By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept

News Junction

Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
  • Home
  • World News
    World NewsShow More
    Vladimir Putin’s offer of direct talks with Ukraine is the latest attempt to avoid committing to a 30-day ceasefire | World News
    Vladimir Putin’s offer of direct talks with Ukraine is the latest attempt to avoid committing to a 30-day ceasefire | World News
    May 11, 2025
    Putin proposes direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul on May 15 | Russia-Ukraine war News
    Putin proposes direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul on May 15 | Russia-Ukraine war News
    May 11, 2025
    Why is Germany such a mess? — RT World News
    Why is Germany such a mess? — RT World News
    May 11, 2025
    Pope Leo explains name: AI, worker rights
    Pope Leo explains name: AI, worker rights
    May 11, 2025
    Ukraine and allies urge Putin to commit to a 30-day ceasefire or face new sanctions – National
    Ukraine and allies urge Putin to commit to a 30-day ceasefire or face new sanctions – National
    May 11, 2025
  • Business
    BusinessShow More
    Ukraine blows up bridges to consolidate its positions in Russia
    Ukraine blows up bridges to consolidate its positions in Russia
    August 18, 2024
    Commentary: AI phones from Google and Apple will erode trust in everything
    Commentary: AI phones from Google and Apple will erode trust in everything
    August 18, 2024
    The most famous Indian Dishes – Insights Success
    The most famous Indian Dishes – Insights Success
    August 18, 2024
    Life on the road as a female long rides cyclist
    Life on the road as a female long rides cyclist
    August 18, 2024
    UK inflation rises to 2.2%
    UK inflation rises to 2.2%
    August 18, 2024
  • Cryptocurrency
    CryptocurrencyShow More
    Price analysis 3/17: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, PI
    Price analysis 3/17: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, PI
    May 11, 2025
    Why is Ethereum (ETH) price up today?
    Why is Ethereum (ETH) price up today?
    May 11, 2025
    Bitcoin SV investors attempt to resurrect 2019 Binance lawsuit
    Bitcoin SV investors attempt to resurrect 2019 Binance lawsuit
    May 11, 2025
    Ex-UFC champ Conor McGregor touts Irish Bitcoin reserve in presidential bid
    Ex-UFC champ Conor McGregor touts Irish Bitcoin reserve in presidential bid
    May 11, 2025
    Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Bitcoin Pepe
    Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Bitcoin Pepe
    May 11, 2025
  • Technology
    TechnologyShow More
    How to Improve Your Spotify Recommendations
    How to Improve Your Spotify Recommendations
    August 18, 2024
    X says it’s closing operations in Brazil
    X says it’s closing operations in Brazil
    August 18, 2024
    Supermoon set to rise: Top tips for amateur photographers | Science & Tech News
    Supermoon set to rise: Top tips for amateur photographers | Science & Tech News
    August 18, 2024
    Scientists Want to See Videos of Your Cat for a New Study
    Scientists Want to See Videos of Your Cat for a New Study
    August 18, 2024
    OpenAI’s new voice mode let me talk with my phone, not to it
    OpenAI’s new voice mode let me talk with my phone, not to it
    August 18, 2024
  • Entertainment
  • Sports News
  • People
  • Trend
Reading: The space industry is starting a green revolution
Share
Font ResizerAa

News Junction

  • World News
  • Business
  • Technology
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Trend
  • Entertainment
Search
  • Recent Headlines in Entertainment, World News, and Cryptocurrency – NewsJunction
  • World News
  • Business
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Technology
  • Entertainment
  • Sports News
  • People
  • Trend
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
News Junction > Blog > Technology > The space industry is starting a green revolution
The space industry is starting a green revolution
Technology

The space industry is starting a green revolution

Published August 14, 2023
Share
7 Min Read
SHARE

Martin Coates
Contributor

Martin Coates is the CEO of U.K.-based spaceflight company Orbex and is an engineering and technology management veteran with more than 30 years’ experience. He is also a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).

Rocket launches are nothing short of spectacular. Whether we grew up in the Apollo era, the space shuttle era or the private space era, most of us can easily bring to mind a rocket launch with the roar of its engines, jets of fire and trails of smoke. That image is burned into the consciousness of nearly everyone on planet Earth with access to TV or internet.

But, until recently, few people considered that those spectacular launches might be leaving an awful lot of pollution in its wake. As it turns out, the space travel industry, with its several dozen launches per year, is responsible for the same amount of carbon emissions as the global aviation industry. With the commercial space industry maturing at a rapid pace, we are seeing a steady increase in the number of rocket launches every year. So, the scale of the problem is only going to grow.

The space travel industry is responsible for the same amount of carbon emissions as the global aviation industry.

In May 2022, two scientists from the University of Nicosia in Cyprus, Ioannis Kokkinakis and Dimitris Drikakis, sought to quantify the potential impact in a study that appeared in the Physics of Fluids journal. They sought to measure the potential health and climate risks by blending rocket launch data with computer simulations.

The conclusion they reached was that “pollution from rockets should not be underestimated as frequent future rocket launches could have a significant cumulative effect on climate,” and may also become “hazardous to human health.”

In the simulations, the scientists used data based on the standard rocket fuel RP-1. And therein lies one of the biggest problems that the space launch industry needs to tackle. RP-1 (alternatively, Rocket Propellant-1 or Refined Petroleum-1) is a highly refined form of kerosene that has been the standard rocket fuel used for decades. Unfortunately, RP-1 is not and never has been a clean-burning fuel. A launch using RP-1 or similar kerosene-based fuel creates many tons of CO2, as well as particulates in the atmosphere called black carbon, commonly known as soot.

