Near Orbit 【LEGIT】

With 8,000+ active satellites, the number of “close approach” warnings (conjunctions) has exceeded 4,000 per day. The current notification system, operated by the U.S. Space Force’s 18th Space Control Squadron, is advisory only. There is no global authority to force collision avoidance maneuvers, leading to “negotiation by email” and, in a 2019 case, a near-miss between Starlink and ESA’s Aeolus satellite.

As megaconstellations age and are de-orbited, hundreds of satellites will re-enter the atmosphere annually. While most burn up, a 2023 study found a 10% annual probability of a surviving 25+ kg fragment landing in a populated area. Furthermore, the injection of aluminum oxides from burning satellites could catalyze stratospheric ozone depletion – a poorly understood externality. 5. Policy and Technical Solutions Addressing these threats requires a dual approach: near orbit

Active Debris Removal (ADR) – using harpoons, nets, or magnetic tethering to de-orbit large derelict objects – is technically feasible but commercially unattractive. The European Space Agency’s ClearSpace-1 mission (planned for 2027) represents the first dedicated ADR mission. However, at an estimated cost of $150 million per large object, a public-good funding mechanism is necessary. With 8,000+ active satellites, the number of “close

The ISS remains the only permanently crewed microgravity laboratory, enabling research in materials science, fluid dynamics, and human physiology that is impossible on Earth. Furthermore, NEO serves as the assembly point for deep-space missions (e.g., Lunar Gateway). 4. Emerging Threats and Congestion The very attributes that make NEO valuable also render it fragile. Three major threats have emerged: There is no global authority to force collision

Starlink and similar constellations now provide sub-30ms latency broadband to over 80 countries. Unlike GEO satellites (600ms latency), NEO constellations enable real-time video conferencing, telemedicine, and high-frequency trading.

NEO’s proximity allows for sub-meter resolution imaging. Commercial firms (Maxar, Planet Labs) deliver daily revisits of any point on Earth, supporting precision agriculture, disaster response (e.g., wildfire and flood mapping), and climate monitoring.