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How did the Chinese destroy their satellite? If it was blown up it would be interesting to know how the debris would behave. Much of it would be driven closer to earth in elliptical paths or maybe even into the atmosphere. Would any of it escape earth's gravity?
Thanks. So the debris from this collision is in a polar orbit.
The satellite was an orbital satellite but after it's destruction I don't know if the debris blasted into another orbit.
More than half of the debris cataloged was said to be in an orbit greater than 850 kilometres (530 mi).
Based on 2009 and 2013 calculations of solar flux, NASA's Orbital Debris Program Office estimated that around 30% of the ≥10 centimeters (3.9 in) debris would still be in orbit in 2035.
For most missions, near polar orbits between 600-1200 km altitude are used. It's this reason that the highest collision risks can be found in the vicinity of the Earths poles.
According to the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office, much of the debris would remain in orbit for decades or centuries after the incident.
The debris remained in the same orbit although some have an elliptical orbit taking it much higher. It spread around the whole planet in a little more than six months. It seems that the Chinese took a bit of flack for it. So because of the nature of the fragmentation, none of it got sent earthward.
I though I'd just ask how many pieces of natural space junk (meteoric dust, comet debris, etc.) is floating around there? And also how long is it before man -made space junk goes meteroric? I don't deny that I had dreams of a space shuttle going up with a team of dudes with dustpans and brushes, and I am not doing a teaparty 'nothing to worry about' denial -argument, but is there no continual elimination of the problem as much as it is being made?
I though I'd just ask how many pieces of natural space junk (meteoric dust, comet debris, etc.) is floating around there? And also how long is it before man -made space junk goes meteroric? I don't deny that I had dreams of a space shuttle going up with a team of dudes with dustpans and brushes, and I am not doing a teaparty 'nothing to worry about' denial -argument, but is there no continual elimination of the problem as much as it is being made?
Ta. I remember seeing a computer animation of a cloud of debris being tracked. It looked like a pretty even distribution from low to high orbits. So the lower stuff is turning into meteor showers within years. I know the pieces are bigger than the average meteor which is big if it is the size of a marble. At the same time, this stuff is made of plastic or aluminium foil, not stone or nickel. So total burnup is on the cards.
The higher stuff will take decades, and even centuries. But - and I am not doing a Teaparty 'No problem..we can just keep on doing what we do and it will all sort itself out WGH... But there does seem to be at least a reasonable amount of reabsorbsion of the junk.
A mysterious chunk of space debris called 'WTF' is headed straight for Earth
Well, that's how the article is titled. Actually, experts have dubbed it WT1190F and some experts think that this piece of space junk could be a residual rocket stage or piece of paneling from a past Moon mission. The article states that for the first time, experts have calculated the exact time and location a piece of space junk will collide with Earth. I thought they had done this before, but perhaps those were approximate estimates.
Space junk is not only a problem for astronauts in space, but there is a chance, no matter how very small, that a piece of space junk could survive reentry and strike someone. I've seen pictures where a small meteorite has crashed though the roof of someone's house, and where one has hit a car. I wouldn't lose any sleep over it however.
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A mysterious chunk of space debris called 'WTF' is headed straight for Earth
