Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Haley Reading Group: “Dr. Space Junk Unearths the Cultural Landscape of the Cosmos”



[The Best American Science and Nature Writing (2018)]

In “Dr. Space Junk Unearths the Cultural Landscape of the Cosmos,” Dovey focuses on the work of Alice Gorman, a space archeologist. According to Gorman, we should treat “space as a cultural landscape with richly layered scientific, political, and religious meanings, instead of an empty vacuum that anybody…can venture into with impunity” (142).

Dovey focuses on the lengths Gorman must take in order to study the materials left over from the space age. Since Gorman cannot do fieldwork in space, she must be creative in her attempts often studying left over debris in order to single out satellites to connect the “dots of our history in space in ways non-specialists can understand” (144).

What is one important way that you shifted, expanded, or at least reconsidered your views of space as a result of reading this article?

41 comments:

Kaelyn Cupil said...

One way this article has shifted my views on space is by making me regard it now as a new frontier, but not one just open for the taking. One that has a rich history, one that we as humans must understand and revere it. It's not just an "empty vacuum" as it was regarded in the text; it's a place where so much has happened and so much can happen. That's why it is so important. Space is a place where possibilities for discovery are limitless, and that in itself is worth understanding and even more so, respecting.

Evan S said...

I had never thought of space archaeology as a field. Exoarchaeology or 'garbology' could be the future of archaeology. I could never imagine all of the useful artifact to be found in space, and what it could tell us about our beginnings. As, an anthropology major, that is of great interest to me. I only wish I had thought of it first.

Kayla Person said...

One way this article expanded my views on space is when Ceridwen Dovey said that, “Despite international efforts to track this debris, nobody has a complete catalogue of exactly what’s up there” (143). Although we have made incredible strides learning about space, it’s surprising we still only know very little.

Chaianna Curry said...


Personally, I never considered space having garbage at all. I'd always imagined space just being an endless black sky, dotted with planets, stars and asteroids. I never considered any trash could be that far out or even just in Earth's orbit. Now, I feel like it's something that should be given more awareness, considering the trash surrounding earth can be just as detrimental to life as global warming.
- Chaianna Curry

Anonymous said...

Because of how our society associates space with the future I never thought that archeological discoveries could be found. The idea that society has progressed this much in space exploration that the initial methods used are worth studying is really interesting. Chris W.

Kendall Dow said...

The perspective of archeology presented by Gorman is unique and remarkable. Space is more then emptiness with plenty to discover. There are artifacts in space made by humans. Just because its not extremely outdated doesn't mean that it is not archeology. Gorman is introducing the topic of "exoarcheology" early. Maybe in the distant future more people will talk about this topic when the debris in space is old and outdated, but for now it is just seen as debris in a landfill, and shows no value in the public eye.

William Shanklin said...

This article changed my view on space in one major way, and that is I now believe that instead of looking more into the ocean, as a society we need to explore space. Before reading this passage I believe that as a society we needed to look into the ocean and explore more of it because most of the ocean hasn’t even been discovered so who knows what kind of species are down there. However, I never thought of space as the past that contained architecture but as the future, which changes my view on whether we should explore space. -William S.

Jaydyn Z. said...

One thing I found interesting was that space archeology was a field that some scientists are pursuing. What I found most interesting, or worrisome, is how much garbage in our planets orbital. Dovey states, "NASA now estimates that there are more than 500,000 bits of human-made debris." As many people are worried about climate change, I am also uneasy about the effects of garbage polluting space. How could that impact climate change or our future?

Terence Jones said...

Space has always been a mystery I would like to explore and learn more about. Till reading this article I didn't think where was such a thing as "space archaeology". First thing that comes to mind with archaeology to me is dinosaur bones of course. I'm supportive of space exploration, just as long as we are not leaving our old satellites and causing damage to the Earth creating launching platforms and what not.-Terence Jones

Anonymous said...

After reading this article , I feel as though we are missing out on the exploration of space. Such as the climate changes. However, We need to think about the resources that are unlimited in space. What else is interesting is how much garbage we use at a time. Space is where go and discover new things. -Laurel White

Torian henry said...

After reading this article, my views regarding space has changed in a way I never really thought of before. Previously I viewed space as just emptiness full of mystery and surprise, now I see it as sort of a landscape/landmark with it's own history that is just vastly different than the type we are accustomed to. This article definitely made space history more interesting for me and bettered my understanding.

