Almost half of the objects in Earth’s orbit are junk—and that’s only the stuff we know about

By Adam Kovac edited by Claire Cameron

Almost half the stuff in orbit around Earth can be classified as space junk, and the problem is only going to get worse as launches and orbital infrastructure increase.

Using data from the U.S. Space Force’s Space-Track.org, engineering component supply company Accu determined there are currently 33,269 trackable objects in orbit. Of those, 17,682 are satellites. The rest are some form of junk, ranging from expended rocket bodies to debris to objects that could not be identified.

“This means that nearly 47 percent of tracked objects are space junk,” the company wrote in a new report. “However, with many satellites no longer operational, it means the true proportion of inactive or uncontrollable objects is even higher.”

On supporting science journalism

If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Space junk has been accumulating since the first satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched in 1957. Yet the problem has grown sharply over the past decade as the cost of launches has dropped and the cadence of space flights has increased. The amount of trackable objects in orbit rose by around 10,000 between 2020 and 2025 alone.

The scale of the issue may be grossly underestimated. Accu notes that there may be millions of objects that are too tiny to track, such as paint flecks and other debris that came loose from rockets and other spacecraft. That poses a major risk: Most objects in orbit are traveling at upward of 17,000 miles per hour—at that speed, even the tiniest mote could inflict significant damage on orbiting infrastructure. In 2024 astronauts onboard the International Space Station had to take shelter after a decommissioned Russian satellite broke into numerous fragments. That incident prompted the launch of a U.S. governmental program aimed at finding and monitoring low-Earth orbit’s tiniest pieces of garbage. And in 2025 several Chinese taikonauts became stranded on the Tiangong space station after a suspected piece of space junk cracked the window of their return capsule.

While there’s a chance an orbiting piece of junk could hurt or kill an astronaut, Accu’s analysis suggests that the greatest danger is to satellites, with seven tracked pieces of junk for every 10 satellites.

Despite being a problem that’s literally around the globe, the causes are not global. The report estimates that China is responsible for 65 percent of the debris in orbit, while the U.S. and the Commonwealth of Independent States—comprised of Russia and eight smaller countries—account for an estimated 40 percent and 23 percent, respectively.

Space agencies, such as NASA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the U.K. Space Agency and the European Space Agency, are working on ways to clean up lower-Earth orbit. Several private companies have also begun marketing their services as space garbage collectors. But until large amounts of junk are removed, Accu has called on spacecraft designers to take the threat more seriously.

“For the engineers shaping the spacecraft of tomorrow, they must keep space debris in mind from the start,” the report’s authors write. “Every component, from its precision, durability, and material, has to be chosen carefully to survive potential impacts. Space debris is a key challenge of the modern space age, but how it is tackled will drive innovation and define the future of space exploration.”

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can’t-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world’s best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.