Terrifying 'Kessler syndrome' could transform from dreaded theory to grim reality with no internet, phones, or air travel
The reality of 'Kessler syndrome' might be even scarier than you thought.
Forget paying your next month's rent, the upcoming Presidential inauguration, or Elon Musk buying Liverpool F.C., there's one more thing to be worried about thanks to the resurgence of 'Kessler syndrome'.
The idea is that the human race could soon be trapped by its own 'space junk', leading to a tech-filled society that's unable to make the most of its mobile phones, Wi-Fi, or even air travel. There are plenty of theories that humanity will lead to its own demise, but in terms of Kessler syndrome, scientists warn it's closer than ever to becoming a reality.
Kessler syndrome is a hypothetical scenario that was put forward by NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler in 1978. Kessler predicted what would happen when the density of objects in low Earth orbit reaches a critical level - effectively imprisoning us in our own blanket of space junk.
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Earth's low Earth orbit (LEO) is what we use for space travel and satellites, but it's becoming increasingly limited.
Ranging up to 1,200 miles from Earth, LEO is surprisingly packed with important satellites and is even the current home of the International Space Station until it's destroyed.
In a 2023 study surrounding Kessler syndrome, Frontiers wrote: "This syndrome predicts an escalating space debris population that leads to an increased likelihood of collisions and further debris creation, resulting in a cascade of detrimental impacts."
"Such collisions, even minor ones, can set off a catastrophic chain reaction, jeopardizing all existing satellites and filling orbits with high-velocity debris.
“Accessing space orbits would become immensely challenging, and the prospect of exploring outer space might be compromised."
We've recently seen the impact of our journeys to the stars, with a 1102 lbs metal separation ring from a rocket crashing in a Kenya village.
There are tens of thousands of identifiable pieces of shrapnel circling Earth, but there could be millions more than can’t be tracked or even seen. More than just crashing to Earth, these objects can interfere with astronauts and the satellite-based technologies that we rely on for the likes of the internet and phone signals.
Speaking to CNN, Dr. Vishnu Reddy, a professor of planetary sciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson, warned: "The number of objects in space that we have launched in the last four years has increased exponentially.
"So we are heading towards the situation that we are always dreading."
The first major collision between LEO objects apparently occurred in 1957 and has been getting significantly worse in recent years.
Speaking in December 2024, the University of Colorado's Atmospheric and Space Physics laboratory's Dan Baker suggested things are even more grim: "Unless we do something, we are in imminent danger of making a whole part of our Earth environment unusable. We have to get serious about this."
In the scenario of Kessler syndrome, space debris colliding with space debris only creates more space debris. It's something of a vicious cycle that we're told needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.
Even though the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decreed that all new geostationary satellites have to include systems that will take them out of LEO and into a graveyard orbit when they reach the end of their life in 2022, there are genuine concerns that Kessler syndrome has gone too far.