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

譯者: Qiao Ma 審譯者: Debra Liu

Our lives depend

我們的生活依賴著

on a world we can't see.

一個我們看不見的世界。

Think about your week so far.

回想一下這一周 到目前為止的生活，

Have you watched TV, used GPS,

是否曾看過電視， 使用過定位系統，

checked the weather or even ate a meal?

查詢過天氣預報或甚至吃過飯?

These many things that enable our daily lives

這些我們日常生活中的事物

rely either directly or indirectly

都直接或間接地依賴著

on satellites.

衛星設施。

而我們往往認為

And while we often take for granted

這些衛星服務是應當的，

the services that satellites provide us,

the satellites themselves deserve our attention

這些設施更值得我們去注意。

as they are leaving a lasting mark

因為它們正對它們所在的太空 留下持久的影響。

on the space they occupy.

People around the world rely on satellite infrastructure every day

世界各地的人 每天都依靠著衛星設施，

for information, entertainment and to communicate.

獲取信息、娛樂和溝通交流。

There's agricultural and environmental monitoring,

還有農業和環境監測，

Internet connectivity, navigation.

網際網路連接，導航。

Satellites even play a role

衛星甚至在

我們的財務和能源市場運作中 佔據一席之地。

in the operation of our financial and energy markets.

但是我們每天都依賴著的這些衛星，

But these satellites that we rely on

day in and day out

have a finite life.

它們的壽命是有限的。

They might run out of propellant,

它們可能用完助推燃料，

they could malfunction,

它們可能會出現故障，

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

或者它們可能只是 到達了它們的使用壽命。

At this point, these satellites effectively become space junk,

這個時候，這些衛星 會成為太空垃圾，

cluttering the orbital environment.

雜亂地存在於軌道環境中。

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

設想一下，一個美好的晴天 你開著車在高速路上行駛，

out running errands.

You've got your music cranked,

你播著音樂，

your windows rolled down,

搖下車窗，

涼爽的微風在你的髮間吹過。

with the cool breeze blowing through your hair.

Feels nice, right?

感覺很好，對吧?

Everything is going smoothly

一切都進行得很順利，

直到突然間， 在高速公路的正中間

until suddenly your car stutters and stalls

right in the middle of the highway.

你的汽車壞了。

現在你別無選擇 只能將它留在高速公路上。

So now you have no choice but to abandon your car

where it is on the highway.

Maybe you were lucky enough

或許你很幸運的

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

能夠將它移到路肩上，

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

這樣不會阻礙交通，

A couple of hours ago,

幾個小時之前，

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

你的車還是你每天都依賴的 交通工具。

現在，它只是一堆無用的金屬，

Now, it's a useless hunk of metal

taking up space in a valuable transportation network.

佔用著寶貴的交通網絡的空間。

And imagine international roadways all cluttered with broken down vehicles

試想一下，在國際公路上 亂停著許多故障車輛，

這只是阻礙了交通。

that are just getting in the way of other traffic.

並設想一下， 如果有交通事故發生，

And imagine the debris that would be strewn everywhere

if a collision actually happened,

碰撞之後四處散落的碎片。

thousands of smaller pieces of debris

成千上萬的小碎片

becoming new obstacles.

將成為新的障礙。

This is the paradigm of the satellite industry.

這是衛星行業的一個範例。

Satellites that are no longer working

那些不再被使用的衛星，

are often left to deorbit over many, many years,

往往被長久地遺留在軌道上，

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

或者僅僅被移到一旁 作為臨時解決方案。

And there are no international laws in space

而且，在太空中沒有國際法律

來強制我們去清理它們。

to enforce us to clean up after ourselves.

So the world's first satellite, Sputnik I,

世界上第一個衛星 史普尼克 1 號

was launched in 1957,

於 1957 年發射。

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

那一年， 一共只有三次發射嘗試。

Decades later and dozens of countries from all around the world

數十年後，世界上許多國家

已經將更多的衛星推送上軌道。

have launched thousands of more satellites into orbit,

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

在未來，衛星發射 只會越來越頻繁，

especially if you consider things like the possibility

尤其是，如果你考慮到

of 900-plus satellite constellations being launched.

發射 900 多顆衛星 成為一個衛星網是可行的。

Now, we send satellites to different orbits

現在，我們會根據衛星的用途

depending on what they're needed for.

將它們送至不同的軌道。

One of the most common places we send satellites

我們發送衛星最常見的地方

是近地球軌道，

is the low Earth orbit,

possibly to image the surface of Earth

衛星在高度 2000 公里以內 拍攝地球表面圖像。

at up to about 2,000 kilometers altitude.

Satellites there are naturally buffeted by Earth's atmosphere,

在那裡的衛星會受到 地球大氣的阻礙，

so their orbits naturally decay,

所以他們的運行高度會不斷降低，

最終會燃燒殆盡，

and they'll eventually burn up,

probably within a couple of decades.

