It has been over 60 years since the race to space programs started. 19,000 rocket launch episodes and only 1,400 of them are registered as under control and accounted for. The rest are aimlessly floating in space and that includes items from lens caps to huge separated rocket tank canisters. Space pollution is the next challenge man has to face.
The danger abounds for functional satellites in operation exposed to space junk littering in space above us. The International Space Station commandeered by Peggy Whitson says that it has to make daily evasion maneuvers and has to change its path every month to avoid colliding with space junk.
According to Jason Held CEO of Saber Astronautics in Sydney, Australia said that space pollution awareness should be taken seriously as it poses a threat not only in space but also to the earth's populace as space junk will sooner or later reenter the earth's atmosphere and drop over the heads of its inhabitants. Space junk will have tendencies to collide with other space junks multiplying the shattered items into more space debris.
But Held of Saber Astronautics has a solution for the space litter floating away colliding at anything it passes. The solution is meant to drag parts of the space junk back to the earth's atmosphere where it will burn up upon reentry. The project solution is called DragEn Gadget, reports Chronicle Council.
Russia also has a solution for the space pollution problem. Their solution is called Mayak which mechanical engineering students started back in 2014. By attaching a gadget to the satellite, its function is to slow down the reentry of space satellites back to earth like a parachute design to reduce its speed.
Japan also has a similar solution in slowing uncontrolled satellites in space and pulling it to the earth's atmosphere. Once it's in the atmosphere it will burn and disintegrate.
Professor Craig Smith, Chief Executive and Technical Director for the Australian aerospace technology company Electro Optic Systems is also proposing a huge laser cannon that could blast space debris to move it away to avoid fatal collisions, reports CIO Today.
Gravity alone cannot pull the debris back to earth. The space junk needs assistance and scientists are in a frantic pace to find solutions or it can make space travel difficult if not impossible.
