The risk of flights being hit by space junk is still small, but it’s growing.
About three pieces of old space equipment—used rockets and defunct satellites—fall into Earth’s atmosphere every day, according to estimates by the European Space Agency. By the mid-2030s, there may be dozens thanks to the rise of megaconstellations in orbit.
So far, space debris hasn’t injured anybody—in the air or on the ground. But multiple close calls have been reported in recent years.
But some estimates have the risk of a single human death or injury caused by a space debris strike on the ground at around 10% per year by 2035. That would mean a better than even chance that someone on Earth would be hit by space junk about every decade. Find out more.
—Tereza Pultarova
This story is part of MIT Technology Review Explains: our series untangling the complex, messy world of technology to help you understand what’s coming next. You can read the rest of the series here.
Chatbots are surprisingly effective at debunking conspiracy theories
—Thomas Costello, Gordon Pennycook & David Rand
Many people believe that you can’t talk conspiracists out of their beliefs.
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