Plasma Tunnels Reveal How Dying Satellites Fall to Earth

Plasma Tunnels Reveal How Dying Satellites Fall to Earth(spectrum.ieee.org)

35 points by marc__1 3 hours ago | 8 comments

bolangi 1 hour ago |

Satellites have many chlorinated and florinated chemicals, so being vaporized means introducing large volumes to the upper atmosphere where they can catalyze the destruction of ozone molecules. I'd be interested how the volume compares to other sources of atmospheric halogens. They could hardly match the quantity of refrigerant gases released, but being deposited directly in the upper atmosphere may make them more potent.

TeMPOraL 1 hour ago | |

Good catch. I doubt it's even a rounding error right now, but with the space market undergoing a rather rapid growth (good thing!), it's a good time to start tracking this and hopefully address before it turns into a problem.

Loughla 1 hour ago | | |

>hopefully address before it turns into a problem.

Ron Howard's voice "They didn't."

But in all seriousness, there will be zero stomach for limiting launches for the ozone layer. I'm calling it now. Group 1 won't believe it's a problem. Group 2 will say it's just lefty elitists trying to ruin the economy. Group 3 will say there's no such thing as satellites.

Check back in 40 years. I bet I'm right.

piskov 1 hour ago |

What would be the number of reentries in the near future?

5-20 satellites daily?

At first glance, it seems negligible.

On the hand, given the intentional nature if disposable low-orbit, 20 more than ideal.

EA-3167 39 minutes ago | |

SpaceX wants their Starlink constellation to crack 100,000, and there are plenty of competitors lining up who will surely want to have "the biggest and the best" at some point. None of those sats stay up terribly long, so you'll have a constant cadence of launches and reentries, both of which are a risk for their impact on the climate system, atmosphere, etc.

A largely unstudied risk, and once which will almost certainly be strenuously ignored for as long as possible.

tekla 11 minutes ago | | |

100 tons of whatever enter the Earth every single day. Are you freaking out about that?

sscaryterry 1 hour ago |

Waste of fucking money. The X that fall per year is nothing compared to the millions of tons of other pollution.