2024-06-27 04:00:11
As the digital age advances at breakneck speed, thousands of satellites are now launched into low Earth orbit each year to meet the growing demand for global internet services. But a new study warns of an unexpected threat: pollution atmospheric pollution caused by the disintegration of these satellites.
When these satellites fall back into the atmosphere, they release aluminum oxides, harmful particles that erode the ozone layer. According to a study published in Geophysical Research Lettersthe quantity of these oxides has increased in a way exponential between 2016 and 2022, and will continue to grow as the name of satellites in low orbit will increase.
The 1987 Montreal Protocol successfully controlled ozone-damaging CFCs, promising a gradual recovery of the ozone layer within 50 years. However, the unexpected increase in aluminum oxides might jeopardize this progress, the study authors said.
Currently, of the 8,100 objects in low Earth orbit, 6,000 are Starlink satellites launched by SpaceX. With permission to launch up to 42,000 more satellites, the company is leading the charge, followed closely by Amazon and other companies planning similar constellations.
Low-orbit communications satellites have a lifespan of regarding five years. To maintain internet service, companies must regularly launch replacement satellites, perpetuating a cycle of planned pollution.
A simulation of a satellite disintegrating in a wind tunnel.
Crédit: European Space Agency/German Aerospace Center
Aluminum oxides trigger chemical reactions that destroy stratospheric ozone, which protects the Earth from harmful UV rays. These oxides, unused by chemical reactions, continue to destroy ozone molecules for decades as they drift through the stratosphere.
Little attention has been paid to the pollutants produced when satellites disintegrate. Previous studies have focused mainly on the consequences of launching spacecraft. The new study from the University of Southern California is the first to quantify this long-lasting pollution in the upper atmosphere.
To get a more accurate picture of the pollution from satellite reentry, the researchers modeled the chemical composition of satellite materials and their interactions at the molecular and atomic levels. They found that aluminum oxide particles can take up to 30 years to reach stratospheric altitudes, where 90 percent of Earth’s ozone is found.
Researchers estimate that by the time the planned constellations are fully established, 912 tons of aluminum will fall to Earth each year, releasing regarding 360 tons of aluminum oxides into the atmosphere, a 646 percent increase over natural levels.
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