After fossil fuels, pollution from rocket and satellite launches may trigger the next big environmental emergency | Technology News
With the space race heating up once again after the Cold War, the number of rockets and satellite launches has increased drastically. While these spacecraft help us unravel the mysteries of the universe, they might be the reason behind the next big environmental emergency.
According to Statista, rocket launches tripled while the number of satellites orbiting our home planet has increased tenfold in the last 15 years. As a result, the amount of space debris, which consists of out-of-commission satellites and spent rocket stages that fall back to Earth has also doubled in the last decade.
However, this might just be the beginning, as the International Telecommunications Union claims that the applications for satellite spectrum have already crossed 1 million. While all of these launches may not be successful, experts are now saying that the number of spacecraft circling our planet may reach around 1,00,000. According to Space.com, the majority of these launches are attributed to mega constellation projects like SpaceX’s Starlink.
Since most modern rockets use fossil fuels release soot as a byproduct, which could potentially absorb all the heat and eventually lead to an increase in temperature in Earth’s upper atmosphere. This, combined with the increasing levels of aluminium oxides because of the atmospheric burning of satellites may upset the planet’s thermal balance. For those wondering, both aluminium oxides and soot are known to damage ozone, the naturally occurring gas that keeps us safe from ultraviolet radiation.
An illustrative image that depicts the space shuttle launching. (Pixabay)
According to a recent study published in the Geophysical Research Letters, concentrations of aluminium oxides in the mesosphere and stratosphere, the lowermost layers in the troposphere may increase by 650 per cent in the coming decades, potentially causing ozone depletion. Another study, published last year by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) concluded that the increase in soot-producing rocket launches will have a similar effect on the ozone layer.
Researchers also hinted that the metallic ash, which is currently forming in the stratosphere because of satellite reentries might interfere with Earth’s magnetic field and weaken it over time, allowing more cosmic radiation to reach the planet’s surface.
While research on atmospheric effects of rocket flights and satellite air pollution is still in its early stage, in a statement to Space.com, Munkwan Kim, an associate professor of astronautics at the University of Southampton said that “if we don’t take any action now or in the next five years, it might be too late.”
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