environmental impact of space debris

our solution is achieving a sustainable space environment by decreasing the space debris and its effect on the climate change.

Space activities in Earth orbit are increasingly indispensable to our civilization. thousands of spacecraft have been launched into orbit for more purposes .they serve vital roles as communications links, navigation beacons, scientific investigation platforms, and providers of remote sensing data for weather, climate, land use, national security purposes. The spacecraft that perform these tasks are concentrated in a few orbital regions, including low Earth orbit(LEO), semi synchronous orbit, and geosynchronous earth orbit(GEO). These orbital regions represent valuable resources because they have characteristics that enable spacecraft operating within them to execute their missions more effectively. one consequence of this activity has been the creation of a large population of debris objects(including nonfunctional spacecraft, spent rocket bodies, mission-related objects, the products of spacecraft surface deterioration, and fragments from spacecraft and rocket body breakups) that serve no useful function.it orbits the Earth and will remain in orbit until atmospheric drag and other perturbing forces eventually cause their orbits to decay into the atmosphere( burn up in the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in a fairly continual flux of meteoroids on spacecraft in Earth orbit and a hazard to activities on the Earth's surface like climate change). Moreover , Astronomers are observing during wide field imaging an increasing number of trails per plate caused by space debris. These trails degrade the quality of the observation. Space debris trailing will entirely negate a photometric observation when debris cross the narrow photometric field the major hazard posed by debris is to space operations. Although the current hazard to most space activities from debris is low, growth in the amount of debris threatens to make some valuable orbital regions increasingly inhospitable to space operations over the next few decades. In 1996, a French satellite was hit and damaged by debris from a French rocket that had exploded a decade earlier. On Feb. 10, 2009, a defunct Russian spacecraft collided with and destroyed a functioning U.S. Iridium commercial spacecraft. The collision added more than 2,300 pieces of large, trackable debris and many more smaller debris to the inventory of space junk. China's 2007 anti-satellite test, which used a missile to destroy an old weather satellite, added more than 3,500 pieces of large, trackable debris and many more smaller debris to the debris problem . A responsible approach to orbital debris will require continuing efforts to increase our knowledge of the current and future debris population, the development of tools to aid spacecraft designers in protecting spacecraft against the debris hazard, and international implementation of appropriate measures to minimize the creation of additional debris . currently , the hazard is fairly low. However ,continuing space operations and collisions between objects already in orbit are likely to generate additional debris faster than natural forces remove it, potentially increasing the debris hazard in some orbital regions to levels that could seriously jeopardize operations in those regions.

Our vision is to create a project that is supported with a great thruster to move very fast and a mechanism that can apply artificial intelligence. The mother craft that will be separated in the space will be separated into 2U CubeSats that will focus on what are the things around the earth and they will be established to be handled and static to interrupt the waves or the space junk, that is by the way, shrinking the upper atmosphere where CO2 acts as a greenhouse gas, so, the benefits behind removing the space debris will serve in decreasing the amount gases that enter the atmosphere in addition to the other particles and the hard particles that enter through the ozone layer across the holes changing from the thick atmosphere layer that is towards the earth. But it’s not very easy because the greenhouse effect has impact on both the inner atmosphere and the upper thin atmosphere. This is a really pivotal information, because it is simply trying to take advantage of the oxygen atoms that were formed alone, or to decompose or get rid of carbon dioxide. As the carbon dioxide increase in the inner space and being cooled the amount of collisions increases so the debris also increases. then, there will be also a net capture mechanism with some sensors and addition that could help it to catch the big debris particles that could inter to reach the earth via the thermosphere making some kind of propagation, interrupting the gaseous distribution that affect badly the inner atmosphere and leads to increase the global warming and the climate change. So,The activity that we all can do is to follow the philosophy espoused by ESA (European Space Agency) about the “strategy of zero debris” in collaboration with all space agencies.

Let us agree that the greatest threat to the Earth's climate is global warming, and until recently also what makes it the first talk in all international meetings, like most famous is the UN Climate Change Conference. But now there is another factor breaking into the betting table; the space debris, which has increased after it became easy to scatter spacecraft into space, is today a real threat to Earth's exosphere particularly and climate in general.

