A Naples, Florida, family is suing NASA for damage to their home after a piece of space debris from the International Space Station tore off their roof earlier this year.
NASA confirmed last week that a large piece of debris found along a North Carolina trail last May came from a SpaceX Dragon rocket, according to the Charlotte Observer, and a North Carolina resident in the neighboring county heard a piece bounce off his house.
Large, fiery streaks of light appeared over Los Angeles in April, which turned out to be space debris from a Chinese spacecraft, according to U.S. Space Command.
A huge piece of an Indian rocket washed up in Australia last year.
What is space debris?
As we send more and more objects into low Earth orbit (LEO), there is a greater chance that fragments will come back to us. Space debris, also called orbital debris or simply space junk, is any man-made object orbiting the Earth that has no use.
“LEO is an orbital space junkyard,” NASA said. “There are millions of pieces of space debris flying around in LEO. Most orbital debris is made up of human-generated objects, such as pieces of spacecraft, tiny specks of paint from a spacecraft , rocket parts, satellites that no longer work or explosions from orbiting objects flying through space at high speed.
Space debris is caused by malfunctioning satellites, meteorite impacts, and even simple tools dropped by astronauts during spacewalks.
According to NASA, space junk can include:
- Abandoned spacecraft and launch vehicle upper stages
- Carriers for multiple payloads
- Debris intentionally released during spacecraft separation from its launch vehicle or during mission operations
- Debris created as a result of explosions or collisions of spacecraft or upper stages
- Solid rocket engine effluents
- Tiny paint spots released by thermal stress or small particle impacts
Most of that damage came from satellite explosions and collisions, NASA said.
In 2007, China deliberately destroyed its Fengyun-1C weather satellite to test an anti-satellite device, leaving a cloud of shrapnel and debris in low orbit. A US communications satellite (Iridium 33) and an abandoned Russian military satellite (Kosmos 2251) accidentally collided in 2007, releasing further debris into orbit, some of which is expected to remain there until the end of the century. These two incidents led to a 70% increase in space debris in LEO.
There is also space debris that never made it into space. In 2015, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded shortly after takeoff, raining chunks into the Atlantic off the coast of Florida and Georgia, and a few chunks reappearing months later on the islands Scilly, on the south-west tip of Cornwall, England.
SpaceX’s Starship rocket exploded just after liftoff during its first test flight in April last year, throwing chunks of metal and concrete into a national wildlife refuge and sending particles miles away from the ramp launch site in Boca Chica, Texas. Environmental groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration, claiming Elon Musk’s company was allowed to skirt environmental reviews.
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How much space debris is there in the sky?
As of June, the European Space Agency estimates that there are more than 12,400 tons of objects in Earth’s orbit, including up to 36,500 pieces of debris approximately 4 inches and larger that have been cataloged.
But not all objects are tracked. The ESA says that, based on projections, there are 130 million pieces of space debris in orbit between 1/4 inch and 4 inches moving at high speeds, posing potential risks to spacecraft and satellites. Most small objects will burn upon entry if Earth’s gravity causes them to fall, but some pieces are large enough to have an impact.
“There are no international space laws to clean up debris in our LEO,” NASA said.
Space agencies around the world are working on space debris mitigation methods, but clearing out the tiny pieces of debris that circulate around Earth is an extremely tricky problem.
What are the chances of being hit by space debris?
The risk of being injured by falling space debris is less than 1 in 100 billion, according to the European Space Agency. But the chances increase (slightly).
“Over the past 50 years, on average, one recorded piece of debris has fallen back to Earth every day,” NASA said. Most pieces burn on entry and those that arrive on Earth are more likely to hit an ocean or sparsely populated areas like the Canadian tundra, the Australian Outback or Siberia.
However, space exploration and satellite launches have increased exponentially in recent years. According to ESA data, nearly 2,500 pieces of space debris fell to Earth in 2022, although that number fell to around 1,500 last year.
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Who is responsible for damage caused by space debris?
This was developed by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs in 1972. The Liability Convention, expanding on Article 7 of the Outer Space Treaty, establishes that “a launching State is absolutely obliged to pay compensation for damage caused by its space space. objects on the Earth’s surface or to aircraft, and responsible for damage due to its defects in space,” UN-Space said.
“The Convention also provides for procedures for settling claims for compensation.”
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission fined Dish Network $150,000 for failing to place an old satellite in a safe orbit where it had promised to do, as part of the fight against space debris.
What should I do if I find space debris?
NASA has a space debris hotline: 866-623-0234. The agency says if you find or spot space debris, contact authorities and avoid touching it.
After the 2015 explosion, SpaceX set up a recovery hotline and email address for anyone who found debris, and that address is still available. You can call the Debris Recovery Hotline at 866-392-0035 or email recovery@spaceX.com.