整個過程大約是幾十年。

Another common place we send satellites

另一個我們常將衛星發送去的地方是

is the geostationary orbit

地球靜止軌道，

at about 35,000 kilometers altitude.

高度大約在 35,000 公里。

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

在那裡衛星會與地球同步運轉，

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

這使得諸如通信 或者電視廣播之類的事情成為可能。

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

衛星在那種高軌道可以停留數百年。

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

除此之外， 還有被成為「墳場」的軌道，

用於堆放太空垃圾的軌道。

the ominous junk or disposal orbits,

where some satellites are intentionally placed

在那裡會被蓄意放置一些 到達使用壽命的衛星，

at the end of their life

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

而將軌道空出來 讓那些現用的衛星運行。

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

自 1950 年代末期， 已經發射了將近 7000 個衛星，

only about one in seven is currently operational,

只有七分之一左右仍在運作。

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

並且除了那些不再運作的衛星之外，

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

還有成千上萬的彈珠大小的碎屑，

and millions of paint chip-sized debris

和數百萬的色卡大小的碎片，

that are also orbiting around the Earth.

圍繞著地球旋轉。

Space debris is a major risk to space missions,

太空碎片是太空任務的主要威脅，

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

同樣也是我們每日依賴的 衛星的主要威脅。

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

如今，因為太空碎片和垃圾 已讓人越來越擔憂，

there have been some national and international efforts

有一些全國和國際性的工作，

to develop technical standards

推出一些技術規範

幫助我們限制增加太空碎片。

to help us limit the generation of additional debris.

So for example, there are recommendations

例如，有些建議要求

for those low-Earth orbiting spacecraft

那些近地球軌道航天器

to be made to deorbit in under 25 years,

被設計成為 25 年內會完成脫軌，

but that's still a really long time,

但這還是太久，

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

特別是如果一顆衛星 已經停止工作多年。

There's also mandates for those dead geostationary spacecraft

對那些死掉的同步衛星， 還有一些強制要求，

to be moved into a graveyard orbit.

要被移入墳場軌道。

But neither of these guidelines is binding under international law,

但這些限制條件 都不具有國際法律的約束力，

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

普遍的理解是它們會 通過國家機制實施。

這些指導方針也不是長期的，

These guidelines are also not long-term,

they're not proactive,

不是積極主動的，

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

它們也沒有處理已經在那裡的碎片。

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

它們只是被用於 限制未來產生的碎片。

Space junk is no one's responsibility.

沒有任何人為太空垃圾負責任。

Now, Mount Everest is actually an interesting comparison

現在，珠穆朗瑪峰是 一個有趣的例子，

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

從一種新的視角 來比較我們與環境互相的影響，

as it's often given the dubious honor

因為它經常被稱為

世界上最高的垃圾場。

of being the world's highest garbage dump.

在世界最高峰 第一次被征服後的幾十年裡，

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

tons of rubbish left behind by climbers

攀登者留下的眾多垃圾

has started to raise concern,

已經開始引起人們的擔憂，

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

你或許已經看過新聞報導，

that Nepal will crack down on mountaineers

尼泊爾可能對亂丟垃圾的登山者

with stricter enforcement of penalties and legal obligations.

採取嚴厲的罰責及法律約束。

The goal, of course, is to persuade climbers

這樣做的目的當然是 要說服登山者

自己清理自己產生的垃圾，

to clean up after themselves,

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

因此可能當地非營利組織會向那些 從山上帶下額外垃圾的人支付獎勵，

或者考察隊將會組織志願者 前去清理垃圾。

or expeditions might organize voluntary cleanup trips.

然而儘管如此，許多登山者認為

And yet still many climbers feel

that independent groups should police themselves.

各個團體應該自行監管。

對此尚未有一個簡單的解決方案，

There's no simple or easy answer,

and even well-intentioned efforts at conservation

甚至善意致力於保育，

經常都會變成問題。

often run into problems.

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

但是這不意味著 我們可以無所作為

to protect the environments that we rely and depend on,

來保護我們依賴和生存的環境，

and like Everest, the remote location and inadequate infrastructure

與珠穆朗瑪峰類似，

太空軌道太遙遠、建設不完善，

of the orbital environment

make waste disposal a challenging problem.

使得廢物處理成為了 頗具挑戰的問題。

But we simply cannot reach new heights

但是我們不能 隨便就到達一個新高度，

and create an even higher garbage dump,

然後創建一個更高的垃圾堆積場，

one that's out of this world.

在地球之外。

The reality of space

太空中的現實是，

is that if a component on a satellite breaks down,

如果一個衛星的構件損壞，

只有很少的機會能對其進行維修，

there really are limited opportunities for repairs,

而且需要花費大量的金錢。

and only at great cost.

