September saw increased levels of space activity with both uncontrolled re-entry and collision alerts higher than in August. However, overall risk levels were below the 12-month rolling average.
All NSpOC warning and protection services were functioning throughout the period.
Re-entry Analysis
September saw a 15% increase in the number of objects re-entering Earth’s atmosphere, monitored by NSpOC, when compared with the previous month.
Of the 39 objects that re-entered, 35 were satellites and four were rocket bodies.
October: 35, November: 47, December: 83, January: 115, February: 129, March: 85, April: 92, May: 64, June: 55, July: 52, August: 34, September: 39
In-Space Collision Avoidance
Collision risks to UK-licensed satellites were higher in September with a 58% increase when compared with August, caused by more interactions between UK licenced objects and other spacecraft or debris over the previous 30 days.
October: 3,181, November: 2,722, December: 2,142, January: 2,694, February: 2,567, March: 2,588, April: 2,620, May: 1,546, June: 1,259, July: 1,038, August: 971, September: 1,537
Number of Objects in Space
The in-orbit population increased in September, with a net addition of 159 objects to the US Satellite Catalogue.
October: 29,724, November: 29,883, December: 29,934, January: 30,062, February: 30,093, March: 30,187, April: 30,315, May: 30,566, June: 30,892, July: 31,102, August: 31,357, September, 31,516
The number of Resident Space Objects (RSOs) reported may be subject to small adjustments over time as the way objects are tracked is refined. Figures in this report reflect the most current available data and may differ slightly from those published in previous months.
Fragmentation Analysis
There have been no new fragmentation (break-up) incidents this month.
Space weather
Space weather activity was slightly elevated in September with geomagnetic storms recorded throughout the month.
The National Space Operations Centre combines and coordinates UK civil and military space domain awareness capabilities to enable operations, promote prosperity and protect UK interests in space and on Earth from space-related threats, risks and hazards.
