Defunct satellites and other human-made objects that continue to hurtle around Earth's orbit long after they have served their purpose comprise the majority of space debris. With thousands of satellites set to be launched in the coming years as government-sponsored space exploration slowly gives way to private industry -- the accelerated accumulation of garbage up there raises the possibility of a "collision cascading" effect called the Kessler Syndrome that has scientists worried.
Kessler Syndrome is a hypothetical scenario proposed by NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler in 1978 which predicts that when the density of objects in low Earth orbit (LEO)-roughly 100-1,200 miles above our planet at a certain critical level, it could lead to a chain reaction of collisions which could render the orbit unfit for human use and halt the space age.
"This syndrome predicts an escalating space debris population that leads to an increased likelihood of collisions and further debris creation, resulting in a cascade of detrimental impacts," highlighted a 2023 study about the phenomenon, published in the journal Frontiers.
"Such collisions, even minor ones, can set off a catastrophic chain reaction, jeopardizing all existing satellites and filling orbits with high-velocity debris. Accessing space orbits would become immensely challenging, and the prospect of exploring outer space might be compromised."
As per a CNN report citing several domain experts, we might be witnessing the beginning of Kessler Syndrome.
"The number of objects in space that we have launched in the last four years has increased exponentially. So we are heading towards the situation that we are always dreading," Dr Vishnu Reddy, a professor of planetary sciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson was quoted as saying by the publication.
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What would happen?
The devastating effects of Kessely Syndrome were portrayed in the 2013 film "Gravity," where a missile strike on a satellite sets off a chain reaction of collisions. However, in reality, Kessler Syndrome would not unfold so quickly with scientists giving a timeline spanning decades or even centuries.
As per NASA, currently, there are no international space laws to clean up debris in LEO. The LEO is now viewed as the world's largest garbage dump, and it's expensive to remove space debris from LEO because the problem of space junk is huge. There are close to 6,000 tons of materials in low Earth orbit.
If the chain reaction of explosions happened in this orbit, it could threaten the lives of astronauts, halt rocket launches and lead to the destruction of all the satellite technology present there.
