Floating in low Earth orbit… 34,580 identified numbers
Remnants of old Soviet and Chinese rockets… .There is a risk of damage from fragments if hit.
U.S. Federal Aviation Administration: After launching a rocket, the projectile must be handled directly.
Two massive pieces of space junk almost collided with each other in Earth’s orbit. Accordingly, the problem of approximately 35,000 pieces of space debris is emerging again.
According to Space.com on the 21st (local time), LeoLabs, a company that tracks artificial satellites and other objects in Earth’s orbit, recorded the moment on the 13th when a former Soviet Union launch vehicle and a Chinese disused rocket passed close at an incredible speed in low Earth orbit. witnessed. When the two objects passed by, the distance between them was about 36m, and the probability of collision was 0.1%.
According to LeoLabs, the two objects were identified as the Soviet Cosmos 807 launch vehicle, weighing approximately 400 kg, launched in 1976, and the Chinese Longmarch 4C rocket, weighing approximately 2 tons, launched in 2017.
The remains of the two rockets moved at a speed of approximately 27,000 km/h at an altitude of 689 km. LeoLabs said that if two large pieces of space debris collide, about 3,000 pieces of debris will be created in low-Earth orbit.
The amount of dangerous space debris is increasing with the development of the space industry. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), 34,580 satellite fragments or space debris are floating in Earth’s orbit.
In low-Earth orbit, the atmosphere is very thin, so it takes a long time for debris from collisions to fall to the ground. Even though the size of the fragment is small, it moves very quickly, so it poses a threat to the International Space Station, spacecraft with people on board, equipment for observing space from the ground, and satellites for communication.
Additionally, if debris does not completely burn up due to friction with the air in the atmosphere, it can cause harm to people on the ground.
As the space debris problem continues, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed regulations that would require private space companies to directly dispose of spent launch vehicles after rocket launches.
According to Gizmodo, an American media outlet, the FAA said in a statement, “We seek to reduce the risk to people on the ground and in flight by strictly limiting the re-entry of rocket propellants that have become uncontrollable into the atmosphere.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.