Climate change will soon cause problems not just on Earth but also in orbit around the planet, according to a new study published in Nature Sustainability.
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology calculated that global warming could reduce the available space for satellites in low Earth orbit by 1/3 to 82% by the end of the century. This is because climate change reduces nature’s ability to clean up debris in space, causing it to become more crowded.
The greenhouse effect that warms the air near the Earth’s surface also cools the upper parts of the atmosphere where satellites orbit. As a result, the upper atmosphere becomes less dense, reducing drag on millions of pieces of human-made debris and satellites.
However, this reduction in drag means that space junk falls back to Earth at a slower rate, making it more likely for collisions between satellites or debris to occur. This poses a significant risk to the millions of satellites orbiting the planet, including those used for communications, navigation, weather forecasting, and monitoring environmental and national security issues.
The study’s lead author, Will Parker, noted that “we rely on the atmosphere to clean up our debris” and that the lack of regulation has resulted in “trash” – millions of pieces of space junk. With over 11,000 satellites orbiting the planet, including tens of thousands of small pieces of debris, the risk of collisions becomes increasingly likely.
The reduction in drag caused by climate change is expected to worsen as greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, with some predictions suggesting that satellite orbits may become unusable within decades. As a result, scientists warn that it is essential to take measures to ensure the long-term sustainability of space exploration and mitigate the impacts of climate change on orbiting satellites.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-satellites-crash-earth-orbit-b21f43bbd8925d67264e41f6c24c73e1