Let's clean up the space junk orbiting Earth | Natalie Panek

翻译人员: Junyi Sha 校对人员: Lipeng Chen

Our lives depend

我们的生活是依附于

on a world we can't see.

一个我们看不到的世界上的。

Think about your week so far.

想想你最近一周的生活。

Have you watched TV, used GPS,

你看过电视，使用过GPS，

checked the weather or even ate a meal?

查看过天气，或是吃过饭吗？

These many things that enable our daily lives

这些让我们的日常生活 成为可能的东西

rely either directly or indirectly

都直接或间接的依赖于

on satellites.

我们的卫星。

当我们理所当然的享受着

And while we often take for granted

卫星为我们提供的服务的时候，

the services that satellites provide us,

the satellites themselves deserve our attention

它们本身也值得我们关注，

as they are leaving a lasting mark

因为它们正在自己所工作的领域中

on the space they occupy.

留下长久的印记。

People around the world rely on satellite infrastructure every day

世界各地的人们 都依赖于卫星设施，

for information, entertainment and to communicate.

获取每天需要的资讯， 娱乐和通讯服务。

There's agricultural and environmental monitoring,

包括农业与环境监测，

Internet connectivity, navigation.

互联网连接和导航。

Satellites even play a role

卫星甚至在我们的金融

与能源市场里也发挥着一定的作用。

in the operation of our financial and energy markets.

但是我们日夜依赖的

But these satellites that we rely on

这些卫星，

day in and day out

have a finite life.

它们的寿命是有限的。

They might run out of propellant,

它们可能耗尽推进燃料，

they could malfunction,

它们可能发生故障，

or they may just naturally reach the end of their mission life.

或者只是达到了使用寿命。

At this point, these satellites effectively become space junk,

到了那时，这些卫星 就正式变为了太空垃圾，

cluttering the orbital environment.

杂乱的排布在轨道环境里。

So imagine you're driving down the highway on a beautiful, sunny day

想象一下，在一个美丽的， 阳光明媚的日子里，

out running errands.

你正在公路上驾车，外出办事。

You've got your music cranked,

你打开了音乐，

your windows rolled down,

摇下了车窗，

凉爽的微风拂过发梢。

with the cool breeze blowing through your hair.

Feels nice, right?

是不是感觉很棒？

Everything is going smoothly

一切都是那么顺利，

直到你的车开始在公路正中间

until suddenly your car stutters and stalls

right in the middle of the highway.

渐渐的熄火。

这时你别无选择，只能将你的汽车

So now you have no choice but to abandon your car

where it is on the highway.

抛弃在公路上。

如果运气够好，

Maybe you were lucky enough

to be able to move it out of the way and into a shoulder lane

你能将它移动到肩侧紧急停车区，

这样它就不会影响其他交通。

so that it's out of the way of other traffic.

A couple of hours ago,

几个小时之前，

your car was a useful machine that you relied on in your everyday life.

你的车还是你日常生活中 必不可少的工具。

现在，它只是一堆占用了宝贵的

Now, it's a useless hunk of metal

taking up space in a valuable transportation network.

公路资源的废铜烂铁。

And imagine international roadways all cluttered with broken down vehicles

再想象一下世界各地的公路 都被废弃的车辆充斥着，

阻碍了其他的交通线路。

that are just getting in the way of other traffic.

而且如果发生了交通事故，

And imagine the debris that would be strewn everywhere

if a collision actually happened,

残渣将散落得到处都是，

thousands of smaller pieces of debris

成千上万的小碎片

becoming new obstacles.

又将变成新的障碍物。

This is the paradigm of the satellite industry.

这就是卫星产业的运作方式。

Satellites that are no longer working

停工的卫星

are often left to deorbit over many, many years,

往往被长年脱轨弃置，

or only moved out of the way as a temporary solution.

或者是移出轨道， 作为一种暂时性的解决方案。

And there are no international laws in space

而没有任何的国际空间法

去强制我们清理废弃的太空垃圾。

to enforce us to clean up after ourselves.

