Posted on 05/10/2014 6:31:17 AM PDT by rktman
While the plot of the hit Hollywood film "Gravity" is fictional, the United States must bolster efforts to address the alarming amount of space junk surrounding Earth, or risk potentially catastrophic collisions in orbit, lawmakers said today (May 9). Such real-life accidents could resemble the horrifying destruction depicted in the movie, they said.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
“After colliding with perhaps tons of debris, its orbit is decayed so that it all burns up in the atmosphere.”
Nice idea except a sticky ball with tons of debris will not burn up in the atmosphere.
As the outer shell heats up, the heat gets transfered to the core. When enough pressure builds in the core, a massive gas detonation will occur a mile or so above the ground. It will be similar to the Siberian explosion in 1907.
The problem isn’t re-entry, the problem is trying to launch stuff through it. Orbital speeds are really high, a nut can do a lot of damage to a ship when traveling at these speeds.
Why don’t they just add a small retro jet that can push the stuff in to atmosphere when launched. A money making project for a company to send up drones to nudge the stuff down.
Oh gosh.
First, I couldn’t sleep at night because of the impending disaster caused by Global Warming.
Next, I couldn’t sleep at night because of the impending disaster caused by Global Climate Change.
Next, I couldn’t sleep at night because of the racism being spewed by Donald Sterling.
Now, I can’t sleep at night because of the impending disaster that will be caused by space junk.
I am concerned that soon I will be unable to sleep at night because of the lack of potential man-made disasters.
What is a Freeper to do?
I don’t think we’re putting retro jets on what is literally millions of little nuts, bolts, paint chips, and other chunks of crap. The danger isn’t the big things that can be easily seen by eyes and radar, it’s the little Ace Hardware store effluvia that our space missions leave behind. Think of it like highway rocks, only instead of your car doing 75 it’s doing multiples of the speed of sound.
At the end of the video the key issue this congressional committee will have to deal with is - who will be designated to attend a conference in Paris in June?
Next, I couldn’t sleep at night because of the impending disaster caused by Global Climate Change.
Next, I couldn’t sleep at night because of the racism being spewed by Donald Sterling.
Now, I can’t sleep at night because of the impending disaster that will be caused by space junk.
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Thanks for your thoughts & humor...
The first two are proven-bogus impending "disasters"...
The Sterling-NBA flap has used up it's 15 minutes on this news cycle.... Then again (& JMO):
There will be 15 more minutes for this one....
.....When he prefers charges for illegal wiretapping a private conversation...
-- AND successfully sues the NBA et als for defamation of character & interfering with his personal/privately owned business interests.
(He has a constitutional right to be a bigoted idiot and still say what he pleases in private-- & the reputation of his business interests remain protected by civil law)
*********
The Kessler Syndrome is real research with real scientific probabilities
(If I recall correctly... the Cascade Theory was his doctoral thesis)....
--YET--
The "disaster" will take place in orbit -- rendering a lot of spaced-base tech useless...
I guess that's better than lying awake at night wondering if some satellite is going to land in your back yard...
.... OOoorrr....
Put a knot on your punkin'....
Just say'n....
ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND
Don't forget to think about the space flotsam created when the Chicoms destroyed one of their satellites in orbit.
Yep. "The Kessler syndrome". Thanks. I was trying to remember what it was called.
I loved Gravity, BTW. I know it had a few science errors but that's OK. It's entertainment. My only regret after the final credits rolled was not seeing it in the theater.
I’ve read that the ISS is all banged up from the outside from tiny pieces of leftover satellites colliding with it.
TRANSLATION: “We want to give a bunch of your money to some crony-fascists we know who will kick some of it back to us.”
Just put booster rockets on all satellites so when their useful life is over, you can launch them into the Sun and they’ll just burn up. Yep, that will be effective....
I think it highly unlikely that a polymer ball would do that, having a density about twice as great as Styrofoam.
Best bet is to deploy a spaceship with a tractor beam. Scientists have shown such a force is feasible in experiments. Just get Obama on board to fund a project, should only cost 100 trillion or so. Obama loves spending money, should be a cinch to approve this.
Well, DUH!
Unfortunately...
All normal citizens, students, the MSM, politicians and "specialized" "scientists, all share the gift of self-imposed ignorance.
The only concept of the constellation of satellites they know are the graphics regularly on TV and even "Science" channels, which grossly distort the actual scales involved, and resulting "empty" space.
Few are curious enough, intellectually, to actually learn and see the reality beyond the cartoons.
And they all fall prey to the propaganda scaremongers.
Well, our presidential nut is not going nearly that fast, but the damage he's caused is huge...!
Ignorant BS!
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