Space debris is making up a great threat to the Earth orbits causing a demand of the oxygen in the lower orbit and changes from the chemistry of the atmosphere during the colliding of the space debris pieces, what is known as Kessler Syndrome. There are too much of space junk pieces almost 3,000 dead satellites spacecraft and more still in-orbit, and moving by a velocity of 17,500 mph, the orbit that the debris is making, is narrowing with time, which makes it increases and it could increase from global warming (as carbon dioxide for instance and other greenhouse gases). Due to the destruction of most of the satellites and spacecraft that are launched into space by their agencies that sets no boundaries for launching plans. If we could exploit our satellites that are present beyond the atmosphere, we can obviate the colliding of the payloads of the debris, which by the way responsible for raising the temperature of the earth affecting the food supply and the spreading of some diseases. Furthermore, reducing the space debris clusters that increases with the passage of years.

The space debris is unmeasurable and that’s a huge problem because in the field of science we should calculate the challenge we are facing the second thing is that the debris are increasing, having a great velocity in orbiting, and are harming and damaging the satellites that some of which are indispensable for our modern life and the others are indirectly help in understanding the climate change and global warming as the monitoring by a specific satellites to the holes of Ozone layer in different places in south pole particularly. A machinery that can overcome such issue should be a something that prevent the space junk or debris from destroying more satellites, which hurt us and could decrease the distance between the thermosphere and the orbit of the space debris great clusters, or make a mission as usual that capture some of the hard debris that affect an exact position, like in Remove DEBRIS mission by Surrey University.

we are energetic college students, passionate about our study ,ambitious and hardworking individuals , with broad skills and experience in our field (space technology) and printed marketing, social media and leading projects. Furthermore,  adepting  at handling multiple tasks on a daily basis competently and at working well under pressure. and we aim to achieve upcoming achievements and do things . we have done alot of researches ,participated in many projects related to this solution and volunteered at many places, student activities , attending workshops & conferences that  helps us to devolope our skills ,search and look for solutions for problems humans face .every one of us has its own work experience to exchange between us . besides ,  participating in many competitions  .

sustainability is a universal problem ,on earth and in space .From global connectivity to weather forecasting to monitoring climate change, our daily lives are increasingly being powered from services (i.e. 7,000 satellites) in outer space. Therefore, the drive to take our sustainability initiatives beyond our earthly presence, and out into the universe, is of critical importance to life on earth as well as our future prospects out in space.so, we all shoud pay attention to that topic .that which made us do more searches and projects , meet with  other people have innovations and exchange experience with them , participate in organizations and activities  (interested in this field) that help us to develop our skills and ideas to solve this problem .

Although space debris has been a problem for decades, recent investment in active debris clearing shows a wider commitment to sustainable space development.The space debris issue is not just about the present use of space but about impacts on our environment. From the land to the ocean, to the sky this is something we need to get ahead of and protect ourselves before it's too late. A proposed  satellite to deorbit cubesats is one of several technologies being proposed or developed to clean up orbital debris, which could have additional economic benefits as well.So, The space debris removal vehicle (SDRV) will need to be large enough to capture large pieces of debris, if it were to house a capture feature such as a net, or mechanical arms, the vehicle itself would not require housing space for the junk, meaning the main body’s size could be reduced. The vehicle’s internal space would require enough space to house oxygen tanks for pumping oxygen back into the atmosphere when needed, therefore, it is estimated that the main body would need to be at least 3-5m^2. The SDRV, to make it more sustainable, should be powered by plasma thrusters when in space. This would result in less chemicals, such as fossil fuels being burnt over the course of the mission, resulting in an eco-friendlier vehicle and mission.To aid this mission, the satellite could be equipped with the relevant technology to analyses the atmosphere to see the impact the space debris removal mission is having on each atmospheric layer. The atmosphere is a great resource that could be used in the process of removing space debris, it could be used to burn up the junk by deorbiting objects until Earth’s gravity pulls them downwards into the atmosphere until they burn up. This, however, comes with potential problems for the climate. The atmosphere’s chemical composition may change if space junk is continuously bombarding it and burning up in it. Therefore, the SDRV should be equipped with technology similar to that of NASA’s AIS atmospheric infrared sounder, this satellite dramatically enhanced humans understanding of the atmosphere and climate. The AIS provided a heightened view of the Earth’s atmospheric layers, providing scientists with the ability to view the atmosphere in roughly 2400 wavelengths of light, before AIS launched in 2002, we could only see the atmosphere in 15 wavelengths of light. This new technology enables 3D maps to measure air temperature, humidity and clouds, improving weather forecasts. It can be applied to this mission, because it shows CO2 in the atmosphere, therefore, these areas can be targeted for oxygen pumping.