So the world's first satellite, Sputnik I,

世界上的第一颗卫星， 史普尼克一号

was launched in 1957,

发射于1957年，

and in that year, there were only a total of three launch attempts.

在那一年中，一共只有 三次发射尝试。

Decades later and dozens of countries from all around the world

几十年之后，世界各地的许许多多国家

已经发射了成千上万的卫星 进入轨道运行，

have launched thousands of more satellites into orbit,

and the frequency of launches is only going to increase in the future,

而且未来的发射频率只增不减，

especially if you consider things like the possibility

特别是你要想到，未来可能会发射

of 900-plus satellite constellations being launched.

由九百多颗卫星组成的 卫星群这样的东西。

Now, we send satellites to different orbits

当下，我们主要根据卫星不同的用途，

depending on what they're needed for.

把它们发射到不同的轨道。

One of the most common places we send satellites

我们将卫星送入的最常见位置

就是近地轨道，

is the low Earth orbit,

possibly to image the surface of Earth

大概在距地表2000千米的位置

at up to about 2,000 kilometers altitude.

捕捉地表影像。

Satellites there are naturally buffeted by Earth's atmosphere,

由于大气层的存在， 卫星会收到自然冲击，

so their orbits naturally decay,

所以它们的轨道会自然萎缩，

最终将燃料殆尽，

and they'll eventually burn up,

probably within a couple of decades.

大概需要个几十年吧。

另一个常见的发射卫星的位置

Another common place we send satellites

is the geostationary orbit

是地球同步轨道，

at about 35,000 kilometers altitude.

大概在距地表35000千米的位置。

Satellites there remain in the same place above Earth as the Earth rotates,

那儿的卫星在地球运动时 与地球保持相对静止，

which enables things like communications or television broadcast, for example.

这就使通讯，或是电视广播 之类的事物成为可能。

Satellites in high orbits like these could remain there for centuries.

在那样高度的卫星可以停留几个世纪。

And then there's the orbit coined "the graveyard,"

还有就是被称作“墓地”的轨道，

不详的垃圾或是“弃置轨道”，

the ominous junk or disposal orbits,

where some satellites are intentionally placed

即很多卫星在生命周期结束时

at the end of their life

被设定的放置点，

so that they're out of the way of common operational orbits.

这样它们就不会影响 基本的运行轨道了。

Of the nearly 7,000 satellites launched since the late 1950s,

自从上世纪50年代开始， 发射过的将近7000颗卫星中，

only about one in seven is currently operational,

只有大约七分之一仍在服役中，

and in addition to the satellites that are no longer working,

除了那些停工的卫星之外，

there's also hundreds of thousands of marble-sized debris

还有成千上万的鹅卵石大小的碎片，

and millions of paint chip-sized debris

和无数芯片大小的有色残渣

that are also orbiting around the Earth.

正环绕着地球。

Space debris is a major risk to space missions,

太空残渣是太空任务的主要风险，

but also to the satellites that we rely on each and every day.

但是对于我们每天依赖的 那些卫星来说也一样。

Now, because space debris and junk has become increasingly worrisome,

现在，因为太空残骸和垃圾 正越来越令人担忧，

there have been some national and international efforts

已经有一些国家性和国际性的工作，

to develop technical standards

正致力于发展某种技术标准

来限制额外碎片的产生。

to help us limit the generation of additional debris.

So for example, there are recommendations

举个例子，有建议提出

for those low-Earth orbiting spacecraft

要求近地轨道航天器

to be made to deorbit in under 25 years,

在25年之内脱轨自燃，

but that's still a really long time,

但那仍然要花费很长一段时间，

especially if a satellite hasn't been working for years.

特别是对于已经停工 很多年的卫星来说。

There's also mandates for those dead geostationary spacecraft

也有一些要求提出把那些 报废的地球同步卫星

to be moved into a graveyard orbit.

移动到一个墓地轨道中去。

But neither of these guidelines is binding under international law,

但是，这些准则都是 不受国际法约束的，

and the understanding is that they will be implemented through national mechanisms.

