decade by governments and private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin.<\/p>\n

Near-Earth orbit is even more congested than the space between Earth and the Moon. It\u2019s from 100 to 500 miles straight up, compared with 240,000 miles to the Moon. Currently there are nearly 7,700 satellites within a few hundred miles of the Earth. That number could grow to several hundred thousand by 2027. Many of these satellites will be used to deliver Internet to developing countries or to monitor agriculture and climate on Earth. Companies like SpaceX have dramatically lowered launch costs, driving this wave of activity.<\/p>\n

,<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be like an interstate highway, at rush hour in a snowstorm, with everyone driving much too fast,\u201d space launch expert Johnathan McDowell told Space.com.<\/p>\n

The problem of space junk<\/h2>\n

All this activity creates hazards and debris. Humans have left a lot of junk on the Moon, including spacecraft remains like rocket boosters from over 50 crashed landings, nearly 100 bags of human waste, and miscellaneous objects like a feather, golf balls, and boots. It adds up to around 200 tons of our trash.<\/p>\n

Since no one owns the Moon, no one is responsible for keeping it clean and tidy.<\/p>\n

The clutter in Earth\u2019s orbit includes defunct spacecraft, spent rocket boosters, and items discarded by astronauts, such as a glove, a wrench, and a toothbrush. It also includes tiny pieces of debris like paint flecks.<\/p>\n

There are around 23,000 objects larger than 10 cm (4 inches) and about 100 million pieces of debris larger than 1 mm (0.04 inches). Tiny pieces of junk might not seem like a big issue, but that debris is moving at 15,000 mph (24,140 kph), 10 times faster than a bullet. At that speed, even a fleck of paint can puncture a spacesuit or destroy a sensitive piece of electronics.<\/p>\n