Watery graves: Should we be ditching big spacecraft over Earth's oceans?

[Admin]

Is dumping space junk over the South Pacific a good idea? Or can we do better?

Watery graves: Should we be ditching big spacecraft over Earth's oceans? : Read more

 

[Catastrophe]

Please correct me if necessary, but I think it is self evident that there is not enough raw material or time to make sufficient volume of junk spacecraft to make the slightest difference to the South Pacific, bearing in mind, also, the time taken compared with the time taken to rust or otherwise decompose.

Might as well worry about the increase in sea level worldwide attributable to such junk.

That said, I am suspicious of any junking process - both its effects and the need for the potential junk in the first place.

Consider the value of the junk whilst useful, and the deleterious consequences - and make your own mind up.

Cat

 

[steve_foston]

I think its a very bad idea to deorbit the ISS into the Pacific Ocean, as well as being yet another pollution of the environment. It is a remarkable historic artefact i.e. the largest structure ever assembled in space. I think that it would be more sensible to undertake a controlled deorbit to the surface of the Moon (I know, I know the cost is prohibitive and it would be a difficult to achieve technically and there is the legal issue of the Outer Space Treaty seeing is as potential pollution there as well) but we could use it as a museum exhibit for future generation of space tourists to visit (after all we are trying to establish permanent bases of the Moon) it will have a 2nd. life. It would also be useful to continue to study the evolution of "life" (moulds, bacteria, etc.) on the ISS to see if they flourishes or otherwise in space. It would provide a continuing scientific project rather than be a polluting object. I just feel that there must be a better way forward than simply dumping the object.