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

可是我們在設計衛星的時候 能不能更聰明一些，

What if all satellites,

是否所有的衛星，

regardless of what country they were built in,

無論是哪個國家製造的，

had to be standardized in some way

都必須被標準化設計成為

for recycling, servicing

可回收的，提供維修服務的，

or active deorbiting?

或者會主動脫離軌道的？

What if there actually were international laws with teeth

是否能有強有力的國際法律，

來強制處理那些 在使命結束後被拋棄的衛星，

that enforced end-of-life disposal of satellites

instead of moving them out of the way

而不是採用臨時的辦法

將它們移出軌道？

as a temporary solution?

Or maybe satellite manufacturers need to be charged a deposit

又是否衛星生產商需要被徵收 一筆垃圾處理費，

to even launch a satellite into orbit,

從而才能發射衛星？

and that deposit would only be returned

而且那筆費用只有在 衛星被適當的處理後，

if the satellite was disposed of properly

or if they cleaned up some quota of debris.

或者他們清理掉 一些碎片時才能被退還。

Or maybe a satellite needs to have technology on board

或者衛星需要配備某些科技，

來幫助加速脫軌進程。

to help accelerate deorbit.

There are some encouraging signs.

現在有一些令人激勵的跡象。

比如說，英國 2014 年發射的 TechDemoSat-1 衛星，

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

was designed for end-of-life disposal

透過一個很小的拖曳帆，

via a small drag sail.

在使命結束後會自我處理。

This works for the satellite because it's small,

這個設計可行是因為 這是一個小衛星。

but satellites that are higher or in larger orbits

但是對於在更高、更大軌道的衛星，

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

或者更遠更大的衛星， 比如說像校車那麼大的，

will require other disposal options.

則需要其它的處理方式。

So maybe you get into things like high-powered lasers

所以或許你會想到使用高強鐳射光線

or tugging using nets or tethers,

或者使用網或細繩去拖拉，

那些在短期內聽起來 盡可能瘋狂的想法。

as crazy as those sound in the short term.

一個非常可行而炫酷的想法是

And then one really cool possibility

一輛在太空軌道上運行的 拖車或機械裝置。

is the idea of orbital tow trucks or space mechanics.

Imagine if a robotic arm

想像如果有個機械手臂

on some sort of space tow truck

裝在一輛類似太空拖車的裝置上，

could fix the broken components on a satellite,

可以修理那些受損壞的衛星，

making them usable again.

使他們恢復正常。

Or what if that very same robotic arm

或者那個機械手臂

could refuel the propellant tank on a spacecraft

可以給那些借助化學劑推進的 太空飛行器加燃料，

that relies on chemical propulsion

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

就像我們給汽車加油一樣。

Robotic repair and maintenance

機器人維修和維護，

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

可以延長數百顆 繞行地球的衛星的壽命。

Whatever the disposal or cleanup options we come up with,

無論我們選擇哪種處理或清理方式，

it's clearly not just a technical problem.

很明顯都不僅僅是技術問題。

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

我們還需要理清更加複雜的 太空法和政治問題。

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

簡單來說，我們還沒有找到 一種可永續使用太空的方法。

Exploring, innovating to change the way we live and work

不斷的探索、創新來改變 我們生活和工作的方式，

are what we as humans do,

是我們作為人類的使命。

and in space exploration,

同時在對太空探索，

真的已經超出了地球的範圍。

we're literally moving beyond the boundaries of Earth.

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

然而在我們以學習和創新的名義 不斷推進的時候，

我們必須牢記 我們對環境的責任從未消失。

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

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

近地軌道或地球靜止軌道上 衛星擁擠的狀況是毋庸置疑的，

and we cannot keep launching new satellites

我們不能一味的發射新衛星

去取代那些已經報廢的，

to replace the ones that have broken down

without doing something about them first,

卻不先對它們採取任何措施。

just like we would never leave a broken down car

就像我們從來不會將一輛壞車 停留在高速公路的中間一樣。

in the middle of the highway.

Next time you use your phone,

下一次當你使用你的手機，

check the weather or use your GPS,

查詢天氣預報或者使用 GPS 定位，

think about the satellite technologies that make those activities possible.

想一下那些使得這些 成為可能的衛星科技。

但同時也要想一下

But also think about the very impact

衛星對地球周圍環境的影響。

that the satellites have on the environment surrounding Earth,

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

請各位幫忙傳播這個信息， 我們必須協力減少太空垃圾的影響。

緊鄰地球的軌道無比美麗，

Earth orbit is breathtakingly beautiful

and our gateway to exploration.

也是我們探索太空的門戶。

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

我們有責任保護太空。

謝謝。

Thank you.

(Applause)

（掌聲）