The recent explosion of SpaceX’s Starship mega rocket, which occurred in mid-January during its seventh test flight, may have caused significant contamination of Earth’s upper atmosphere. During the accident, debris from the glowing metal fell into the Caribbean Sea, and metal and nitrogen oxides, which can adversely affect the ozone layer, were released into the atmosphere.

Scale of pollution
According to astronomer Jonathan McDowell, the rocket’s upper stage exploded at an altitude of about 146 km and weighed about 85 tons without propellant. Connor Barker, an atmospheric chemistry researcher at University College London, estimated that the accident could have produced 45.5 tons of metal oxides and 40 tons of nitrogen oxides. Barker noted that these were only preliminary estimates that required further research.
Although the exact amount of pollution is not yet known, Barker compared the release to one-third of the annual flux of meteoritic material burning up in the atmosphere. McDowell added that much of the debris likely fell into the ocean.
Rocket materials and their impact on the environment
On the positive side, Starship is made of stainless steel rather than the aluminum used in many other rockets, including the Falcon 9. Burning aluminum at high temperatures forms alumina (aluminum oxide), which depletes the ozone layer and affects the reflectivity of the atmosphere.
The increasing number of satellites and rockets entering the atmosphere is causing more and more pollution. Alumina that enters the mesosphere and upper stratosphere stays there for a long time, causing scientists to worry. The amounts of this pollution are already approaching the levels created by space rocks, which contain minimal amounts of aluminum.
In addition, nitrogen oxides are produced as satellites and debris enter the atmosphere. They occur due to heating and chemical reactions of nitrogen with oxygen under hypersonic speed conditions. With more rocket launches, these emissions could rise to levels that threaten the ozone layer.
Possible consequences
If the trend continues, the accumulation of pollutants could slow the recovery of the ozone layer, which has already been damaged by the use of ozone-depleting substances in industry. There is also a risk of changing the heat balance of the atmosphere, which could have unpredictable consequences for the Earth’s climate.
Thus, the expansion of space activities requires careful monitoring of environmental impacts to minimize harm to the environment.
Earlier we reported on locals being frightened by Starship’s unbearable noise.
According to space.com