而现在大家的理解是， 这些制度都将由国家管控实施。

这些准则也不是长期性的，

These guidelines are also not long-term,

they're not proactive,

缺乏积极推动力，

nor do they address the debris that's already up there.

它们也没有解决那些现存的残骸。

They're only in place to limit the future creation of debris.

而只是用于限制未来的残骸产生。

Space junk is no one's responsibility.

太空垃圾不是任何人的责任。

Now, Mount Everest is actually an interesting comparison

事实上，珠穆朗玛峰可以为 我们理解人与环境互动

of a new approach to how we interact with our environments,

提供一个有趣的对比，

as it's often given the dubious honor

它经常被给予一个 有些名不副实的称号，

世界上最高的垃圾场。

of being the world's highest garbage dump.

在对于世界最高峰的 第一次探索的数十年之后，

Decades after the first conquest of the world's highest peak,

tons of rubbish left behind by climbers

被登山者留下的成吨的垃圾

has started to raise concern,

开始引起了人们的关注，

and you may have read in the news that there's speculation

也许你已经在新闻中读到，有推测称

that Nepal will crack down on mountaineers

尼泊尔将用刑法和法律规范

with stricter enforcement of penalties and legal obligations.

打击那些登山者。

The goal, of course, is to persuade climbers

目的，显而易见的 是为了劝告登山者

清理好自己的垃圾，

to clean up after themselves,

so maybe local not-for-profits will pay climbers who bring down extra waste,

所以，也许一些非营利性机构就会 花钱雇一些登山者带额外的垃圾下山，

或是考察团会组织自愿清理之旅。

or expeditions might organize voluntary cleanup trips.

但是，还是有很多登山者认为

And yet still many climbers feel

that independent groups should police themselves.

独立团体应该进行自我监管。

没有什么简单的答案，

There's no simple or easy answer,

and even well-intentioned efforts at conservation

即使是环保的善意举措

也经常会出现问题。

often run into problems.

But that doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything in our power

但这并不意味着， 我们就不应该尽己所能，

to protect the environments that we rely and depend on,

去保护我们赖以生存的环境，

and like Everest, the remote location and inadequate infrastructure

就像是珠峰一样，偏远的 地理位置和不足的

of the orbital environment

轨道基础设施

make waste disposal a challenging problem.

导致废物处理成为了 极具挑战性的问题。

But we simply cannot reach new heights

但是我们不能仅仅是达到一个新高度，

and create an even higher garbage dump,

然后建立一个更高的， 位于这个世界之外的，

one that's out of this world.

又一个垃圾场。

The reality of space

事实上，

is that if a component on a satellite breaks down,

如果某个卫星的一个部分破裂了，

那就真的只有十分有限的 修复选择余地了，

there really are limited opportunities for repairs,

而且也意味着高昂的开销。

and only at great cost.

But what if we were smarter about how we designed satellites?

但是如果我们能够在设计卫星 这件事上做的更聪明一点儿呢？

What if all satellites,

如果所有的卫星，

regardless of what country they were built in,

不管是哪个国家建造的，

had to be standardized in some way

都能够在一定程度上

for recycling, servicing

实现回收，使用，或是

or active deorbiting?

积极弃轨的标准呢？

What if there actually were international laws with teeth

如果说有国际法能够真正有效，

让卫星生命周期一结束 就强制报废，

that enforced end-of-life disposal of satellites

instead of moving them out of the way

而不是采用临时措施，

仅仅把它们移出工作轨道呢？

as a temporary solution?

Or maybe satellite manufacturers need to be charged a deposit

或许卫星制造商们 应该在发射卫星时

to even launch a satellite into orbit,

被收取一份押金，

and that deposit would only be returned

而只有当卫星被恰当处理，

if the satellite was disposed of properly

或是定量的碎片被清理，

or if they cleaned up some quota of debris.

或是当卫星拥有能够帮助自身

Or maybe a satellite needs to have technology on board

加速脱轨的技术时，

押金才会被返还。

to help accelerate deorbit.

