Eiffel Tower’s worth of dead satellites’ ash may impact Earth’s magnetic field

Solter discovered that as dead satellites burn up, they emit plasma and pulverize into metallic dust. During the explosive re-entry, the dust spreads through the ionosphere, the ionized outermost layer of Earth’s atmosphere. 

This process creates a layer of plasma dust in the upper atmosphere, which may impact our magnetosphere – the region controlled by the planet’s magnetic field. 

“500,000 to 1 million satellites are expected in the next decades, primarily to build internet constellations called megaconstellations. These megaconstellations are disposable and will constantly re-enter and be replaced, hence creating a layer of conductive particulate,” author Solter-Hunt mentioned in the study paper. 

Generation of plasma dust

The author warns that increased metallic dust in our upper atmosphere may impact our planet’s plasma environment. 

The plasma dust results from the interaction between two major components: the ionized gas that makes up Earth’s upper atmosphere and the microscopic ash particles that remain after meteors burn up when they approach the planet’s atmosphere. 

Defunct satellites are also known to contribute to the plasma dust.

As these dead satellites re-enter the atmosphere, they disintegrate, further contributing to microscopic artificial particle production.

“Satellite reentries may create a global band of plasma dust with a charge higher than the rest of the magnetosphere,” mentioned the study.

According to the study, over 50 tons of space rocks evaporate in Earth’s atmosphere daily, generating roughly 450 kg of charged dust. 

Furthermore, Solter-Hunt’s calculations reveal that the debris from re-entering satellites dwarfs the amount of charged dust left behind by space rocks.

Satellite launches projected to increase

As many as 10,000 satellites operate in low-Earth orbit, most of which are internet constellations like Starlink. The number will likely rise to one million over the next three to four decades.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, one aging satellite is known to meet its end in Earth’s atmosphere daily. However, with the rapid deployment of a fleet of satellites, the figure is expected to increase exponentially in the coming years. 

“Upon investigating just how much dust in the form of satellite and rocket debris the space industry has dumped into the ionosphere during re-entry, I was alarmed to find that it is currently multiple Eiffel Tower’s worth of metallic ash,” Solter-Hunt wrote in the Guardian opinion piece. 

“Our ozone is mere pennies thick, and soon we will be putting at least an Eiffel Tower’s worth of metallic ash a year directly into the ionosphere. And all of that will stay there, indefinitely,” she added. 

In worst-case circumstances, a massive buildup of conductive particles might trap or deflect all or some of Earth’s life-supporting magnetic field. 

Some scientists are skeptical of the paper’s findings, but all agree that the growing deployment of satellites into low-earth orbit must be addressed.

The study can be accessed here.