ExoAnalytic: Intelsat 33e Explosion Creates 500 Debris In GEO

Illustration of Intelsat 33e before it was destroyed (photo: dock. Boeing)

JAKARTA ExoAnalytic Solutions discovered 500 new debris in geostationary orbit (GEO). The space object tracking company said the debris found came from Intelsat 33e.

To Spacenews, ExoAnalytic explained that hundreds of these debris have various sizes. For the smallest fraction, the size of the debris is the softball. Meanwhile, the largest debris that has been tracked looks the size of the car door.

Although the company has successfully analyzed the number of fragments and size variations of the fraction, observation of this satellite is difficult to do. The reason is, the majority of Intelsat 33e fractions are in a difficult spectrum at reach.

"The majority of tracked objects are on smaller spectra, which cause difficulties in consistently observing all debris," said ExoAnalytic Technology Chief Bill Therien.

In one night or about 24 hours, Therien explained that his company managed to observe 108 debris. However, the amount of debris that can be observed each night is different because it is influenced by the size, speed, and position of the object against the sensor.

Although hundreds of debris have been detected, the company believes that some debris cannot be found because it has disappeared. Like debris that has evaporated, for example.

The debris from incidents like this could be complicated, and new debris can be tracked more reliably over time, explained Therien. During tracking, the company will continue to work closely with the US Space Force.

They also help satellite operators by providing flight safety services. It is not yet certain whether Intelsat 33e debris can hit other objects. To prevent this, ExoAnalytic will analyze the object accurately.

Intelsat 33e is an Intelsat satellite developed by Boeing. This satellite experienced an anomaly on October 19 which caused a power loss. After stopping functioning, the satellite exploded for reasons that were still unknown.