Earth's Orbit: A junkyard with a billion-dollar view?

Imagine a breathtaking beach brimming with life, its turquoise seas gleaming in the sun. Visualize the same view turned into a wasteland of plastic bags, soda cans, and abandoned fishing nets. Unfortunately, this dismal transition is more than just a coastal tragedy. This is the reality 400 kilometres above us, where thousands of defunct satellites and trash particles are hurtling through space at extraordinary speed. This is the stark challenge of space sustainability – and, one that requires immediate action.

As humanity sets its sights on the celestial frontier, the need to guarantee that our actions do not turn it into a cosmic junkyard grows. Education and research institutions are at the frontline of this battle, tasked with training a generation of responsible space explorers, and developing the technology that will ensure a long-term future in space.

The Growing Risk: Quantifying the Orbital Debris Challenge

The numbers depict an unsettling picture – over 27,000 pieces of debris larger than 10 cm diameter are currently in Earth’s orbit, with an estimated 900,000 larger than 1 cm diameter. Each shard, a silent danger travelling at breakneck speed, poses a huge collision risk, jeopardising not only future moonwalks and satellite launches, but also the systems that support our terrestrial lives. NASA’s Orbital Debris Programme Office, the European Space Agency’s Debris Tracking Programme, and India’s own ISRO, closely monitor these celestial threats, and are urging for mitigation solutions.

Beyond Debris: The Resource Dilemma

Aside from the looming threat of debris, the temptation of celestial riches poses another possible risk. Asteroids, which lure with promises of platinum and water, have enormous potential for future generations. However, uncontrolled resource extraction may result in a scarred landscape and depleted treasures, depriving future generations of their inheritance. The issue is to strike a delicate balance between responsible economic development, and environmental preservation. Initiatives such as the Planetary Resources Organization, which advocates for sustainable asteroid mining procedures, highlight the importance of worldwide cooperation in assuring equal access to these celestial riches, while minimizing environmental effects.

Light of Hope: Education and Innovation

Amidst this complexity, hope shines through in the form of dedicated teaching and research activities. Universities around the world, including IIT Bombay and the International Space University, are developing a generation of engineers and scientists who understand debris mitigation methods, sustainable resource extraction tactics, and international space law. Furthermore, research institutes such as ISRO’s Space Applications Centre are actively creating solutions, and the University of Michigan’s Space Institute and the International Space University, provide specialized programs that create a generation of engineers and scientists with a strong interest in responsible space exploration. These graduates, who understand debris mitigation technology, sustainable resource extraction strategies, and international space legislation, are paving the road for a cleaner, more egalitarian future in space.

Furthermore, research programs such as NASA’s “Restore L” mission, which aims to remove a defunct spacecraft from lunar orbit, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s successful deorbiting tests, provide actual examples of technological options for reducing debris collection.

Emerging Technologies on the Front Line

Active debris removal (ADR) satellites, equipped with robotic arms or nets, have the potential to capture and de-orbit dead spacecraft and bigger debris components. Initiatives such as the Remove Debris mission, which successfully captured a nanosatellite in orbit, indicate the feasibility of these technologies. Furthermore, technologies such as lasers and electrodynamic tethers offer possible methods for deorbiting tiny debris particles. NASA is also investigating laser-based debris removal concepts through ongoing research and development initiatives, contributing to the global effort to address this vexing issue.

Students as Space Marshals

However, the fight for space sustainability is not limited to laboratories and research centres. Students around the world have the potential to change the game. Consider Indian students, armed with ISRO experience, teaming with MIT colleagues, to create a next-generation debris removal system. Imagine European and African students working together to develop an AI-powered debris-tracking technology. This collaborative mentality, developed by worldwide space hackathons, research exchange programs, and online communities, could prepare the future generation to be space marshals, and not trespassers.

Global Call to Action

International cooperation is essential to securing a sustainable future in space. To achieve this goal, we must advocate for strong international treaties and rules. Policies governing debris reduction, resource extraction procedures, and collision avoidance measures, are critical to assuring safe space activities. Organizations, such as the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, play an important role in enabling international dialogue and establishing a collaborative route for long-term space development.

– Fund collaborative research and development activities: Addressing the difficulties of waste removal, resource exploitation, and environmental monitoring necessitates international collaboration. Initiatives such as the International Space Station, which demonstrate worldwide collaboration, serve as a helpful model for future joint endeavours aimed at achieving long-term space exploration goals.

– Support educational programs that develop competent space guardians: It is critical to prepare future generations with the information and abilities they will need to negotiate the intricacies of space sustainability. Encouraging international exchange programs and boosting collaboration among universities and research institutes around the world, including India’s vibrant network of academic institutions, can help accelerate this critical effort.

The decisive moment of space sustainability awaits us, and our collective decision will define the course of our glorious journey. By prioritizing international cooperation, embracing ethical practices, and encouraging innovation, we can ensure that our footprint in space is one of conservation, rather than environmental damage.

Let us not leave a cosmic junkyard for future generations, but work together to leave a legacy of responsible exploration in the stars, a glowing vista rather than a million-dollar junkyard.

Views of the authors are personal and do not necessarily represent the website’s views.

Prabhat Pani is the Executive Director of the Centre for Innovation in Sustainable Development at SPJIMR. He holds a PG Diploma in Management from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and an engineering degree from BITS, Pilani. Prior to joining academics in 2019, he has held C-level leadership positions with well-known organisations within the hospitality, telecom, and FMCG industries in India, much of it in the Tata group. He has been consulting with the Tata Trusts. His research and teaching interests are anchored on social sector topics, SDGs, and Impact Finance.

Ishank Jain is currently pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) with a Finance specialisation from S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai. He previously worked as an Analyst at Credit Suisse, where his projects included the Order Management Program Trading (Equities) and Exposure Move Analysis (Credit Risk). While exploring diverse business domains at SPJIMR, his short-term goal is to become a global business manager, with long-term aspirations of entrepreneurship in Finance and Technology, focused on social and sustainable impact.