Torian Henry

Christopher Yancey said...

Space has always been a very interesting concept to millions if not billions of people around the world with kids still wanting to become astronauts, that is until they learn that there is honestly no way for them to truly fulfill these dreams of reaching for the stars as this so called "Space Age" ended after the space race and basically stopped when we put a man on the moon and won the race. But since then we have only put up a large number of satellites to bring us many different forms of communication via internet, televisions, radio, etc. and with each new advancements led to updated satellites leaving the old outdated ones to succumb to be stuck in the unpredictable abyss that is earths orbit where there is no telling how many collisions have happened or how much "Space Junk" is out there. I hope the era with the space race is not the only "space age" with whats happening today with Space X there seems to be a Space Age 2.0 that will put the first one from back in the 60's look like the invention of the wheel in comparison to the car that Elon Musk currently has orbiting our planet.

Bria B said...

This article was very interesting because as you think of space you tend to think of a place full of mystery and thoughts. We as humans are missing out on the experience of really investigating space and what it comes with, how much of it it really is. We then can raise question as to how what we do on Earth or what other planets obtain and how it affects space through visual, temperature, and touching experience. This article really spreads question as to what really goes on in space and how it operates. Is there more than what scientist claim?

Brooke Harris said...

I personally shifted toward the same ideal of treating space excursions like moon exploration in a way that kind of learns of the history of it. When taking history, it seems that we really don't know much information about the past because of new discoveries everyday, and since we haven't really figured out how to replicate life on the moon, archaeology on it would be pretty cool, because we could concentrate on the history of the celestial body. Recently, we only treat explorations as a way on how to continue life on Earth, but it would be kind of cool to really understand archaeological aspects of it, so in the future if we did end up moving the human race to a different place like the moon, we can really tell if there was life before or it can even help how we do certain things in the future on that new planet.

Tyler Bean-Catencamp said...

My views on space shifted in the way that we as humans are always striving to go further and further in space and increase our reach outside of Earth, but we never think of the downsides of that. Before reading the article, I had not thought of the impacts that the thousands of debris that orbit Earth have on the planet. The potential that the space debris has to impact Earth are numerous and it gives me a new view of the topic of space exploration.

-Tyler Bean-Catencamp

Nia Marshall said...

While reading this passage one thing that gained my focus was the idea space archaeology. For starters, I never imagined this being a possibility in the branch of archaeology. I guess this only makes sense when there's so much detritus in space. The fact that this debris could be considered artifacts from the past is interesting to me. I also had a hard time considering that space isn't just a dark abyss waiting to be explored farther, but a dark abyss cluttered with our ex-parts of previous explorations waiting to be explored and rediscovered. However, with discovering these things, I also feel like we should attempt to preserve and declutter the vast emptiness we know as space. Nia M.

Keaira C. said...

One important way that this reading has expanded my views on Space is by discussing the aftereffect of humans being on space. The article states that there are artifacts left behind from the human presence on space from humans stepping foot onto the moon, leaving behind debris also referenced as “space junk’. My views have definitely shifted as I honestly didn’t know the study of space debris, “Exoarcheology”, was a thing, and I especially didn’t know that there is a field for it, which is known as “Garbology”. I didn’t realize the depth of the human presence in space, or the possibility of there being a negative effect like terrestrial trash being left behind. I think it’s very common for us human beings, living on earth, to not immediately think of the impact that may be left on space when we don’t live there and feel as if we won’t be affected by it. This article has broadened my perspective on mindfulness and has caused me to realize that I should prioritize thinking about both positive and possible negative outcomes of the situations that we commonly celebrate rather than stop to think about, like progressions of human presence in space.

- Keaira Cox

Anonymous said...

Prior to reading this article, my perception of space was a vast space with ends that humankind could only dream of reaching. After reading, I've come to the realization that space has a history of its own in the making that should also be explored rather than just trying to reach the future of space.

Eboni G.

Arielle Stallworth said...

After reading this article I have expanded my views on not only space but pollution as a whole. Pollution is becoming a very big problem in the world today and it has stretched to space. The human is the problem of the world today causing things such as global warming, air pollution, oxygen consumption, etc. the world would be better off without the human population. I always felt as if more people should be able to experience space but seeing the pollution of the earth, the human population would destroy space just as they have the earth.

