Blame the Russians

Well, they're just partly to blame. Next month the Space Shuttle Atlantis will be embarking on a mission to do repairs on the eighteen year-old Hubble Telescope. This mission might prove to be a bit tricky due to all the debris floating about in space. According to an article in the Christian Science Monitor:

"The environment where the Hubble orbits, about 350 miles above the Earth’s surface, has more debris than where the International Space Station orbits and where most shuttle missions are conducted, at about 210 miles above the Earth. This “space junk” includes defunct satellites and spent rocket stages, fragments from exploded satellites, rocket engine effluents, paint flakes, and other small particles – all traveling at speeds of more than 15,000 miles per hour."

That doesn't sound very good. The article goes on to say:

"The problem of space junk is particularly insidious because objects in orbit that strike debris tend to create more debris, thereby increasing the risk of future impacts, which would in turn create more debris. This potential runaway feedback effect could create what’s known as the Kessler Syndrome, a scenario proposed by NASA consultant Donald J. Kessler, in which space travel, and even the use of satellites, becomes impracticable because of the high risk of collision."

Could this be the beginning of the end for space travel and satellite TV? And why do humans have to pollute everything we touch?

We are our worst detractors.