Earth Will Have Rings Like Saturn Soon, But They'll Be Made Out Of Trash
Earth is about to get its own Saturn-like rings, if a scientist is to be believed. The only catch? Those rings will essentially be made out of trash.
Space exploration initiatives have caused a surge in the number of satellites and probes that remain in Earth's orbit, many even after they've outlived their purpose. Like-all-things human, nobody thought that clutter in space would become a problem.
The debris that now orbits Earth is going to take on the visual character of rings, University of Utah professor Jake Abbott told The Salt Lake Tribune recently.
Rings made from junk
"Earth is on course to have its own rings," he said while adding that "they'll just be made of junk."
This is bad news, because space debris and clutter in space is already causing problems for functional satellites and future probes alike. According to the European Space Agency, there are currently 170 million pieces of space debris in orbit.
All of these pieces are larger than one millimeter. About 670,000 of these are larger than half an inch.
Also read:?How NASA's Asteroid-Deflecting DART Mission Could Save Life On Earth One Day
As space exploration becomes a largely privatised endeavour, more launches and more probes are expected to become a reality. The danger is extreme, especially if satellites that want to aid connectivity on Earth end up colliding into each other. In such an event, not only connectivity disruptions could plague Earth, but more pieces of space junk would appear.
For Abbott, using magnets is a novel way to scoop out space junk. In an article published in Nature, Abbott explained how attaching magnets to a robotic arm to creat electrical currents called eddies could help control and slow down space junk.
Also read:?A Giant Hole In The Sun Is Throwing Out Charged Particles Towards Earth
In conversation with The Salt Lake Tribune, he called it the "world's first tractor beam."
What do you think about Earth's potential ring of trash? Let us know in the comments below.?For more in the world of science and tech, keep reading Indiatimes.com.
Citation
LaVecchia, V. (2021, November 13). Space pollution may soon give Earth its own rings. Has Utah team found a solution in magnets? The Salt Lake Tribune.?
