In 2021, astronauts on the space station jettisoned this equipment pallet. The space junk has been orbiting Earth for the last few years. It most likely made its reentry on March 8, 2024, over the Pacific. Some fragments should have survived to hit the ocean. Image via NASA/ Jonathan McDowell on
The atmospheric reentry process generates extreme heat and mechanical loads, which lead to the satellite's disintegration at the altitude of about 45 miles. (Image credit: ESA) By Marianne Guenot, Published by Business Insider, 2 March 2024 Spacecraft burning up in the atmosphere are leaving behind metal particles. Scientists are racing
SpaceX's Starship/Super Heavy vehicle to perform the first 2024 orbital launch attempt once the FAA awards a license to the company. Credit: SpaceX By Eric Berger, Published by arsTechnica, 22 February 2024 As SpaceX nears its first Starship launch of 2024—possibly as soon as within three weeks—from its Starbase facility
Illustration of ERS-2 in space. The precise timing and location of its re-entry were difficult to predict. Photograph: ESA/PA By Hannah Devlin, Published by The Guardian, 21 February 2024 ERS-2 breaks up into pieces and plummets into the ocean after reentering Earth’s atmosphere An uncontrolled satellite re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere
A composite image showing rows of Starlink satellites awaiting deployment into low Earth orbit in front of a picture of Earth taken from the International Space Station. (Image credit: SpaceX via X) By Brett Tingley, Published by Space.com, 14 February 2024 There are still well over 5,000 operational Starlink satellites
Image credit: Hackaday By Maya Posch, Published by Hackaday, 7 February 2024 Imagine taking a significant amount of metals and other materials out of the Earth’s crust and scattering it into the atmosphere from space. This is effectively what we have been doing ever since the beginning of the Space
(Credit: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Marenfeld) Published by spaceweather.com, 3 February 2024 Something unprecedented is happening in Earth orbit. In only a few short years, the satellite population has skyrocketed, more than doubling since 2020. In the past year alone, more satellites have been launched than during the first thirty years of the
SpaceX showed off a completed Starship/Super Heavy vehicle in February. Credit: SpaceX By Passant Rabie, Published by Gizmodo, 19 January 2024 The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission could trade part of a state park to SpaceX, but critics say the move would put vulnerable species at risk. In April 2023,
