The US Federal Communications Commission fined Dish Network $150,000 this week for polluting Earth’s atmosphere.
The fine is the first of its kind and could pave the way to keep other satellite and space operators in check for simply leaving damaged and end-of-life garbage in orbit.
Depending on who you ask, and the sizes of the debris, there are 170 million pieces of space junk floating around us at any time. Most of this junk are tiny bits of debris that measure between 1 and 10 centimeters. NASA estimates there are 25,000 pieces of space junk above that size.
Why Did Dish Network Get Fined?
Dish Network was fined because an old EchoStar, yes that EchoStar, satellite was supposed to be moved 186 miles away from Earth at the end of its life. Dish had only moved the satellite 76 miles away from Earth at the end of 2022. The FCC said Dish’s satellite could have posed a hazard to other satellites orbiting the Earth.
Space Junk Is a Huge Problem
The commercial space industry is just beginning to takeoff. SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic are all planning to expand space tourism and engage in commercial exploration. The magnitude of space debris makes finding launch windows challenging for flights. It also poses a problem for placing other satellites in orbit. Finally, the amount of debris makes it dangerous for external vehicular activities (EVAs) for humans.
The International Space Station is required to be equipped with Whipple shielding to protect its crew and experiments from space junk that’s hurtling around Earth orbit at speeds of 10 kilometers per second. That’s 10 times the speed of a bullet.
The fine is big news because it means the FCC has the authority to fine polluters. This incentivizes satellite operators to be more cognizant of what they’re putting in orbit and how their products are handled at end-of-life. Currently, satellite operators launch-and-forget leaving large numbers of inoperable equipment in orbit.
El Jefe says he has a solution for this. It’s hard to believe but he actually thinks about how orbit can be cleaned up. Let’s hope it’s more impressive than how we deal with garbage on Earth.
-MJ