Unknown said...

After reading this article... It was different to think of space as a landmark of the past, and to think of space as something that is tangible. Garbology is something I have never heard of before reading and I think it is very interesting for space to have garbage, and for us to learn about space through such a thing- Layden Dukes

Charlie Brown said...

After reading this article, I'm actually starting to realize how much garbage there is in space. Before, I guess it never really crossed my mind about how parts and pieces of space craft have fallen off or just come apart in space and have just been left floating there. It makes me wonder if the garbage could potentially affect us here on Earth at some point later in time.

Alleson Huntspon said...

My knowledge was expanded when I read about how much human made debris is in earths orbit. I knew it was a lot but as I read I learned that NASA said it’s so much debris that the debris has became the size of a marble or even larger, that’s something I never would’ve thought of. Our planet seems to be somewhat trapped within all this debris, which is really striking. Because we can’t keep letting space get filled with debris because eventually it’ll get filled to the max and we’ll never be able to go into space.

Jalen White said...

Before reading this article, I always thought of space as this vast mystery that has been rarely attempted to solve. The more I think about it, however, the more I realize it's because we have thought about space exploration in the wrong way. Like Alice Gorman states, maybe we should look at space as a ever-changing landscape with multiple avenues for answers. Ideas such as the Space Act, if used in the proper way, can lead to a boost of space exploration and interest, similar to the Space Race of the late 20th century. Maybe the final frontier is just the first step to something much larger.

Jalen W

Carah F. said...

I’ve always knew that at some point humans will have to leave earth to accommodate the large population. The most logical way to go would be another planet. Pollution is a serious issue on earth, and it was been tied to many disasters that are currently happening. However, I didn’t consider it as a problem if humans go to space until I read this article. The article said, “NASA estimates that there are now more than 500,000 bits of human-made debris that size of a marble or larger in Earths orbit.” (p. 143) I did not know this, and it has changed my view of humans going to space. I don’t think we should unless we can control our waste. While the earth will not last forever, for the time being, we should cut its existence short by mistreating it. Once we move to space the, we will repeat the same thing.
-Carah F.

I'Lysa Walker said...

Space has been intriguing to me since I was a kid, and I always inquired what truly occurred through space because it is more than just satellites, stars, and planets. The common notion that space is just an "empty vacuum" is insane when there is so much to be discovered. More investigation about space needs to be made, and I also find it astounding that there is even trash in space. -I'Lysa Walker

Anonymous said...

Personally, I never though of space in a way that it had something. The way our society perceives space I always think of it as just black and something humans can't live on. I never considered for there to be trash that far or anything that else. I now feel like there is something more that can be out there besides orbits and stars. this article was interesting due to it opening a new perspective. -Mikayla K

William Akpan said...

Like many other people, since I was a young kid I was always interested in space and the mystery of it all. Reading this passage, it was interesting to see both what the scientist know and what they are still unsure of. After reading this, it made me reflect on how far and how expansive space is, and how much area there is left that we still know very little about.
-William Akpan

Ta'mya Cummings said...

After reading this article, it made me realize how much you can discover in space. I have always felt that there is something you can discover when it came to planets or starts, but there’s much more to space than that. The study of space has a deeper meaning to it then the typical things we already know about it. Things that can be discoverable in space can explain or be the reason why Earth is how it is.

Noah Jones said...

I didn't realize that we already have made such a large impact on the atmosphere and the area around earth. I think that this knowledge should lead us to be more careful with what we do in space. Just like on earth, we take measures to protect the planet and keep it healthy, (at least we should), I believe that we should do the same in space. Any place we decide to explore or venture out to should be protected and treated with respect because we may not realize how important said frontier may be, or what long term damage we may be doing to it.
- Noah Jones

Alexis R. Austin said...

I reconsidered how massive space is; I also reconsidered how we aren't doing our best to keep the it clean. "NASA estimates that there are now more than 500,000 bits of human-made debris the size of a marble or larger in Earth orbit." We have to do better in keeping earth and space clean because we don't know what's out there and how can we find out if it's all covered in trash and possibly destroyed because of our trash.

Anonymous said...

