Space junk threat grows as UK observatory tracks debris

A UK observatory is tracking a growing field of satellites and space junk in Earth's orbit, providing data for Britain's efforts to prevent collisions and monitor debris returning through the atmosphere.

Chilbolton Observatory in southern England, operated by the national space laboratory RAL Space, monitors UK-licensed satellites and fast-multiplying fragments of debris around them.

The debris includes dead satellites, abandoned rocket bodies and fragments from launches, explosions and collisions. The European Space Agency says more than 46,000 pieces of debris, weighing a total of 17,000 tonnes, are currently in orbit.

Matthew Archer, deputy director for launch and space domain awareness at the UK Space Agency, said most debris does not collide with anything most of the time, but any piece can significantly damage or destroy satellites.

Chilbolton feeds data to the National Space Operations Centre, led by the UK Space Agency and UK Space Command. The centre works around the clock to prevent orbital collisions and track debris re-entering Earth's atmosphere.

The UK has pledged to invest £85 million, or $114 million, in the centre, which issues about 3,000 collision warnings each month to satellite operators.

Archer said space infrastructure underpins about 20 percent of the UK economy and that the growing number of objects is making space more congested. There are currently 14,000 satellites orbiting Earth, with about 1.7 million more planned in coming years. SpaceX alone has unveiled plans to begin launching more than one million satellites in 2028.

The observatory's work also includes planetary defence. The UK Space Agency became a member last year of the International Asteroid Warning Network, which monitors asteroids including those that could hit Earth. The UK is also supporting the European Space Agency's 2029 mission to study the 375-metre-wide asteroid Apophis as it flies by Earth.