Related papers: Ecology of Near-Earth Space
Anthropogenic effects on the space environment started in the late 19th century and reached their peak in the 1960s when high-altitude nuclear explosions were carried out by the USA and the Soviet Union. These explosions created artificial…
Space debris, also known as "space junk," presents a significant challenge for all space exploration activities, including those involving human-onboard spacecraft such as SpaceX's Crew Dragon and the International Space Station. The amount…
October 1957, and the successful launch of Sputnik 1 into Earth orbit, marked the dawn of the Space Age. The first of the 'fellow travellers' - humanity's first artificial satellite - orbited for a mere three months before re-entering the…
The shell bound by the Karman line at a height of 80 to 100km above the Earth's surface, and Geosynchronous Orbit, at 36,000km, is defined as the orbital space surrounding the Earth. It is within this region, and especially in Low Earth…
Human activities degrade the Earth environment at an unprecedented scale and pace, threatening Earth-system stability, resilience and life-support functions. We can of course deny the facts, get angry about them, or try to bargain. Or we…
The rapid launch of hundreds of thousands of satellites into Low Earth Orbit will significantly alter our view of the sky and raise concerns about the sustainability of Earth's orbital space. A new framework for sustainable space…
Every year, more and more objects are sent to space. While staying in orbit at high altitudes, objects at low altitudes reenter the atmosphere, mostly disintegrating and adding material to the upper atmosphere. The increasing number of…
The interaction of a space system with its orbital environment is a major consideration in the design of any space system, since a variety of hazards are associated with the operation of spacecraft in the harsh space environment. In this…
The recent growth of the space sector, spurred by a surge in private actors, has led to a sharp increase in our ability to address societal challenges through space data. However, this has exacerbated an already critical situation in space:…
The population of artificial satellites and space debris orbiting the Earth imposes non-negligible constraints on both space operations and ground-based optical and radio astronomy. The ongoing deployment of several satellite…
I examine the applicability of ecological concepts in discussing issues related to space environmentalism. Terms such as "ecosystem"", "carrying capacity"", and "tipping point" are either ambiguous or well defined but not applicable to…
The collinear Lagrange points of the Sun-Earth system provide an ideal environment for highly sensitive space science missions. Consequently many new missions are planed by ESA and NASA that require satellites close to these points. For…
Space debris is an ever-increasing problem in space travel. There are already many old, no longer functional spacecraft and debris orbiting the earth, which endanger both the safe operation of satellites and space travel. Small…
The high frequency of satellite launches, particularly over the last few years, has been a subject of significant concern, particularly relating to the future of observational astronomy, the stability of low Earth orbits, and environmental…
There are many indications that anthropogenic global warming poses a serious threat to our civilization and its ecological support systems. Ideally this problem will be overcome by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Various space-based…
It is observed that hypervelocity space dust, which is continuously bombarding the Earth, creates immense momentum flows in the atmosphere. Some of this fast space dust inevitably will interact with the atmospheric system, transferring…
While humans become more reliant on Earth's space environment, the potential for significant harm from severe space weather continues to grow. As structures from the sun reach Earth's magnetosphere and space environment, they deposit energy…
In order to reduce light pollution we have to reduce the overall amount of artificial light emissions. This is a consequence of the basic rules governing the propagation of light in the terrestrial environment. In this work I revisit the…
Large satellite constellations are one of the main reasons for an increasing amount of mass being brought into low Earth orbit in recent years. After end of life, the satellites, as well as rocket stages, reenter Earth's atmosphere. This…
Space debris larger than 1 cm can damage space instruments and impact Earth. The low-Earth orbits (at heights smaller than 2000 km) and orbits near the geostationary- Earth orbit (at 35786 km height) are especially endangered, because most…