HOW SPACEX STARSHIP COULD CLEAN UP SPACE JUNKS
We've all heard about Elon Musk's intentions to take humans to space via starship, but
we didn't realize he had broader ideas for space.
SpaceX and Elon Musk have recently been working on a different type of starship, and this
type isn't the typical starship designed to send humans to space, but rather this type
has a front truck that will store tons of space junk, as well as amazing tech features
that attract space garbage to itself. Just as here on earth, the garbage truck is
used to collect municipal solid waste, and haul it to a waste treatment facility. A special
type of SpaceX starship will operate exactly same way but this time – in space.
When certain space bodies collide, they divide into tiny chunks of matter that fill up other
free space automatically. These space bodies are impediments to SpaceX's starship, and
since Elon Musk intends to launch hundreds of starships into space, there is an undeniable
need to clear up these trashes before SpaceX launches their starship into space.
Welcome to Tech space, keep watching this video as we show you how spacex plans to clean
up trash from the space. Bet you won’t want to miss the mind-blowing feature of the starship
capable of attracting space junks to itself. Before we get into the meat of this video,
let's take a look at what space trash is and why it's an issue for spacecrafts.
Humanity has been able to launch thousands of rockets, place satellites in orbit, and
reach new heights since the advent of the space age in the 1950s. However, in order
to advance further, we must maintain a space-worthy ecology.
Space companies has been making a mess in space for as long as humans have been exploring
there. Thousands of dead satellites orbit our globe, along with bits of debris from
all the rockets fired throughout the years. This could become a problem in the future.
Any piece of machinery or debris left in space by humans is referred to as space rubbish
or space debris. Large objects such as dead satellites that
have failed or been left in orbit at the end of their missions are examples of space junk
or rubbish. It can also refer to smaller objects, such as trash or paint particles that have
fallen from a rocket. Some human-made debris has also been discovered on the Moon.
Many researchers believe that space trash will represent a severe threat to humanity's
future exploration of the final frontier. According to the European Space Agency, there
are currently approximately 34,000 objects larger than 4 inches in diameter orbiting
around the Earth. Smaller particles are more difficult to detect, implying that there are
more of them residing in space.
Its quite important for us to also know the number of space junks in space.
While there are over 2,000 functioning satellites orbiting Earth at the moment, there are also
approximately 3,000 dead spacecraft polluting space. Also, there are around 34,000 bits
of space debris larger than 10 centimeters in size and millions of smaller particles
that might be deadly if they collide with something else.
Because of the velocities involved, all of the debris would pack a punch. For example,
at the International Space Station's altitude of about 250 miles, bodies move at about 17,500
mph. So if these bodies happens to collide to each other, that will result to a big space
disaster. Now, lets tell you how space junks get into
space The space junks that dominate in space are
the product of various objects launched from Earth, such as some of the objects that fly
off the bodies of rockets as they separate and do not fall back to Earth, but rather
hang themselves somewhere in the Earth's orbit and continue circling about the Earth.
Some objects in lower orbits of a few hundred kilometers or less can return relatively fast.
They frequently re-enter the atmosphere after a few years and, for the most part, burn up,
preventing them from reaching the ground. However, debris or satellites left at higher
altitudes of about 36,000 kilometers - where communications and weather satellites are
frequently deployed in geostationary orbit - can circle Earth for hundreds or even thousands
of years. Some space debris are created as a result
of collisions or anti-satellite tests in orbit. When two satellites crash, they can shatter
into thousands of new pieces, resulting in a large number of new debris. Although it
is unusual, numerous countries, including the United States, China, and India, have
deployed missiles - that may have one way or the other destroyed the satellite. This
results in the creation of thousands of additional pieces of hazardous debris.
So how will these space junks affect space exploration?
According to space scientists, SpaceX has taken over Earth's lower orbit with its enormous
fleet of Starlink satellites. The 1,657 satellites in lower orbit creates
a very serious possibility of collision with other spacecraft. Space scientists also hinted
that SpaceX continues to plan 42,000 satellites by 2027, the hazard and severity will increase.
The European Space Agency published a report on the hazards of space junk, claiming that
there is currently more space debris in our orbit than operating satellites.
According to the report's summary, our species' current behavior in terms of space is "unsustainable."
If space companies do not adjust their attitudes regarding space-faring missions, it will only
be a matter of time until we can operate in free in space again unless we find a long-term
solution. Even as we speak, Space Surveillance Networks
can only track a portion of the space junk orbiting the earth, which is estimated to
be just over 28,600 garbage out of hundreds of millions.
Fortunately, for the time being, space junk does not pose a significant risk to our exploration
endeavors; nevertheless, it does creates high risk to other spacecraft in orbit.
To avoid being hit and perhaps damaged or destroyed, these spacecrafts must shift out
of the way of all this incoming space trash. So here’s how SpaceX and Elon Musk plans
to cleanup space junks: Elon Musk, stated that the Starship's vehicle
could use its movable door to "chomp up" junk in orbit.
He previously tweeted that; "We can fly Starship about orbit & chew up debris with the movable
fairing door." According to SpaceX's user documentation for
the rocket system, the starship's fairing door can open when it reaches a specific altitude
in orbit, deploy spacecraft, then close before returning to Earth.
Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX's president, has previously affirmed that Starship will assist in picking
up debris left in Earth's orbit and storing it in its cargo compartment until the rocket
returned to Earth. It won't be easy, but the Starship will undoubtedly
give the potential of cleaning the space," she stated in an online interview with Time
Magazine in October. The costs of designing, constructing, and
launching satellites is high, yet Earth's orbital space lanes are becoming increasingly
congested. The concern is that a collision or two may start a space trash cascade, creating
clouds of debris that will trigger more collisions. If things become bad enough, this situation,
known as the Kessler Syndrome, might make it difficult to function in Earth orbit. Many
advocates of space travel believe that the spaceflight community should begin adopting
mitigating measures immediately. The danger is that one collision or two may
start a space junk cascade, generating clouds of debris that will induce more collisions.
If things grow nasty enough, this condition, known as the Kessler Syndrome, could make
it difficult to function in Earth orbit. Many advocates of space travel believe that the
spaceflight community should begin pursuing mitigating measures immediately.
With all the advent of new starship design spacex will be inventing for the world, the
dumpster starship will have a very different design, the structure and design may still
be modelled by spacex engineers, but trust spacex gets the best to put down no our sight
and we will never be disappointed. We may not have the same amount of confidence in
SpaceX to win their $2.89 billion contract as NASA did, but it demonstrates how determined
SpaceX is to see that their boasts about clearing up space debris come true.
NASA, for example, picked a SpaceX rocket to put people on the Moon for the first time
in 45 years. On such trips, the rocket will serve as a lunar lander. Then NASA will launch
four astronauts into space on an Orion spacecraft propelled by the Space Launch System rocket.
Before reaching lunar orbit, the capsule will travel for several days.
When the capsule reaches lunar orbit, it will meet with SpaceX's Starship, allowing two
people to transfer between the spacecraft. The lucky team will spend around a week on
the Moon's surface before boarding the lander and resuming their journey aboard the Orion
spacecraft. That’s kind of a technical space travel,
but that’s the best method to put astronauts on the moon, without incurring system failures
to the starship. What’s your opinion on this, do you think
spacex will really succeed in cleaning up space junks in space?
Please do well to share your thoughts in the comment section below. Until next time, please
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