Elon Musk’s SpaceX and its competitors are delivering reliable and fairly fast satellite internet service thanks to a growing swarm of twinkling satellites orbiting high above. Over 6,000 constellationsSpaceX’s Starlink internet service, a 500-pound satellite, is already Reportedly It provides broadband to about 3 million users around the world, including some in remote areas not well served by traditional internet providers, but what happens when all of its aging satellites become useless?
new Report The report from environmental group PIRG warns that the current approach to disposing of old satellites — typically by burning up as they re-enter the atmosphere — lacks meaningful rules and regulations. The lack of oversight could lead to an increase in dangerous space junk impacting Earth, they say, as competing satellite internet companies rush to build and launch tens of thousands of new satellites into orbit. PIRG estimates that SpaceX alone would re-enter Earth’s atmosphere every day, if it were able to get its way into orbit as it hopes. Satellite constellationThe group estimates that’s the equivalent of the weight of a Jeep Cherokee returning from space every hour. For now, no one seems to know exactly what the long-term effects of all that burning trash will be.
“Given the sheer number of proposed satellites, there are far too many unknowns about the extent of the environmental impacts that rocket emissions, space debris, and satellite re-entry could have on the atmosphere, Earth, and climate,” PIRG wrote in the report. “Given the scale of the proposed megasatellite constellations and their disposable nature requiring continuous refueling, we cannot turn a blind eye to the environmental damage caused by the space industry as science fiction. The scientific reality of environmental damage is fast approaching.”
LEO satellites are experiencing unprecedented growth
While internet-capable satellites date back to the early 2000s, their number has skyrocketed in the past five years, thanks in large part to a surge in launches into low earth orbit (LEO) by SpaceX. Operates at an altitude of approximately 1,200 miles or lower, which is significantly lower than the geospatial satellites that provide services like GPS and older, painfully slow Internet services. Their relative proximity to the Earth’s surface and wide coverage area make these types of satellites ideal for wireless Internet connections. The International Space Station (ISS) is also maintained in LEO.
SpaceX currently has about 6,000 satellites in LEO, but plans to grow that constellation to 40,000 over the next few years. And Musk’s business doesn’t stop there: Competitors, notably Amazon’s Project Kuiper and OneWeb, are also looking to expand their satellite fleets. Spending billions of dollars China will launch its own constellation of satellites Plans to launch at least 15,000 satellites In theory, a denser constellation of satellites should mean better coverage and faster internet speeds for customers, but it also means a massive increase in the amount of material that needs to be sent up into space and eventually back down.
Starting this year, companies that have been granted permission to operate in LEO by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are Deorbit the satellite after five yearsWhile this will likely reduce the amount of clutter in the sky, it could also increase the number of re-entries. It also means that satellite internet companies in particular are more likely to launch additional satellites to replace those they decommission.
A crowded satellite space could increase the risk of debris and environmental damage.
Space junk isn’t always incinerated before it hits the Earth’s surface. Last year alone, about 0.7 kilograms of a pallet was destroyed. Discarded from the ISS It re-entered the planet’s atmosphere and crashed violently into a home in Naples, Florida. Luckily the homeowner was not injured. Recently, a 3-foot-tall, 90-pound piece of debris was It is reportedly linked to SpaceX’s Dragon Crew 7 mission. They were also spotted by a glamping group on a mountaintop in North Carolina. Chicken Little Horror stories are rare, but PIRG et al. Becoming more common The total number of satellites filling the night sky is growing rapidly. As LEO becomes more crowded, so does the risk of satellites colliding with other objects, potentially creating dangerous debris.
SpaceX did not immediately respond. Popular Science Request for Comments.
It’s not just red-hot satellite debris that’s of concern. Preprinted Paper A paper published by researchers at the University of Iceland suggests that even a planned re-entry could produce “conductive dust.” Metals that cover the Earth’s upper atmosphereThe researchers argue that high concentrations of aluminum and other conductive materials released into the atmosphere from a burning satellite could cause “magnetospheric perturbations” that could theoretically allow higher concentrations of space radiation to reach the Earth’s surface.
Meanwhile, researchers at the University of Southern California Geophysical Research Letters It is estimated that an increase in incinerated satellites could lead to increased aluminum oxide pollution in the atmosphere. It can damage the Earth’s ozone layer.a The depletion of the ozone layer More ultraviolet radiation reaches the earth’s surface, which could weaken the human immune system and increase the incidence of some cancers.
“We should not rush to launch satellites of this magnitude without ensuring that the benefits of launching these new mega-constellations justify the potential consequences of subsequently re-entering the atmosphere and burning up or creating debris,” PIRG wrote.
Tighter environmental screening could make satellite re-entry safer
PIRG argues that at least some of the uncertainty about what will happen to satellites that are ready for retirement stems from a lack of regulation. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which approves U.S.-based satellite internet projects, gives satellite operators exemptions from environmental review. The practice, which began when space activities were primarily conducted by NASA and other government agencies, The Space Age is Characterized by Profit and PrivatizationCritics cite a lack of comprehensive environmental review in the area. May lead to contamination and Habitat destruction Environmental problems may continue at launch level, and may continue during re-entry. 2022 Report The head of the Government Accountability Office (GOA) has asked the FCC to eliminate this exception, but the FCC has not yet done so.
“It defies common sense that launching 30,000 to 500,000 satellites into low Earth orbit does not even require environmental review,” PRIG wrote.
The FCC did not immediately respond. Popular Science Request for Comments.
In addition to calling on PIRG to revise the rules on environmental review, the organization is calling on the FCC to immediately halt all new LEO satellite launches and to “think carefully before jumping in” to approve new projects. PRIG also advocates for a cap on the total number of satellites that can be deployed in orbit at any one time.
But it Prominent engineers call on tech companies to pause development of generative AIHowever, a significant slowdown in new satellites is unlikely anytime soon. By some estimates, LEO has up to 58,000 satellites by the end of the decadeMore satellites could improve the performance of satellite internet services, making them more attractive to the roughly 2.6 billion people around the world. Currently no broadband access This is due to a combination of infrastructure and cost constraints, but stronger environmental safeguards and increased standards for re-entry procedures could help increase confidence as satellites become more permanent.
