"Sky Alert! What Happens When Satellites Fail" explores for the first
time what our modern world would be like if we were suddenly to lose
most, if not all, of our space assets. The author demonstrates
humankind's dependence on space satellites and show what might happen to
various aspects of our economy, defense, and daily lives if they were
suddenly destroyed.
The book opens with a consideration of how our space assets might be
lost in the first place: through orbital debris, war, and solar storms.
The author then looks at what would happen if our satellites were lost,
including the effect on weather forecasting, and the Global Positioning
System, explaining GPS in detail and its importance to the military,
including spy satellites and military reconnaissance, commerce,
civilians, communications and remote sensing - both resource monitoring
and locating and environmental monitoring and science. The effects of
losing such assets as the International Space Station as well as such
research satellites as the Hubble Space Telescope or the Chandra X-Ray
Observatory are also considered.
Part III of the book looks at how we can protect our satellites,
preparing for the worst, reducing the growth and amount of orbital
debris, preventing acts of war in space and hardening against space
radiation. The book ends on an optimistic note: most spacefaring nations
are now working together to develop new technologies to reduce the
threat posed by orbital debris and in-space nuclear detonations and
treaties exist to limit the development and use of weapons in space.
Finally, it is hoped that it will not be long before we will be able to
better predict and take precautions against solar storms.
The global economy has now become so dependent upon satellites that
their loss would be devastating - to the economy, to national security,
and potentially, to the day-to-day survival of those who live in the
world's most advanced economies.
