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At the end of 2021, a news that "the US Starlink satellite has approached the Chinese space station twice, forcing the Chinese space station to implement preventive emergency collision avoidance" rushed to the hot search, and the US "Starlink satellite" once again caused heated discussion
The Starlink Satellite is a space high-speed Internet program launched by space exploration technology company SpaceX in 2015. Starting in February 2018, SpaceX expects to launch 42,000 satellites into low-Earth orbit, which are linked into a huge "star chain" to provide high-speed Internet services for the world, and the number of SpaceX satellites in orbit has reached more than 1,700.
In low Earth orbit, there are many meteorological, communication and scientific satellites, which provide very important services and information for human life and economic activities. Once thousands of "Starlink satellites" pour into low-Earth orbit, a "space jam event" may occur, which will not only affect the service of functional satellites, but also highly likely to crash and crash. On September 2, 2019, the ESA "Fengshen" meteorological satellite took emergency orbit change measures to avoid the "Starlink 44" satellite. On July 1, 2021 and October 21, 2021, the Chinese space station twice implemented emergency collision avoidance to avoid satellites and ensure the safety of astronauts.
Scientists at Harvard's Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics say that as more spacecraft or satellites enter low-Earth orbit, avoidance actions to reduce the risk of space collisions will become more frequent. Data from the Socrates database shows that close contact events in space are becoming common due to the emergence of "starlink satellites". The Starlink satellites alone experience about 1,600 close encounters per week, accounting for about half of all close encounter events. The rapid expansion of the "Starlink" has caused many scientists to worry, and the visible light emitted by the "Starlink Satellite" has seriously interfered with astronomical observations, and its huge number has caused overcrowding in space.
The scale of the Satellite's activity in low-Earth orbit has also sparked widespread criticism. Joseph Aschbach, director general of the European Space Agency (ESA), said SpaceX has half of the world's active satellites and that he is working on space rules. Luxembourg's economy minister, Franz Fayotte, likened SpaceX's actions to the "colonization" of space. However, SpaceX founder Musk insisted that the Starlink satellite "didn't stop anyone from doing anything", that the Earth's low-Earth orbit space is very large, and the satellite is very small, and there is still enough space in low-Earth orbit for competitors to use.
Concerns and pitfalls about uncontrolled use in low-Earth orbit will not stop many countries and private companies from continuing to launch more satellites. The Satellite Industry Association estimates that there could be as many as 107671 satellites or spacecraft in low Earth orbit by 2030. Obviously, space legislation is imminent, and outer space activities and the development of outer space science and technology need to be regulated, guaranteed and guided by law. May the world unite and not let space become an extralegal place!
Editor-in-charge: Zhu Zhang Hangyu