However, it is not all doom and gloom. It is early days, admittedly, but it is safe to say there is a green revolution starting in the space launch industry. Positive signs are starting to appear across the global space industry and it appears to be gathering steam.

It is starting with a rethink about the fuels that are being utilized. Three emerging rocket launch companies, two in Europe and one in the U.S., have decided to build their rockets around a very different, yet very familiar fuel — propane. Strange as it may seem, what most people think of as camping gas might be a saving grace for the global space launch industry.

Propane has qualities that make it a very sustainable fuel. First, it is very clean-burning, meaning that black carbon is not left in the atmosphere. Second, its carbon footprint is minimal compared to RP-1. A study from the University of Exeter concluded that a “microlauncher” rocket using the renewable form of propane — bio-propane — could reduce CO2 emissions by up to 96% compared to other similarly sized rockets.

One spaceport currently being built in Scotland, Sutherland Spaceport, is also taking a stand on environmental sustainability. The developers of that spaceport aim to make it the first carbon-neutral spaceport globally — both in its construction and its operation. One illustration of what that means practically is how the developers plan to reuse the peat lifted from the construction to repair the peat “scars” in the landscape nearby, created by decades of harvesting peat for fuel.

Another hopeful sign from the space industry comes from the European Space Agency (ESA). They recently commissioned a study called “Ultra-Green Launch & Space Transportation Systems.” Although this is a long-term play, as it is looking for solutions to be exploited in the period 2030–2050, the fact that a major space agency is studying the issue is a positive sign of the direction that the global space industry in taking.

There is positive momentum, too, from the European Space Agency, through their leadership in tackling the issue of space debris or space junk. Anyone who has seen the movie Wall-E can picture what that might look like from space and feel a little collective shame at how humanity has reached this situation. It is thought that there are now millions of fragments of space junk in Earth’s orbit. However, one of the most comforting aspects of ESA’s leadership in this sphere is how they are actively putting resources into projects that will seek to actively remove debris, leaving our planet’s orbit cleaner and more accessible.

Five to ten years ago, you would have struggled to find anyone, anywhere connecting the words “sustainability” and “space.” That is changing, and rightly so. But this is not the time to sit back and think that everything will be fine. If the space industry is to flourish in the 21st-century, sustainability will need to become a core part of its ethos.

What may begin with polite applause from the periphery for sustainability initiatives will no doubt lead to financial disincentives and eventually legislation. Even if most people are excited and inspired by rocket launches, the space industry is unlikely to get a free pass for much longer.

#space #industry #starting #green #revolution

TAGGED:GreenindustryRevolutionSpaceStarting
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Whatsapp Whatsapp LinkedIn Email Copy Link Print
Share
What do you think?
Love0
Sad0
Happy0
Sleepy0
Angry0
Dead0
Wink0
Previous Article Maui fires death toll rises as families cling to hope for survivors Maui fires death toll rises as families cling to hope for survivors
Next Article A ‘rejuvenated’ Derek Carr looks right at home in Saints’ debut A ‘rejuvenated’ Derek Carr looks right at home in Saints’ debut
- Advertisement -

Latest Post

Price analysis 3/17: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, PI
Price analysis 3/17: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, PI
Cryptocurrency
Vladimir Putin’s offer of direct talks with Ukraine is the latest attempt to avoid committing to a 30-day ceasefire | World News
Vladimir Putin’s offer of direct talks with Ukraine is the latest attempt to avoid committing to a 30-day ceasefire | World News
World News
Why is Ethereum (ETH) price up today?
Why is Ethereum (ETH) price up today?
Cryptocurrency
Putin proposes direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul on May 15 | Russia-Ukraine war News
Putin proposes direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul on May 15 | Russia-Ukraine war News
World News
Bitcoin SV investors attempt to resurrect 2019 Binance lawsuit
Bitcoin SV investors attempt to resurrect 2019 Binance lawsuit
Cryptocurrency
Why is Germany such a mess? — RT World News
Why is Germany such a mess? — RT World News
World News
- Advertisement -

You Might Also Like

Apple’s app store is a digital nanny state. Do we like it that way?
Technology

Apple’s app store is a digital nanny state. Do we like it that way?

February 17, 2024
Strategic Feline Mobile Games : exploding kittens 1
Technology

Strategic Feline Mobile Games : exploding kittens 1

June 27, 2024
Educational Esports Endeavors : british esports
Technology

Educational Esports Endeavors : british esports

February 17, 2024
Google saves your conversations with Gemini for years by default
Technology

Google saves your conversations with Gemini for years by default

February 8, 2024

About Us

NEWS JUNCTION (NewsJunction.xyz) Your trusted destination for global news. Stay informed with our timely and accurate reporting on diverse topics, including politics, technology, science, entertainment, sports, and more. Count on us for unbiased and reliable updates at your fingertips.

Quick Link

  • About
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact

Top Categories

  • World News
  • Business
  • Technology
  • Entertainment
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Sports News
  • Trend
  • People

Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

    © 2023 News Junction.
    • Blog
    • Advertise
    • Contact
    Welcome Back!

    Sign in to your account

    Username or Email Address
    Password

    Lost your password?