SpaceX’s satellites will populate the night sky, affecting how we observe the stars. And this is just the beginning of private satellite mega-constellations.
A partial lunar eclipse above the Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire in 2019.
Peter Byrne/PA Archive/PA Images
Two defunct satellites passed within metres of one another, prompting renewed focus on the dangers of space debris. But with many satellites treated as military secrets, how do we track the hazards?
In the future we might get sick of hearing people tell their stories about going to the Moon. Perhaps the Moon will just be like thinking about today’s Antarctica – a remote but accessible place.
There are tens of thousands of pieces of space debris orbiting the Earth, and the amount is growing.
Shutterstock
There needs to be an international approach regarding the management and disposal of space junk.
Perhaps hoping for an election boost, India’s Prime Minister Modi announces that Indian scientists shot down a live satellite at a low-earth orbit.
Jaipal Singh / AAP
On 27 March, India announced it had successfully conducted an anti-satellite missile test, Mission Shakti. India is now the fourth country in the world displaying this capability.
A large, sea jelly-like antenna shadow from the Apollo 14 mission in 1971.
NASA
This year the Apollo 11 mission turns 50 - but what does the future hold for the Moon? The ephemeral shadows cast by human artefacts may soon be joined by more permanent scars of lunar mining.
A composite image of a satellite firing an energy weapon at a target on Earth.
Marc Ward/Shutterstock.com
In the space beyond Earth’s atmosphere, countries are focusing on nationalist pursuits and ignoring the consequences for the rest of humanity. How can we keep the peace and build a sustainable future?
What will China discover on the far side of the moon?
BeeBright/Shutterstock.com
China just became the first country to land a probe on the far side of the moon. It’s a technological achievement and another sign of China’s capabilities and ambitions in space.
It would be nice to blast dangerous nuclear waste far away from Earth, or into the Sun where it won’t cause any harm. However, it’s not as simple as it sounds.
NASA
At the end of the day, the problem is that no-one on Earth wants nuclear waste stored near them, and it’s not safe or cost-effective to blast it into space.
Space debris in Earth orbit creates a dangerous obstacle course for satellites and astronauts.
Dotted Yeti / Shutterstock.com
Countries developing technology that removes or blasts away space junk may appear to be doing a public service. But those same technologies can destroy military and communications satellites.
US President Trump holds up a space policy directive he just signed during a meeting of the US National Space Council 18 June 2018.
MICHAEL REYNOLDS/AAP
China’s space station Tiangong-1 is about to crash back to Earth any day now. It’s out of control too so no one really knows where it will land. So what if it hits you or your house?
The Changzheng-2F rocket with the Shenzhou-10 manned spacecraft heading to Tiangong-1 in 2013.
EPA/STR
China’s Tiangong-1 space station is hurtling around Earth out of control and about to come crashing down. It’s just one of thousands of pieces of space junk left orbiting our planet.
One of the Vanguard satellites being checked out at Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1958.
NASA
When Vanguard 1 – the “grapefruit satellite” – was launched in 1958, its only companions were Explorer 1 and Sputnik 2. Soon it may have thousands of descendants swarming around it.
The SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket takes off from Cape Kennedy in Florida, USA on 06 February 2018.
Cristobal Herrera/AAP
The launch of Elon Musk’s Falcon Heavy rocket is undoubtedly a spectacular feat of engineering - but the release of a sports car into orbit also says something about our values as human beings.
Right now there are more than 20,000 objects in space.
NASA