The graphics below are computer generated images of objects in low-Earth orbit that are currently being tracked. Orbital debris points are scaled to image size in the graphic to optimize their visibility and are not scaled to Earth. (Courtesy: NASA ODPO)
A “worst-case scenario” failed Friday when two large pieces of space debris narrowly missed each other, according to LeoLabs.
LeoLabs said the debris included the defunct satellite Place 2361 and an SL-8 rocket body, two of the numerous pieces of space debris currently in low-Earth orbit.
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According to POTObjects in low-Earth orbit (or LEO) orbit our planet at an altitude of 1,200 miles (2,000 km) or less.
On Friday, Cosmos 2381 and the SL-8 rocket body nearly collided at an altitude of about 611 miles (984 km).
An image showing how two large, irregular objects missed each other in LEO on January 27, 2023. Each line represents the paths of an SL-8 rocket body (16511) and a Cosmos 2361 (25590) satellite.
(Leolabs / https://leolabs.space / FOX Weather)
LeoLabs determined that the two pieces of space debris missed each other by about 20 feet (6 meters), with an error margin of only a few tens of meters.
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“We have identified this type of collision – between two massive derelict objects – as a ‘worst-case scenario’ because it is largely out of our control and could potentially cause a ripple effect of a dangerous collision,” LeoLabs said in a message. Tweet.
They said that if Cosmos 2381 and the SL-8 rocket body collided with each other, the collision would have created thousands of new pieces of debris that would last for decades.
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This close encounter is significant because it illustrates how much space debris is floating around in low-Earth orbit.
According to LeoLabs, a level of LEO Only 62 miles wide There are approximately 160 SL-8 rocket bodies, with their 160 payloads, that were deployed more than 20 years ago.
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This “bad neighborhood” in LEO, LeoLabs says, is located between 950 and 1050 km altitude and continues to be a hotspot for debris collisions.
Astronaut Randy Bresnik participates in a spacewalk outside the International Space Station. ISS is in low-Earth orbit.
(NASA/NASA)
These collisions and near collisions in LEO are at the forefront of many minds.
Because in addition to being populous in unconventional space ruins, LEO region Also consider an area close enough the world For convenient transportation, communication, monitoring and resupply, according to NASA.
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Actually, LEO is where International Space Station currently in orbit and where many proposed future platforms will be located.
