11-14-2012, 06:30 PM
Space is big. Even "Earth Orbit" space. Really really big.
Many of the objects are small (a small bolt, etc).
They're all moving very fast.
It's a big mess. "Doing something about it" is not particularly easy. So far, no one has come up with a realistic (sub-multi-trillion-dollar) plan that has any hope of "doing something about it".
Best ideas involve a very powerful laser or particle beam to "brake" debris so that its decay into lower orbits is accelerated... even that would take a century to make much difference.
Many of the objects are small (a small bolt, etc).
They're all moving very fast.
It's a big mess. "Doing something about it" is not particularly easy. So far, no one has come up with a realistic (sub-multi-trillion-dollar) plan that has any hope of "doing something about it".
Best ideas involve a very powerful laser or particle beam to "brake" debris so that its decay into lower orbits is accelerated... even that would take a century to make much difference.