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View a video about monitoring space debris from the European Space Agency. |
There is debris in all orbits, but it is concentrated at 500-700 miles above the Earth’s surface in an area called Sun-synchronous orbit, whose consistent lighting is a valuable characteristic for remote sensing satellites. At these altitudes, debris has a life span of centuries, if not millennia. Brian Weeden of the Secure World Foundation notes the U.S. Space Surveillance Network tracks more than 21,000 man-made objects that are 10 centimeters or larger in diameter, any one of which could completely destroy a satellite in a collision. There also are some 500,000 pieces of debris measuring one to ten centimeters in diameter that pose the risk of complete to partial destruction of satellites. There are several hundred million pieces smaller than one centimeter that nonetheless could cause degradation and the loss of certain sensors or subsystems in the event of a collision. |
Tracking Debris
