Space Trash Signs: Navigating the Consequences of Space Pollution

Created by Serviceplan Innovation

As humanity's ventures into space expand, so does the issue of orbital debris. Currently, Earth's orbit is cluttered with more than 160 million fragments of human-made space junk. These objects hurtle through space at speeds of up to 15 kilometers per second, posing substantial risks. Even a small fragment has the potential to inflict considerable damage. The proliferation of space pollution jeopardizes vital space infrastructure essential for terrestrial life, including telecommunications, navigation systems, disaster response capabilities, environmental monitoring, agricultural practices, financial services, and beyond.

The Space Trash Signs initiative, set to coincide with the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS) session in June 2024, aims to raise public awareness about space pollution. Supported by aerospace firms, space agencies, scientists, universities, activists, museums, and media worldwide, the initiative proposes the creation of unique astronomical constellations composed of space debris. Each "trash sign" symbolizes a distinct impact of space pollution. For instance, "The Broken Compass" signifies the loss of navigation services like GPS, affecting 6.5 billion individuals and rendering modern aviation infeasible. "The Great 404" represents limited internet access, potentially isolating communities reliant on satellite internet. Lastly, "The Lost Harvest" denotes the absence of vital environmental data collected by satellites, potentially leading to famine and environmental catastrophes across 509.6 million square kilometers of land.

The Space Trash Signs initiative partnered with Privateer, a space observation company co-founded by Steve Wozniak. Privateer conducts extensive monitoring of Earth's orbit, gathering over 800 million data points daily on various space objects, including their position, speed, country of origin, parent object, size, shape, and estimated removal cost. Using an AI model, these data points were analyzed to identify the constellations based on the shape, origin, and location of the debris. For instance, "The Lost Harvest" was situated above the Amazon rainforest, known as the world's most biodiverse region. "The Great 404" was positioned over Burundi in Central Africa, a nation with a notably low number of internet users. "The Broken Compass" was identified above the Bermuda Triangle in the North Atlantic.

The initiative reaches a global audience through partnerships with over 700 planetariums and integration into popular AR star-gazing apps. Additionally, a digital campaign utilizes staged website errors, failed parcel tracking, and missing forecasts to raise awareness about space pollution, directing users to the Space Trash Signs website for further exploration and action, including signing the Zero Debris Charter facilitated by the European Space Agency.

STS garners support from various organizations worldwide, including the European Space Agency, Privateer, Astroscale, aerospace tech groups like WARR and OKAPI:Orbits, Astronomers Without Borders, and the Deutsches Museum in Munich.

Space Trash Signs: Navigating the Consequences of Space Pollution

The Space Trash Signs initiative, set to coincide with the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS) session in June 2024, aims to raise public awareness about space pollution. Supported by aerospace firms, space agencies, scientists, universities, activists, museums, and media worldwide, the initiative proposes the creation of unique astronomical constellations composed of space debris. Each "trash sign" symbolizes a distinct impact of space pollution. For instance, "The Broken Compass" signifies the loss of navigation services like GPS, affecting 6.5 billion individuals and rendering modern aviation infeasible. "The Great 404" represents limited internet access, potentially isolating communities reliant on satellite internet. Lastly, "The Lost Harvest" denotes the absence of vital environmental data collected by satellites, potentially leading to famine and environmental catastrophes across 509.6 million square kilometers of land.

The Space Trash Signs initiative partnered with Privateer, a space observation company co-founded by Steve Wozniak. Privateer conducts extensive monitoring of Earth's orbit, gathering over 800 million data points daily on various space objects, including their position, speed, country of origin, parent object, size, shape, and estimated removal cost. Using an AI model, these data points were analyzed to identify the constellations based on the shape, origin, and location of the debris. For instance, "The Lost Harvest" was situated above the Amazon rainforest, known as the world's most biodiverse region. "The Great 404" was positioned over Burundi in Central Africa, a nation with a notably low number of internet users. "The Broken Compass" was identified above the Bermuda Triangle in the North Atlantic.

The initiative reaches a global audience through partnerships with over 700 planetariums and integration into popular AR star-gazing apps. Additionally, a digital campaign utilizes staged website errors, failed parcel tracking, and missing forecasts to raise awareness about space pollution, directing users to the Space Trash Signs website for further exploration and action, including signing the Zero Debris Charter facilitated by the European Space Agency.

STS garners support from various organizations worldwide, including the European Space Agency, Privateer, Astroscale, aerospace tech groups like WARR and OKAPI:Orbits, Astronomers Without Borders, and the Deutsches Museum in Munich.

Space Trash Signs was created by Serviceplan Innovation together with Moby Digg, Eat, Sleep + Design, Jürgen Branz, kimera, and Non Zero. Serviceplan Innovation (SP.IO) is the R&D unit of Serviceplan Group, one of the world’s leading independent com- munication agencies with offices around the world. Moby Digg is a design agency that develops global brands. Eat, Sleep + Design is an award-winning design studio based in Berlin. Jürgen Branz is a sound designer and composer based in Augsburg. kimera is an independent type foundry based in Munich. Non Zero is a CGI and design studio based in India.