Before reading this article, I thought of space as being a mysterious place that was very expensive and dangerous to explore. Also, most perceptions of space that I do have can be attributed to depictions within various forms of media. After reading this article, I realized that it is possible to make findings in relationship to space without actually having to go to space. I find it really interesting and impactful that creative efforts have been taken in order to find out more about ways to respect and protect space. Madison McKinley

Quanicia Rudd said...

Reading this article has opened my eyes to the fact that there is trash in space. I've never even thought that trash could actually be in space, which is why I believe awareness regarding trash in space should be promoted. Majority of people probably don't know there is debris in space and if more people knew then maybe we could reduce the amount of debris and waste that is in space.
Quanicia R.

Anonymous said...

In “Dr. Space Junk Unearths the Cultural Landscape of the Cosmos,” Dovey focuses on the work of Alice Gorman, a space archeologist. According to Gorman, we should treat “space as a cultural landscape with richly layered scientific, political, and religious meanings, instead of an empty vacuum that anybody…can venture into with impunity” (142).

Dovey focuses on the lengths Gorman must take in order to study the materials left over from the space age. Since Gorman cannot do fieldwork in space, she must be creative in her attempts often studying left over debris in order to single out satellites to connect the “dots of our history in space in ways non-specialists can understand” (144).

What is one important way that you shifted, expanded, or at least reconsidered your views of space as a result of reading this article?


It was very eye opening about how little we know about space despite how popular it is in media such as movies, cartoons, anime, etc. it’s very important to learn more about space not only to find new beginnings but to understand how we began as well. Not only that but we can keep space clean as well somehow, but not until we get more understanding as to how the debris got up there in the first place or where it came from. ~Curtis G.

Anonymous said...

After reading this article my views have shifted because now I see that garbage is in space and it's not just an earth thing. The Earth is already harmed from garbage of the planet so now we have to try to clean up the debris in space.We don't know what all or who all is in space, but we could potentially be harming other organisms.
-Deja Lane

Anonymous said...

Reading this article gave me a new view on how “space junk” is also a result of the pollution that we humans create. Dovey goes on to state, “NASA estimates that there are now more than 500,000 bits of human-made debris...” (143). This number is staggering to me, considering that humans have not been exploring space for even 100 years yet. I can’t help but to worry that in the coming decades of space exploration there will be a dangerously high amount of debris in Earth’s orbit. -Connor W. *REPOST*

Peyton W said...

After reading this article I am now aware that spade junk even exists. It’s sad to see how as humans we pollute the land, the sea, and now space. As humans we need to find a better way to end this pollution problem instead of running away from the problem and finding a new outlet (space) to dump or trash. Just like how pollution is coming us problems currently, it’s also gonna cause problems in the long run if we don’t stop.

-Peyton Williams (post never went through)

Kailey Blanton said...

This article gave me another aspect of human affect that I have never considered -- that being that we can pollute space. The unawareness of this situation is frightening and the fact that the only reason I know about it now is from reading this proves how it is not being portrayed properly. If this were to bite us back it would not just affect a group of people but everyone on Earth. Something needs to be done.

-Kailey Blanton (posting again)

Anonymous said...

Reading this passage made me think to myself "Why are humans worry about what is out in space instead of discovering everything on our planet first?" We have only explored 5% of our oceans. That is nothing, know nothing about our own planet yet we are polluting it like crazy. Try learning your world before destroying it.
-Anthony H.

Anonymous said...

"Despite international efforts to track this debris, nobody has a complete catalogue of exactly what's up there. The Space Age is only six decades old, and already its documentary record is riddled with gaps"(143). This shifted my view on space because I used to think that we knew a lot but it turns out we only know very little about it. Also, I thought that there would only be garbage on Earth, but I now know about "space junk." ~Demetria J.

Abdul Nelson said...

When reading this article I came across things I was unaware about it. For example, in the article it said, " NASA estimates that there are now more than 500,000 bits of human-made debris the size of a marble or larger in Earth orbit." I was shocked that there was that much junk in space. It's unbelievable how much junk we send to outer space.

Amia Welch said...

Before reading an article I thought the whole space junk thing was just a myth but after reading it I see that it is a very real thing. And it is concerning because we are not just junking up the planet but beyond the planet as well. What are we going to start destroying next at this point.

Amia Welch