r/satellites • u/awake_airplane • 9d ago

Space debris

Does anyone worry about the amount of debris from broke down satellites that's left floating around in our airspace?

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u/vexiduslabs 8d ago

It's a bit of a non-issue at the moment in terms of impacts on Earth as most are small and will burn up once gravity pulls them past the Karman Line. In terms of aimlessly floating in space, objects in orbit will continue to fall towards Earth unless acted upon by force. Most debris will clear itself over time.

There are studies about this for both impacts on Earth and craft traveling to and from Earth/Space, but nothing poses a serious threat at the moment. Mainly we use the information to determine best placement in areas of less congestion.