Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
School yourself on space junk
Aerospace | Space | Technology
August 23, 2022 – Roughly 11,000 satellites have entered space since the late 1950s, and studies predict there could soon be as many as 70,000. A floating threat? Space junk, which is orbital debris from old satellites and rockets that could collide with—and destroy—working satellites. The seventh edition of McKinsey for Kids explores the stratospheric equivalent of your family’s junk drawer. Click through to see some astronomical stats about satellites and space junk.
To see the interactive, go to “McKinsey for Kids: Space junk—it’s out of this world,” July 13, 2022.
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Visual form
A click-through illustrated made of full-screen fact panels.
Layout / body structure
The chart is laid out as a sequence of seven slides with Prev and Next buttons. Each slide pairs one oversized headline number on the left with a simple visual metaphor on the right, so the reader moves panel by panel rather than scanning a single chart.
What is being compared
The chart compares different dimensions of the orbital-debris problem: the number and size of junk objects in orbit, the speed at which they travel, and the operational consequences for spacecraft such as the International Space Station. Instead of comparing categories on one axis, it walks the reader through separate debris facts one at a time.
Measurement system
The slides use counts, object sizes, and speeds as the main measures. The first visible panel anchors the story with 29,000 objects at least 10 centimeters across and states they travel at 10 kilometers per second, while another panel anchors the operational impact with roughly 30 debris-avoidance moves by the ISS since 1999.
Visible structure inside the graphic
The first slide shows a giant bagel-like object diagram labeled 10 cm, filled with many small debris marks to make the 29,000-object count tangible. The seventh slide switches to a repeated grid of space-station icons to visualize about 30 avoidance maneuvers. Across the sequence, the artwork stays consistent: dark background, large white number, short explanatory text, and one dominant illustration per slide.
Main takeaway from the visual
The visual turns space junk from an abstract concept into a physical hazard by showing both scale and consequence. The reader sees that debris is not just abundant but fast enough and frequent enough to threaten active satellites and force real evasive action in orbit.
Key standout values or extremes
The clearest anchored values visible in the are 29,000 debris objects larger than 10 centimeters, a travel speed of 10 kilometers per second, and about 30 ISS course changes to avoid debris since 1999. Those numbers are the visual anchors the slides keep returning to as they explain the hazard.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
The reader advances through the sequence with Prev and Next controls, changing the fact card from one debris statistic to the next while keeping the same full-screen slide format.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart is the full visual on this page.