Our purpose is to harness the power of space to advance humanity and protect our planet.Data captured from our billions of devices around the world can provide insights into humanity's impact on oceans, rivers, polar and glacial ice, wildlife and forests. This unprecedented amount of real-time data will help drive clear decisions on how governments, companies and people can participate in ESG programs to protect and save our planet.

Ensuring that all humanity can continue to use outer space for peaceful purposes and socioeconomic benefit now and in the long term. This will require international cooperation, discussion, and agreements designed to ensure that outer space is safe, secure, and peaceful.

More than 1,800 satellites orbit the Earth, providing tangible social, scientific, strategic, and economic benefits to billions of individuals throughout the globe. Yet the ability to provide important benefits from outer space is now threatened by a number of challenges. One is the increasing density of debris in orbit. Some experts predict the debris population will reach a level at which it becomes self-sustaining: debris–on–debris collisions would continue to increase the amount of debris in orbit, even without new launches. This could quickly lead to a sharp decrease in our ability to sustain the benefits that space systems provide to the entire world. Spacecraft face an especially high risk in Sun-synchronous orbits (SSO). SSOs are special orbits between 700 and 900 kilometers (km) in altitude primarily used by Earth observation satellites that collect valuable information about the world we live on.

 If outer space is not safe, secure, and peaceful, the ability to use it could be denied to all. We would be unable to use the space environment for national security purposes,Earth observation, telecommunications (including financial transactions, internet, telephone, data transfer, and television), navigation, scientific exploration, or economic development.

Lack of sustainability would mean that emerging space countries, especially, could face insurmountable problems in using outer space effectively. Addressing the need for space sustainability now means we can prevent negative trends from becoming norms, and ensure that outer space can be used by all countries, not just technologically sophisticated ones.

Further, if a satellite operator does not know whether a satellite was damaged by space weather or by hostile action there is an increased chance for terrestrial conflict, particularly if there is already a tense geopolitical situation occurring. Now-unclassified documents demonstrate that during a major solar storm in 1967, this exact scenario occurred .

The most famous space-weather event is the 1859 Carrington Event. A series of CMEs appear to have struck the Earth over the course of a week in August-September 1859. Auroras were reported as far from the poles as Colombia and Sub-Saharan Africa, telegraph lines across Europe and North America failed, and astounded residents of the northeastern United States could read their newspapers by the light of the aurora. there are satellites that track solar activity and predict us of upcoming dangerous events that can affect the earth .So we shoud protect these satellites from space debris to perform these missions .our  satellite project  can target debris up to two metres in diameter and with a mass of up to two tonnes. The net-debris combination subsequently floats away to deorbit and burn up upon atmospheric re-entry.

The space Vehicle will be launched on top of a Delta, Falcon, Ariane or similar rocket. The vehicle will be inside of a container on top of it.

The container should have an engine to push it back in the atmosphere to be destroyed during reentry to avoid leaving additional debris in orbit.

When the vehicle is released, the container will fire its reentry engine to be destroyed entering Earth’s Atmosphere.

Because of the different size and shape of the space debris parts is necessary to consider a recipient that can hold some pieces to return them to earth and be destroyed during re-entry, and many missions.

The idea is to launch in a single rocket three or four Space Debris Retriever (SDR), each of them will consist of these parts:

Main Body and the Net collection unit.

The Main body will have:

Propulsion system.- to maneuver in space and for reentry, it will have maneuver engines and a main rocket.

Antenna for tracking and communications. This segment has a rotational base that holds the net. If needed the NET can rotate by firing the Net Control Engines.

tanks for pumping oxygen back into the atmosphere when needed

The Net collection unit (NCU) will consist of:

Capture Net.- Made of a  light and resistant material to be deployed in orbit to catch the debris, It may extend up to 50 Square meters.

Net Control engines.- small engines to deploy the net and keep it in position during the recollection phase. These small engines will also secure the net as tight as possible for re-entry. They will be located on each corner of the square net.

Cameras. - located on top of the deployment engines to have a view of the debris and the status of the system.

Laser System.- for distance calculations to the objective.

Tension sensor: This instrument will determine the actual tension of the net from one corner to another one, to avoid possible damage to the net and for hence the possible release of the captured debris.

