NASA hopes to clean up space junk; experts say the days of uncluttered night skies are ‘over’

A Salon article on NASA’s proposed space debris cleaning efforts, including a new report suggesting that lasers could be used to zap away small pieces of debris, quotes John Crassidis, Moog Professor of Innovation in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

Crassidis said he agrees with the report that "for small objects, lasers are the most reasonable approach." These small objects can still cause significant damage because they travel at speeds of over 17,000 miles per hour, so "removing these is a good start because the benefit is the fastest of all the ones considered. Ground-based lasers are more feasible at this time.”

Read the story here.