It’s easy to compare the space junk problem to climate change. If left unchecked, space junk could pose significant problems for future generations — rendering access to space increasingly difficult, or at worst, impossible. A study presented last month at the European Conference on Space Debris says that the problem has been underestimated, and that the amount of space junk in orbit could, in a worst-case scenario, increase 50 times by 2100. “There is genuine cause for alarm.”Our atmosphere is a useful ally in clearing up space junk. Below 300 miles above the surface, most objects will naturally decay into the thicker lower atmosphere and burn up in less than 10 years.

Source: New York Times May 12, 2021 16:30 UTC