What Is Space Junk and Why Does It Matter?
There’s a growing threat in our skies. It’s invisible to most of us here on Earth, but it’s putting satellites, astronauts, and even our future in space at risk: space junk.
Millions of debris are circling our planet at speeds faster than a bullet. And if we don’t act soon, this mess could make parts of space unusable for decades, or worse, trigger a catastrophic chain reaction.
Let’s see in more detail what space junk is, why it matters, and how we can clean up our skies. Stay tuned, because the future of space exploration might depend on it.
As of early 2025, the total number of satellites orbiting the Earth at different altitudes is 8337, 540 of which are in GEO orbit, 7599 in LEO and 198 in MEO. [1][2]
This means only one thing: our orbits are becoming very crowded.
What Is Space Junk?
Space junk, space debris or orbital debris, is any human-made object in space that no longer serves a purpose. Think of it as litter in space—old satellites, spent rocket parts, and even fragments from collisions. Normally, at the end of life of a satellite, satellite operators manoeuvre the spacecraft towards Earth’s atmosphere, so that it completely burns. However, this wasn’t the case a few years ago when sustainability wasn’t the main priority, and existing debris produced more debris and so on.
According to the European Space Agency, there are around 36,500 objects larger than 10cm (4 inches), 1,000,000 objects larger than 1cm (0.4 inches) and around 130,000,000 objects about 1mm (0.04 inches) large. [3]
The main issue with space debris is their incredibly high speeds, around 28,000 kph (17,500 mph). At such velocities, even small pieces can cause significant damage if they collide with satellites or space stations. [4]
Why Does Space Junk Matter? While satellite operators often manoeuvre their satellites to avoid potential collisions, there have been instances where satellites were struck and damaged so severely that they became space junk themselves causing financial losses and issues with navigation and communication services on Earth. [4]
Even worse, in 2021, the International Space Station was hit by space debris. A 5mm hole was discovered in the Canadarm2 during a route inspection. It didn’t cause much damage as the arm’s functionality remained intact, but it proved that space debris could indeed become a threat to the space stations and astronauts’ lives. [5]
How Can We Clean Up Space? As bad as this sounds, however, there are solutions, or at least governments and private companies are working on this issue. The first step is prevention. Engineers are designing satellites to deorbit safely, burning up in Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their lives. It is becoming imperative that, when designing a space mission or a satellite, the end of life is planned too. This falls under the European Space Agency’s “Zero Debris Approach” which aims to reduce the production of debris in Earth and lunar orbits by 2030. [6]
And, for those debris that are already in space, or satellites without any fuel to move, the solution is to… cleanup. Innovative technologies are being developed: robotic arms, nets, harpoons, and even lasers. Japan is working on magnetic tethers, and ESA’s ClearSpace-1 mission will be the first to actively remove debris from orbit. [7]
Space Debris is enabling cooperation among countries. Space is seen as a shared resource today. Organisations and nations are coming together to establish guidelines and ensure responsible behaviour in orbit.
Conclusions Space junk might be out of sight, but it’s a problem we can’t ignore. With innovation, collaboration, and determination, we can clean up our cosmic neighbourhood and protect the future of space exploration. If you have any ideas on how to solve this issue, if you would like to contribute in any way, let us know in the comments. Let’s keep exploring and safeguarding the final frontier—together.
References
[1] How Many Satellites Are in Space? - NanoAvionics
[2] Orbiting Now
[3] ESA - About space debris
[4] https://geoxc-apps.bd.esri.com/space/satellite-explorer/
[5] International Space Station news | Canadian Space Agency
[6] ESA - Mitigating space debris generation
[7] ESA - ClearSpace-1
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