Available online
Description
Earth orbit is so packed with debris and defunct satellites, they’ve become a major hazard to the space sector, and could even have an impact on day-to-day life on Earth. According to the Europea...n Space Agency 28,000 pieces of space debris are being tracked, travelling at thousands of kilometres per hour with a mass of more than 9200 tonnes. If these objects collide, they break up into smaller pieces, which can collide with more objects in a snowball effect known as the Kessler Syndrome. This debris could damage satellites, and endanger spacecraft and astronauts, and there could be so much of it that space might become totally unusable. This video covers the issues, the relevant international law and Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines, possible futures, de-orbiting techniques, and some potential solutions to our space junk problem. Narrated by Anna Ptaszynski. Written by Thomas Cheney, Rob Hawthorn. Script Editors Hannah Cooper, Anna Ptaszynski. Design and animation Michael Dring. Directed by Rob Hawthorn. Produced by Made by Gravity. Thanks to NASA, ESA, Karen Olsson-Francis, Victoria Pearson. Special thanks to Louise Thomas, James Harkin. Funded by OU Strategic Priorities Fund Quality Related (SPFQR) (Research England).
Earth orbit is so packed with debris and defunct satellites, they’ve become a major hazard to the space sector, and could even have an impact on day-to-day life on Earth. According to the Europea...n Space Agency 28,000 pieces of space debris are being tracked, travelling at thousands of kilometres per hour with a mass of more than 9200 tonnes. If these objects collide, they break up into smaller pieces, which can collide with more objects in a snowball effect known as the Kessler Syndrome. This debris could damage satellites, and endanger spacecraft and astronauts, and there could be so much of it that space might become totally unusable. This video covers the issues, the relevant international law and Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines, possible futures, de-orbiting techniques, and some potential solutions to our space junk problem. Narrated by Anna Ptaszynski. Written by Thomas Cheney, Rob Hawthorn. Script Editors Hannah Cooper, Anna Ptaszynski. Design and animation Michael Dring. Directed by Rob Hawthorn. Produced by Made by Gravity. Thanks to NASA, ESA, Karen Olsson-Francis, Victoria Pearson. Special thanks to Louise Thomas, James Harkin. Funded by OU Strategic Priorities Fund Quality Related (SPFQR) (Research England).
| First transmission date: | 20-10-2021 |
|---|---|
| Published: | 2021 |
| Rights Statement: | Rights owned or controlled by The Open University |
| Restrictions on use: | Contact the OU Archive prior to any re-use. Contact university-archive@open.ac.uk. |
| Duration: | 00:03:52 |
| + Show more... | |
| Contributors: | Anna Ptaszynski; Thomas Cheney; Rob Hawthorn; Hannah Cooper; Michael Dring |
| Publisher: | The Open University |
| Link to related site: | External url: https://youtu.be/0qDxI0NZpHI |
| Production number: | OUL01595 |
| Available to public: | no |
