A couple months ago I discussed a problem that plagues both space tourism and communication satellites: orbital debris.
And while the private sector can be blamed for its small part in leaving upper stages floating around, the vast majority of the new damaging debris comes from military experiments.
According to a recent Popular Mechanics piece, low Earth orbit (LEO) is especially hard hit due to various anti-satellite experiments conducted by both China and the US military which have created hundreds of extraordinarily small pellets that are not just hard to track, but hard to defend satellites against. [Note: 1 2 3]
You see, communication and imaging satellites are designed to maximize their payload weight and are typically constructed of material conducive to this — material that is not usually bullet-proof, let alone debris proof.
And while some of the debris will eventually fly out into higher orbits or disintegrate back into the atmosphere, most will continue to stalk LEO for decades to come.
The goggles do nothing
Unfortunately for those of us on terra firma, according to the article, this unabating trend in creating hazardous materials was not only predicted, but is actually summarized in a dystopic scenario: the Kessler Syndrome.
In a nutshell it means that areas in LEO become so polluted/trashed/crowded with long-living debris, that it essentially makes this geographic region unusable.
What separates this syndrome from say, a genetic disorder like Down, is that it is by-and-large entirely preventable via standard accountability procedures practiced by risk management departments the world over.
Ignoring this preventable problem not only harms future satellite launches that are bombarded by the projectiles, but stymies long-term investments such as space elevators from the likes of LiftPort, and space tourism by Bigelow.
It is a tragedy of the commons in which few, if anyone, is held accountable for their actions. And worse yet, the only real technological solution such as a space vacuum/filter is nowhere close to being off the drawing board.
Anyone up for using giant pieces of fly-paper?
See also: Anti-satellite weapon and Project Starfish