There are some encouraging signs.

已经有一些乐观的迹象了。

举个例子，英国2014年 发射的TechDemoSat-1

The UK's TechDemoSat-1, launched in 2014, for example,

was designed for end-of-life disposal

就是被设计成在生命周期结束时

via a small drag sail.

能通过一个小拖拽帆被处理的。

This works for the satellite because it's small,

但是这种可行性是基于它很小，

but satellites that are higher or in larger orbits

但是更大的卫星，或是 在更高轨道运行的卫星，

or are larger altogether, like the size of school buses,

或是既更大，又更高的， 像是公交大小的卫星来说，

will require other disposal options.

就需要别的处理方案了。

So maybe you get into things like high-powered lasers

也许你会去想那些 例如高功率激光器

or tugging using nets or tethers,

或是用网和绳索牵引，

这些短期里看似疯狂的观点。

as crazy as those sound in the short term.

还有一个真的很炫酷的想法，

And then one really cool possibility

就是关于轨道拖车和空间力学的。

is the idea of orbital tow trucks or space mechanics.

Imagine if a robotic arm

想象一个空间牵引车上的

on some sort of space tow truck

一个机械手臂，

could fix the broken components on a satellite,

能够修复卫星上坏损的部分，

making them usable again.

让它们重新运作。

Or what if that very same robotic arm

或者说同一个机械手臂，

could refuel the propellant tank on a spacecraft

可以重新充满飞行器上的

that relies on chemical propulsion

依赖化学推进的燃料仓，

just like you or I would refuel the fuel tanks on our cars?

就像是你我给车加满油一样？

Robotic repair and maintenance

机械修复和维护

could extend the lives of hundreds of satellites orbiting around the Earth.

可以为绕地卫星延续数百年的生命。

Whatever the disposal or cleanup options we come up with,

不管我们想出怎样的弃置处理方案，

it's clearly not just a technical problem.

它都不仅仅只是技术层面的问题。

There's also complex space laws and politics that we have to sort out.

还有复杂的空间法和政治问题， 要等我们去理清楚。

Simply put, we haven't found a way to use space sustainably yet.

简单的说，就是我们还没有 找到可持续利用太空的方案。

Exploring, innovating to change the way we live and work

探索，创新，改变我们生活， 工作的方式，

are what we as humans do,

是我们作为人类的职责，

and in space exploration,

在太空探索中，

我们几乎是超越了地球的界线。

we're literally moving beyond the boundaries of Earth.

But as we push thresholds in the name of learning and innovation,

但是当我们以学习和 创新的名义推动边界，

我们必须要铭记我们 对于环境的责任永远不会消失。

we must remember that accountability for our environments never goes away.

现在，近地和同步轨道 已经是毋庸置疑的拥挤了，

There is without doubt congestion in the low Earth and geostationary orbits,

and we cannot keep launching new satellites

我们不能只是一味的发射新卫星

去代替那些破损的，老化的，

to replace the ones that have broken down

without doing something about them first,

而事先也不处理那些陈旧的卫星。

just like we would never leave a broken down car

就像是我们永远都不能 把一辆破损的车

in the middle of the highway.

留在公路中间一样。

Next time you use your phone,

下回你使用手机

check the weather or use your GPS,

查看天气或是使用GPS的时候，

think about the satellite technologies that make those activities possible.

想一想让这一切成为现实的卫星技术。

但同时也想想那些卫星会对于

But also think about the very impact

我们的地球周遭环境 带来的巨大冲击，

that the satellites have on the environment surrounding Earth,

and help spread the message that together we must reduce our impact.

帮助传递这样一个讯息：我们必须 合力减少对环境造成的影响效应。

地球轨道美得让人窒息，

Earth orbit is breathtakingly beautiful

and our gateway to exploration.

它也是我们宇宙探索的大门。

It's up to us to keep it that way.

能否让这一切永恒， 决定权在于我们自己。

谢谢。

Thank you.

(Applause)

（掌声）