Communication system to the Main Body module.- This communication will provide the main computer data of the approach to an objective

Configuration:

 There might be different net configurations:

1.- Pyramid structure: this structure will extend parallel to the SRDV base, first to reach its complete length and then to extend to its sides opening the base of the pyramid. The tip of pyramid will be attached fixed to the base of the Vehicle. Communications with the Net Maneuver units will be done through the wiring on each edge of the pyramid.

2.- Fisherman Net structure.- This configuration consist in extending the net in the shape of a square. It will be fixed on its base to the vehicle. The net will be extended first to its full height using the net debris maneuvering unit, then it will be fully extended using the Net corner maneuvering units until it reaches full extend.

Mission Profile:

Previous to the Mission, the target debris or group of pieces to be retrieved from orbit have to have all the documentation for this purpose, this is , the “owner” of it has to be agreed that its debris will be retrieved and destroyed, the owner can be a private company, a government of a country, a military organization or any other agency.

The launch configuration will consist of a rocket similar to Falcon, Delta or Antares, on top it will have a container with two SDRV. Once on the desired orbit the last stage with the Container will fire its engine to reach the desired orbit. At that point it will open its panels so the SDRVs can be released.

For retrieval of Communications Satellites positioned in Geostationary orbits and Satellites on high orbits a second stage will take the SRDV to that orbit, in addition a bigger SRDV will be needed to have the propellant necessary and engine capability be able to reduce speed for reentry on Earth’s atmosphere.

A Capture Mission is divided in these phases:

-Approach

- Capture

- Reentry

Approach Phase

Each SDRV will be programmed to fire its rocket to achieve the desired orbit to begin the recollection of Debris, Each one can recollect one big piece, or as many as they may be in their path and can fit into the NET for a secure reentry.

Once in Orbit, the SDRV will adjust its orbit using its main engine and maneuver rockets. When is stabilized it will begin to extend the Capture NET using the NET Maneuver devices, depending on the configuration that is being used as described in the previous section.

The first step will be to identify the target debris and approach to it, using the maneuver engines on the vehicle. The SDRV will approach the target debris and adjust its speed to have a smooth approach to be able to proceed with the capture without damaging the NET.

Capture Phase

Capturing Debris with the Pyramidal Configuration.

 If the pyramidal configuration is used, the vehicle will approach measuring distance with a laser on the tip of the pyramid, the net maneuvering system will also be monitoring the capture by measuring the distance to each by a laser system, in this way calculations can be made to know in other debris could be captured. 

If no more debris is going to be captured, the NET maneuvering units will push the four corners of the base of the pyramid inwards, to secure the debris. The movement will be done until they detect that no more movement can be done, measuring the tension of the main cable that goes from each cornet to the tip of the pyramid to connect with the main vehicle. Al this point the SDRV will be prepared to reentry.

Capturing Debris with the Fisherman Net Configuration.

This configuration can be used to capture a debris approaching to it until is detected it has contact with the net. At this point if more debris is going to be retrieved, it can continue advancing until it is reached. At this point the Cornet net engines will fire to close the net as tight as possible to secure the debris and begin the reentry process.

This configuration can be used to retrieve small pieces due to the area the net covers.

Reentry phase

Once the debris has been captured and secured in the NET, the next phase is the reentry for destruction. The reentry path will be calculated to guarantee that the destruction takes place over the Oceans, to diminish the possibility that a piece of debris could reach land.

The SDRV will be programed from Earth for a calculated reentry. The program will perform the maneuvers to position the vehicle in the right direction to fire its main engine to slow its speed and let it be captured by the atmosphere to begin reentry and be burned during its trajectory. This controlled reentry will be monitored on Earth.

General Considerations:

Due to the fact that there is space debris of Many Nations (Government and Private) there is a need to have an agreement perhaps with the ISECG and the UN to be able to retrieve it, considering that this space debris is a risk for Human Space Flight and in some cases life on Earth.

A special treatment will have to give to all Military debris (Rocket parts, satellites, etc.) to be retrieved; the Military official would have to approve the retirement and give all the information and recommendations needed for the retrieval and destruction  of it.

For big structures has to be known the internal parts to evaluate the possibility of pieces reaching the Earth, and warn the possible impact areas and commercial airplanes routes.

Communication Satellites in Geostationary orbits will require additional thrust for the retrieval vehicle to reach that orbit, also a different type of vehicle for reentry. 

The Space Council (ISECG) will have to determine the way to distribute costs for this operation, considering nationality of debris, also have to consider who is the owner of the debris; in case of satellites property of one nation but delivered with rockets of other nation that provides this service.

