Scientists have a made new discovery which can help keep the satellites and space debris from colliding.
Half a million objects, including debris, satellites, and the International Space Station, orbit the planet in the thermosphere, the largest layer of Earth's atmosphere.
Researchers, who analyzed the role that gravitational effect of the Moon have on the thermosphere, found that satellites taking different paths around the planet-circling over the poles, around the equator, or any route in between-would experience different levels of lunar-induced drag. Incorporating these results in current atmospheric models could refine the accuracy of orbital predictions, thus keeping satellites and space junk on separate paths.
Jesse Zhang, lead author of the Space Weather paper said that they continue to be surprised and fascinated by the different pathways that connect the lower atmosphere to space weather.
