India Loses Rocket and Satellite

India's First Earth Observation Satellite Missing

Today in India, the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization🚀) sent a satellite on a geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle (GSLV) to observe the Indian subcontinent through a massive telescope 🔭on the satellite which would track natural occurrences such as cyclones🌀. It was to be their first Earth Observation Satellite (EOS). The initial stages went well but, unfortunately, the third stage (Cryogenic Upper Stage) misfired due to a technical hitch. What this means is that, by not igniting🔥, there was not enough velocity gained to keep it in orbit. Hence, after only 6 minutes or so they both fell back to earth landing possibly near Thailand. However, we can't be sure where the GSLV -F 10 or the EOS have landed. Both satellite and rocket are missing in action 😪. They cost a lot and last a decade. So this is a heavy blow for India's space programme. As yet there are no definite conclusions as to what went wrong. That will take some time. 

The satellite was going to be geostationary meaning that its orbit would be in line with the Earth 🌍, at around 22,500 miles or 36,000 km above the equator (low orbit). Some suspect that the failure was partly due to disuse. The satellite was delayed due to C19. It should have been launched March 2020.

This is bound to slow up India's space programme and may delay future projects.😪

Space Debris

It yet again raises the issue of space debris. The GSLV was 57.10 metres in height and weighed 416 tonne. Imagine a 12 storey building and we're close to grasping just how enormous this launch vehicle was or, put another way, it was over half the height of the Statue of Liberty. The idea of something this enormous spiralling out of control is of concern. 

Where is it? Where has it landed? How is it deteriorating? How is it impacting the environment? Is it time to think about how the space race is harming the environment on earth and in space? We talk about the climate crisis. What about the ozone damage caused by space flights? Has space exploration rushed ahead at a faster rate than it has been possible to put regulations in place? Is it time to stop and rethink space travel, space exploration, and space launches?

Space Launches Damage Ozone Layer 

NASA space launches cause more damage to the ozone layer than CFC products in an entire year. Yet, the latter are subject to strict regulations even when the products are medically necessary e.g. treating asthma whereas NASA has no such restrictions. They are unregulated. We are rightly concerned 😟 about petrol fuels emitted from cars but don't worry about rocket fuel. Chlorine gas is emitted from rocket fuel which, when it combines with oxygen, creates chlorine oxides which damage the ozone!

And there are further problems. For example, we are exposed to more UV rays because the chemicals in rocket fuel damage the upper atmosphere ozone. Exposure to excessive UV rays can cause cancer and eye problems. So space exploration could be damaging our health. There's no research into how space launches damage the ozone layer, and stratosphere which impacts our weather 🌧🌪🌩🌀⚡☔on earth. And there's no research on how toxic fuels from rockets affect the atmosphere. Although not all rockets use the same substances. For instance, in the past, some just turned into water vapour which has a less drastic environmental impact although it's still a greenhouse gas. The most damaging, however, are alumina and soot. The latter is used by SpaceX and Russia and is arguably the worst of the two because it remains in the stratosphere for several years.

Declutter Space

I find space launches exciting and enjoy watching them. But I am concerned about the impact they are having on the ozone, the stratosphere and the environment in general. We need research on this! It could severely disrupt life on earth 🌎 which is also true with respect to defunct satellites. Space junk is a problem. We don't have weekly bin collections🗑 of space debris🛰🚀. There has to be a way to declutter space.🌘🌠

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