Our purpose is to harness the power of space to advance humanity and protect our planet.Data captured from our billions of devices around the world can provide insights into humanity's impact on oceans, rivers, polar and glacial ice, wildlife and forests. This unprecedented amount of real-time data will help drive clear decisions on how governments, companies and people can participate in ESG programs to protect and save our planet.

Ensuring that all humanity can continue to use outer space for peaceful purposes and socioeconomic benefit now and in the long term. This will require international cooperation, discussion, and agreements designed to ensure that outer space is safe, secure, and peaceful.

More than 1,800 satellites orbit the Earth, providing tangible social, scientific, strategic, and economic benefits to billions of individuals throughout the globe. Yet the ability to provide important benefits from outer space is now threatened by a number of challenges. One is the increasing density of debris in orbit. Some experts predict the debris population will reach a level at which it becomes self-sustaining: debris–on–debris collisions would continue to increase the amount of debris in orbit, even without new launches. This could quickly lead to a sharp decrease in our ability to sustain the benefits that space systems provide to the entire world. Spacecraft face an especially high risk in Sun-synchronous orbits (SSO). SSOs are special orbits between 700 and 900 kilometers (km) in altitude primarily used by Earth observation satellites that collect valuable information about the world we live on.

 If outer space is not safe, secure, and peaceful, the ability to use it could be denied to all. We would be unable to use the space environment for national security purposes,Earth observation, telecommunications (including financial transactions, internet, telephone, data transfer, and television), navigation, scientific exploration, or economic development.

Lack of sustainability would mean that emerging space countries, especially, could face insurmountable problems in using outer space effectively. Addressing the need for space sustainability now means we can prevent negative trends from becoming norms, and ensure that outer space can be used by all countries, not just technologically sophisticated ones.

Further, if a satellite operator does not know whether a satellite was damaged by space weather or by hostile action there is an increased chance for terrestrial conflict, particularly if there is already a tense geopolitical situation occurring. Now-unclassified documents demonstrate that during a major solar storm in 1967, this exact scenario occurred .

The most famous space-weather event is the 1859 Carrington Event. A series of CMEs appear to have struck the Earth over the course of a week in August-September 1859. Auroras were reported as far from the poles as Colombia and Sub-Saharan Africa, telegraph lines across Europe and North America failed, and astounded residents of the northeastern United States could read their newspapers by the light of the aurora. there are satellites that track solar activity and predict us of upcoming dangerous events that can affect the earth .So we shoud protect these satellites from space debris to perform these missions .our  satellite project  can target debris up to two metres in diameter and with a mass of up to two tonnes. The net-debris combination subsequently floats away to deorbit and burn up upon atmospheric re-entry.

There are some  barriers to the growth of our system or space commerce ingeneral :

      Space is an expensive business. The cost of manufacturing and launching a routine telecommunications satellite exceeds $150 million. The cost to establish a new capability, such as a reusable launch vehicle or an on-orbit manufacturing facility, is likely to be in the multi-billion dollar range. The need to acquire a very high level of start-up capital* creates a barrier to entry into the space industry, especially for small and/or start-up firms. Risks arise from both technical factors and market factors. Technical risks exist because space systems are complex, often requiring new technology.

     Government policies affect space commerce and, in the minds of many industry observers, create the greatest barriers. Government barriers to commercial space come in two varieties: areas where government regulation and oversight are perceived as restrictive or inappropriately competitive .

NO , we are still in the first steps . AND now we  are already looking for partnerships . we already have innovative idea to win ( and we haven't participated in any place with it before )  . we aim that won't affect our chance to win .

Our business model is divided into many parts, one of them is that it is made for sustainable space, and we will implement our project through space agencies and companies interested in space, and we will also cooperate with organizations and foundations that related to climate change problem and so on. And one of this features of this project that it is an environmentally friendly system. The third part is the benefits of this project, which is to reduce the percentage of space debris, whose danger we mentioned above, and reduce the effect of climate change, and thus protect the planet and humanity and secure a good place for our future generations. Finally, we don’t know how much this project will cost properly but we know that the space investment is so expensive. 

My way to convince companies or partners to support will be through three ways, the first is to convince them by explaining the problem and tell them the danger of space debris and the extent of its bad impact on the world and future generations, and the second is to explain our idea and solution, and the third is to encourage them to achieve a goal or participate in achieving one of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), as countries today measure their progress through these good deeds and projects so everyone competes to participate or work on projects such that.