What happens to old satellites?
Typically, satellites, if they run out of fuel or something happens to it where it’s just not working, it is essentially orbiting around the Earth dead. So what happens eventually is gravity will continuously pull on it and bring it down. If that satellite, upon reentering into the atmosphere does not burn up, sometimes you’ll find pieces of that structure on one of our large continents or in the ocean. We don’t want that to happen.
So if a spacecraft ran out of fuel or has a bad part, it’d be great if we could fix it. That’s why
What happens to old satellites? Currently, they either burn up safely upon reentry into the atmosphere or they remain in space. But NASA is working on new technology that could make spaceflight more sustainable by refueling or upgrading satellites in space, greatly expanding their lifespans. Here’s more about the On-orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing 1 (OSAM-1) Mission. Credit: NASA