Will Parker

Hey, thanks, Dana.

Hey, thanks, Dana.

Yeah, you know, we used to live in this world where we had a mentality that space is big and we didn't have to be sustainable in the way that we acted in space because we didn't have to worry about collisions between satellites or debris objects. It was mostly a clean environment when we started our operations in space in the late 50s. Today, the environment is very different.

Yeah, you know, we used to live in this world where we had a mentality that space is big and we didn't have to be sustainable in the way that we acted in space because we didn't have to worry about collisions between satellites or debris objects. It was mostly a clean environment when we started our operations in space in the late 50s. Today, the environment is very different.

We have, like you said, tens of thousands of objects that are orbiting Earth, many more smaller debris objects that we have a hard time tracking. And so because of that, satellite operators constantly have to dodge debris. So the operating environment is becoming really complex and really difficult.

We have, like you said, tens of thousands of objects that are orbiting Earth, many more smaller debris objects that we have a hard time tracking. And so because of that, satellite operators constantly have to dodge debris. So the operating environment is becoming really complex and really difficult.

And that's bad news for the long-term sustainability of the environment for us to use for all the things that we rely on spaceport.

And that's bad news for the long-term sustainability of the environment for us to use for all the things that we rely on spaceport.

Sure. Well, we rely on the upper atmosphere to clean up low Earth orbit. So, you know, we like to think of space as being a vacuum, but really there's a little bit of air at the very top reaches of the atmosphere where most of our satellites are operating. Basically, if it weren't for that atmosphere, any debris, any satellite that we abandoned in space would stay there forever.

Sure. Well, we rely on the upper atmosphere to clean up low Earth orbit. So, you know, we like to think of space as being a vacuum, but really there's a little bit of air at the very top reaches of the atmosphere where most of our satellites are operating. Basically, if it weren't for that atmosphere, any debris, any satellite that we abandoned in space would stay there forever.

We rely on that atmosphere to basically reduce the energy from our satellites so that they spiral towards the Earth and eventually deorbit. So we need that cleaning force. If we don't have that force, then we would have these things in space forever. That is catastrophic to the environment, right? We have no way to remove the old junk so that we can have stuff to do in the future.

We rely on that atmosphere to basically reduce the energy from our satellites so that they spiral towards the Earth and eventually deorbit. So we need that cleaning force. If we don't have that force, then we would have these things in space forever. That is catastrophic to the environment, right? We have no way to remove the old junk so that we can have stuff to do in the future.

So we built on some previous studies that have started to show that while we see a significant warming effect from greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere, we actually see pretty significant cooling and contraction in the upper atmosphere. And so that's caused by two things.

So we built on some previous studies that have started to show that while we see a significant warming effect from greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere, we actually see pretty significant cooling and contraction in the upper atmosphere. And so that's caused by two things.

One of them is that the greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere trap heat close to the surface of the Earth and prevent it from reaching the upper atmosphere. And the heat that does make its way into the upper atmosphere is emitted more easily into space. So those two mechanisms together mean that we're seeing a cooling effect in the upper atmosphere where most of our satellites are operating.

One of them is that the greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere trap heat close to the surface of the Earth and prevent it from reaching the upper atmosphere. And the heat that does make its way into the upper atmosphere is emitted more easily into space. So those two mechanisms together mean that we're seeing a cooling effect in the upper atmosphere where most of our satellites are operating.

And because of that cooling effect, we're seeing that the entire atmosphere is contracting. So it's retreating away from low Earth orbit where we rely on that atmosphere for drag on our satellites. The effect of that retreat, that shrinking of the atmosphere, is that it's not doing as good a job at cleaning out low Earth orbit.

And because of that cooling effect, we're seeing that the entire atmosphere is contracting. So it's retreating away from low Earth orbit where we rely on that atmosphere for drag on our satellites. The effect of that retreat, that shrinking of the atmosphere, is that it's not doing as good a job at cleaning out low Earth orbit.

And again, we rely on that cleaning force because we have no other way to remove most of this debris. So the danger and the thing that we found is that it actually reduces the number of satellites that we can sustainably operate in low Earth orbit because we don't have this cleaning force.

And again, we rely on that cleaning force because we have no other way to remove most of this debris. So the danger and the thing that we found is that it actually reduces the number of satellites that we can sustainably operate in low Earth orbit because we don't have this cleaning force.