Data for the project was sourced from publicly available databases and documents.

Privateer Wayfinder

https://wayfinder.privateer.com/

United States Space Surveillance Network (October 2023) – Space Object Catalog

https://www.space-track.org/

Union of Concerned Scientists (January 2023) – Satellite Database

https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/satellite-database

Edouard Mathieu and Max Roser (2022) – "Space Exploration and Satellites"

https://ourworldindata.org/space-exploration-satellites#article-citation

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (February 2020) – “Joint Statement on Space Debris by the Government of Japan and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA)”

https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/601748/gps-a-generation-of-service-to-the-world/

Euroconsult (March 2021) – “Satellite on track to provide broadband access to over 100 million people by 2029”

https://www.euroconsult-ec.com/press-release/satellite-on-track-to-provide-broadband-access-to-over-100-million-people-by-2029/

The State Council Information Office, The People’s Republic of China (January, 2022) – “China to improve space debris monitoring: White paper”

http://english.scio.gov.cn/m/whitepapers/china-to-improve-space-debris-monitoring

Indian Space Research Organisation, Department of Space (2021) – “Space Situational Assessment 2021”

https://www.isro.gov.in/SSA.html

HDI Global Specialty (2023) – “Technical Study: Space Debris”

https://www.hdi.global/globalassets/_local/international/newsroom/hdi_global_specialty_study_space_debris_2023_corpv5.pdf

 

CNN (October 2023) – “Space debris investigation results in fine and an ‘admission of liability’ by satellite TV company”

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/02/world/space-debris-fine-dish-fcc-scn

 

Brookings (March 2023) – “How space exploration is fueling the Fourth Industrial Revolution”

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-space-exploration-is-fueling-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/#:~:text=As%20of%202021%2C%20the%20global,organizations%2C%20and%2020%20business%20sectors

Startus Insights (2022) – “Global Startup Heat Map highlights 5 out of 114 Space Debris Solutions”

https://www.startus-insights.com/innovators-guide/5-top-debris-retrieval-monitoring-solutions-impacting-the-space-industry/

ClearSpace (May 2023) – “ClearSpace to launch the first active debris removal mission with Arianespace Vega C

https://clearspace.today/clearspace-to-launch-the-first-active-debris-removal-mission-with-arianespace-vega-c/

Statista (2020) – “Number of satellites launched from 1957 to 2019”

https://www.statista.com/statistics/896699/number-of-satellites-launched-by-year/

Visual Capitalist (2023) – "Can Starlink Get the World's Lowest Internet Adopters Online?"

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/lowest-internet-adoption-rates/

Starlust (2023) – "How Many People Are in Space Right Now?"

https://starlust.org/how-many-people-are-in-space-right-now/

European Space Agency – "Telecommunications satellites"

https://www.esa.int/Applications/Connectivity_and_Secure_Communications/Telecommunications_satellites

European Space Agency – "Clearspace-1"

https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/ClearSpace-1

Exploding Topics (January 2023) – "How Many People Own Smartphones (2023-2028)"https://explodingtopics.com/blog/smartphone-stats

https://explodingtopics.com/blog/smartphone-stats

TS2 (February 2023) – "Staying Connected: The Importance of Satellite Phones in Remote Areas"

https://ts2.space/en/staying-connected-the-importance-of-satellite-phones-in-remote-areas/#:~:text=With%20access%20to%20the%20outside,sense%20of%20community%20and%20belonging

Tech Target (March 2020) – "Kessler Syndrome"

https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/Kessler-Syndrome#:~:text=The%20Kessler%20Syndrome%20is%20a,certain%20sections%20of%20Earth’s%20orbit.

Apple (September 2023) – "Use Emergency SOS via satellite on your iPhone"

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213426#:~:text=With%20iPhone%2014%2C%20iPhone%2014,cellular%20and%20Wi%2DFi%20coverage.

Note: All facts and figures were collected from sources published before 17 October 2023.
Particles:
Communication
Experimentation
Navigation
Observation
Debris:
160,000,000
Satellites:
7,560
Object Size (in m²)
SMALL
size < 0.1
MEDIUM
0.1 < size < 1.0
LARGE
1.0 < size

Discovery