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Space debris includes a glove lost by astronaut Ed White on the first American space-walk (EVA), a camera lost by Michael Collins near Gemini 10, a thermal blanket lost during STS-88, garbage bags jettisoned by Soviet cosmonauts during Mir's 15-year life, [79] a wrench, and a toothbrush. [80] Sunita Williams of STS-116 lost a camera during an EVA.
The Satellite Catalog Number (SATCAT), also known as NORAD Catalog Number, NORAD ID, USSPACECOM object number, is a sequential nine-digit number assigned by the United States Space Command (USSPACECOM), and previously the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), in the order of launch or discovery to all artificial objects in the orbits of Earth and those that left Earth's orbit. [1]
As of 2012 there were an estimated 500,000 pieces of debris in orbit, [4] with 300,000 pieces below 2000 km . [1] Of the total, about 20,000 are tracked. [ 1 ] Also, about sixteen old Soviet nuclear space reactors are known to have released an estimated 100,000 NaK liquid metal coolant droplets 800–900 km up, [ 5 ] which range in size from 1 ...
As the number of satellites in Earth orbit increases, so too does the risk from space debris — and some experts warn certain orbits could already be getting dangerously crowded.
The United States Department of Defense (DoD) has maintained a database of satellite states since the launch of the first Sputnik in 1957, known as the Space Object Catalog, or simply the Space Catalog. These satellite states are regularly updated with observations from the Space Surveillance Network, a globally distributed network of ...
NASA said the debris was from SpaceX’s Crew-7 mission, which launched to space on Aug. 26, 2023, then returned after a six-month expedition at the space station.
The fragments can then hit other objects, producing even more space debris: if a large enough collision or explosion were to occur, such as between a space station and a defunct satellite, or as the result of hostile actions in space, then the resulting debris cascade could make prospects for long-term viability of satellites in particular low ...
A record stay in earth’s orbit and a fine to Dish Network might have space debris in common. Space junk is causing problems — and experts think it’s just the start. Why it matters