SpaceX Rocket Launch Could Lead to a Collision with AIM Satellite

Warning bells are going off while more payloads are getting ready for launches in the coming years. 2021 is no exception with the upcoming SpaceX rocket launch. But isn’t it too early to be rest assured? The orbit is filling up quickly and now faces threats of satellite collisions. 

SpaceX is planning a rocket launch that could affect the future of the AIM satellite owned by Hampton University. The Falcon 9 rocket launch is scheduled for the end of January 2021 and might collide with this satellite upon reaching space. 

Unlike more advanced crafts launching at the moment, AIM can’t dodge oncoming satellites in orbit. It requires propulsion fuel that would help it remain out of oncoming vessels’ path. 

Unfortunately, that’s not the case for now, and the SpaceX rocket launch might lead to a collision. While SpaceX’s mission is held for a private company, Hampton’s AIM satellite enables continuous and affordable data access for numerous projects. 

Still, even if these don’t collide, there’s great concern in the space community about the launch of more satellites. Currently, the main issue is 143 satellites in orbit that might collide with the upcoming payloads as well as with already launched ones. 

Why the SpaceX Rocket Launch Affecting AIM Satellite is Vital for the Planet

The AIM (Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere) satellite serves the general well-being of the planet. Since its ascension, it’s the only mission that HBCU has collaborated with NASA. The launch took place back in 2007 to study noctilucent clouds. These are PMCs (Polar Mesospheric Clouds) that AIM learns to monitor how they form and predict their undergoing changes. The weather patterns keep changing on Earth, and such satellites serve a vital role in studying these changes’. 

If the AIM satellite gets knocked off orbit by the SpaceX ones, it will be a big blow to this vital mission. AIM has spent the last decade and a half keeping an eye on these cloud systems and how they relate to climate change. The world is at a point where such studies are too beneficial to jeopardize. 

Therefore Hampton University must raise the alarm over the upcoming SpaceX rocket launch that can compromise years of research.