Earth Day 2024: The Great Space Debris Threat and UK Astronaut Graduation in Space

On Earth Day 2024, the focus shifted from our oceans, mountains, and forests to the sky above us and the threat of space debris to our satellites. Astroscale, a company working on using robotics to clean up space junk in orbit, warned that the UK economy could suffer a loss of £7.6 billion if satellite navigation services were to go down for just a week. Nick Shave, MD of Astroscale, discussed the severity of the space debris issue and their plans to address it using robotics.

Meanwhile, on Earth Day, a UK astronaut trainee named Rosemary Coogan graduated from a European Space Agency program. Over two years, Coogan underwent orientation, learning about the International Space Station and the experiments conducted in orbit. She also underwent practical training such as scuba diving and centrifuge rides. Libby Jackson, head of space exploration at the UK Space Agency, explained the significance of Coogan’s graduation and shared insights from astronauts about their experiences in space.

In other news, Taylor Swift made Spotify history with her newest album being streamed over 300 million times in a single day. This marks Swift’s 11th studio album, featuring collaborations with artists like Florence and the Machine and Post Malone. Additionally, TikTok faces potential ban in the US as the House of Representatives votes in favor of a measure calling for a ban unless its Chinese owner ByteDance sells its stake within nine months.

The episode also covered a study on how seeing oneself on video calls can lead to mental fatigue, the UK banning wet wipes containing plastic, and the trolling of the world’s first fully AI-generated film online. Listeners can access the episode on various platforms such as Apple Podcasts or Spotify podcast streaming services