A family in Naples, Florida, is filing a claim against NASA for damage to their home after a piece of space debris from the International Space Station tore through their roof earlier this year.
NASA confirmed last week that a large piece of debris found along a path in North Carolina last May came from a SpaceX Dragon rocket, according to the Charlotte Observer, and an NC resident in the next county over heard a piece bounce off his house .
In April, large fiery streaks of light appeared over Los Angeles, which turned out to be space debris from a Chinese spacecraft, according to the US Space Command.
Last year, a large part of an Indian missile washed up in Australia.
What is space debris?
As we send more and more items into low Earth orbit (LEO), chunks are more likely to come back to us. Space debris, also called orbital debris or simply space junk, is any man-made object in orbit around the Earth that has no use.
“LEO is an orbital space junkyard,” NASA said. “There are millions of pieces of space junk flying in LEO. Most orbital debris consists of human-generated objects, such as pieces of spacecraft, small specks of paint from a spacecraft, parts of rockets, satellites that no longer function, or explosions. of objects in orbit that collide with flying through space at high speed.”
Space debris is caused by malfunctioning satellites, meteorite impacts and even tools dropped by astronauts during spacewalks.
According to NASA, space debris can include:
- Abandoned spacecraft and upper stages of launch vehicles
- Carriers for multiple loads
- Debris intentionally released during separation of the spacecraft from its launch vehicle or during mission operations
- Debris created as a result of explosions or collisions with spacecraft or on the upper stage
- Solid waste from rocket engines
- Small paint spots released by thermal stress or impacts of small particles
Most of that came from satellite explosions and collisions, NASA said.
In 2007, China deliberately destroyed its Fengyun-1C weather satellite to test an anti-satellite device, leaving a cloud of shrapnel and debris in LEO. A US communications satellite (Iridium 33) and an abandoned Russian military satellite (Kosmos 2251) accidentally collided in 2007, spewing even more debris into orbit, some of which is expected to last until the end of the Earth. century will remain there. These two incidents resulted in a 70% increase in space debris in LEO.
There is also space debris that never reached space. In 2015, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded shortly after launch, sending chunks into the Atlantic Ocean off the coasts of Florida and Georgia, with some chunks turning up months later in the Isles of Scilly off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England.
SpaceX’s Starship rocket exploded shortly after liftoff on its first test flight last April, sending chunks of metal and concrete into a national wildlife refuge and sending particles miles from the launch pad in Boca Chica, Texas. Environmental groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration, saying Elon Musk’s company was allowed to bypass environmental reviews.
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How much space debris is in the air?
According to estimates from the European Space Agency, there are more than 12,400 tons of objects in Earth’s orbit as of June, including up to 36,500 pieces of debris about 10 cm and larger that have been catalogued.
But not all objects are tracked. The ESA says that based on projections, 130 million pieces of space debris orbiting between 1/4 inch and 4 inches are moving at high speeds, posing potential risks to spacecraft and satellites. Most small objects will burn on arrival as gravity brings them down, but some chunks are large enough to make an impact.
“There are no international space laws to clear debris in our LEO,” NASA said.
Space agencies around the world are working on methods to reduce space debris, but removing small particles flying around Earth is an extremely difficult problem.
What are the chances of being hit by space debris?
According to the European Space Agency, your risk of being injured by falling space debris is less than 1 in 100 billion. But the chances are becoming (slightly) greater.
“Over the past 50 years, an average of one cataloged piece of debris fell back to Earth every day,” NASA said. Most pieces burn up on entry, and those that end up on Earth are more likely to end up in the ocean or in sparsely populated areas such as the Canadian tundra, the Australian outback or Siberia.
However, the number of space explorations and satellite launches has increased exponentially in recent years. According to ESA data, almost 2,500 pieces of space debris fell to Earth in 2022, although that number dropped to around 1,500 last year.
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Who is liable for damage caused by space debris?
This was worked out in 1972 by the United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs. The Liability Convention, which expanded on Article 7 of the Outer Space Treaty, provided that ‘a launching State shall be absolutely liable to pay compensation for damage caused by its Outer Space Treaty. objects on the Earth’s surface or to aircraft, and liable for damage resulting from errors in space,” UN-Space said.
“The treaty also provides for procedures for the settlement of claims for damages.”
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission fined the Dish Network $150,000 for failing to put an old satellite into a safe orbit where it said it would as part of its crackdown on space debris.
What should I do if I find space debris?
NASA has a space debris hotline you can call: 866-623-0234. The agency says if you find or see a piece of space debris, you should contact authorities and not touch it.
After the 2015 explosion, SpaceX set up a recovery hotline and email address for anyone who found debris that is still available. You can call the Debris Recovery Hotline at 866-392-0035 or email recovery@spaceX.com.