Soviet-era Meteor 2-7 fragments scatter over Western Australia, raising risks
A Soviet-era weather satellite, Meteor 2-7, fragmented in low Earth orbit recently, scattering tens of fragments over Western Australia.
This isn't a one-off: similar breakups happened with a US spy satellite and a Chinese rocket just months before.
All this debris is making space more crowded and risky for everyone.
ESA tracks 44,000+ debris pieces
Space junk is piling up fast: the European Space Agency now tracks more than 44,000 pieces of debris, up from 16,000 in 2005.
Even tiny fragments can cause major damage since they travel super fast.
Satellites like SpaceX's Starlink are dodging debris constantly. Each one had to move out of the way more than 40 times in the past year alone.
With more satellites launching all the time, experts say it's time for better ways to keep space safe for future missions.