Space junk could destroy satellites, hurt economies | AFP

There are an estimated 170 million pieces of so-called "space junk"—left behind after missions that can be as big as spent rocket stages or as small as paint flakes — in orbit alongside some US$700 billion of space infrastructure

May 31, 2017 (AFP) -- The growing amount of fast-moving space debris orbiting the Earth could lead to catastrophic collisions with satellites, hurting economies, researchers warned Wednesday ahead of a summit to coordinate efforts to remove the junk.

There are an estimated 170 million pieces of so-called "space junk"—left behind after missions that can be as big as spent rocket stages or as small as paint flakes—in orbit alongside some US$700 billion of space infrastructure.

But only 22,000 are tracked, and with the fragments able to travel at speeds above 27,000kmh (16,777 mph), even tiny pieces could seriously damage or destroy satellites.

"The space junk problem has been getting worse every year," Ben Greene, head of Australia's Space Environment Research Centre which is hosting the two-day conference of international space environment scientists in Canberra, told AFP.

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