Area in the southern Pacific Ocean where spacecraft have been routinely deposited
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Spacecraft Cemetery in the Pacific Ocean
The spacecraft cemetery, known more formally as the South Pacific Ocean(ic) Uninhabited Area,[1][2] is a region in the southern Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand,[3] where spacecraft that have reached the end of their usefulness are routinely crashed. The area is roughly centered on "Point Nemo", the oceanic pole of inaccessibility, the location farthest from any land.[1]
The defunct space station Mir[4] and six Salyut stations[1] are among those that have been ditched there. Other spacecraft that have been routinely scuttled in the region include various cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station, including Russian Progress cargo craft,[5] the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency H-II Transfer Vehicle,[6] and the European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicle.[7][8][9] A total of more than 263 spacecraft were disposed in this area between 1971 and 2016.[10] The International Space Station is slated to end up in the spacecraft cemetery upon "retirement".[11]
Current considerations of the spacecraft cemetery include the environmental impact it creates on marine life within the South Pacific Ocean Uninhabited Region.[12] This region is beyond legal jurisdiction of any country, hence faces less regulation.[12] Currently two treaties outline certain laws that can be applied to the spacecraft cemetery. The Outer Space Treaty produced by the United Nations reflects on damages caused by spacecraft on opposing nations.[13] The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea reflects on general marine pollution.[14] Marine pollution can be caused by spillage of the highly toxic rocket propellant hydrazine.[12] Other forms of space debris removal are being considered and produced to slow the exponential growth of space debris orbiting Earth due to increased space exploration.[12][15]
^ abcSmith-Strickland, Kiona. "This watery graveyard is the resting place for 161 sunken spacecraft". Gizmodo. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
^"Making sure ATV reentry is safe". Orion blog. 30 October 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
^"NZ spacecraft cemetery gets another skip from orbit". 18 January 2007. Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 11 February 2009.
^"MIR Space Station is now reentered – March 23, 2001 – 06:45 UTC". 22 March 2001. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
^"Progress Ship returns to Earth with trash and no longer needed stuff". Progress M-18M mission updates. 26 July 2013. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
^Love, John (21 September 2012). "Lead Increment Scientist's highlights for week of Sept. 10, 2012". NASA. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
^"Image of the Day gallery". NASA. 6 October 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
^"Automated Transfer Vehicle page". European Space Agency. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
^"Mission accomplished for ATV Edoardo Amaldi". Space-Travel.com. 4 October 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
^Stirone, Shannon (13 June 2016). "This is where the International Space Station will go to die". Popular Science magazine. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
^Cite error: The named reference :12 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abcdde Lucia, Vito; Iavicoli, Viviana. "From outer space to ocean depths: The 'Spacecraft Cemetery' and the protection of the marine environment in areas beyond national jurisdiction". California Western International Law Journal. 2: 367–369 – via Scholarly Commons.
^"Outer Space Treaty". www.unoosa.org. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
^Convention on the Law of the Sea (PDF) (Report). United Nations. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
^David, Leonard (14 April 2021). "Space junk removal is not going smoothly". Scientific American. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
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