Millimeter-sized debris reveals the truth behind space "blindness": the next beam of light for interstellar telescopes must first illuminate the danger.

On November 4, 2025, just one day before their planned return to Earth, the Shenzhou-20 astronaut crew, during a routine check of the return capsule, discovered a local anomaly on the edge of the porthole—a tiny triangular mark—breaking the tranquility of their journey home. Initially, the nature of this small mark was difficult to determine, but it was suspected to be a foreign object. The astronauts immediately followed instructions to take detailed images from different angles and under different lighting conditions, and also used a camera on the space station's robotic arm to capture auxiliary images from outside the capsule, constructing multi-dimensional observation data. After these images were transmitted back to Earth, more than ten experts in the glass and aerospace fields in China quickly assembled to analyze them, ultimately concluding that it was a crack penetrating the outer heat-resistant glass. As the first line of defense against temperatures exceeding 1,000 degrees Celsius during reentry, the outer glass had completely failed. Analysis revealed that the culprit was a tiny space debris less than 1 millimeter in diameter, whose extremely high velocity caused the fatal damage. Less than 12 hours after the crack was confirmed, the mission command decisively pressed the pause button on the return mission, thus beginning a space emergency test that would last more than 20 days and was crucial to the safety of the astronauts. This also made humanity once again face the invisible thorns hidden on the road to space exploration.

Shortly after , the European SpainSat NG-2 communications satellite experienced an anomaly in its highly elliptical transfer orbit, exhibiting orbital instability. The cause of this high-end spacecraft, valued at approximately $2.3 billion (about €2 billion), has drawn widespread attention. Preliminary official assessments suggest it was likely caused by an impact from space particles (space debris or micrometeorites), but the particle size and specific damage details remain unclear . The relevant team is continuing to assess its condition and take appropriate action .

The two incidents, which occurred in the low Earth orbit and high Earth orbit regions respectively, both point to the core dilemma of space exploration: "invisibility" is the most fatal risk to space infrastructure.

The fragments aren't few, they're just "invisible."

Currently, there are 13,000 satellites in orbit globally, with Starlink satellites accounting for over 70%. Driven by the need for orbital adjustments, satellite maneuvers are extremely frequent, resulting in complex, intertwined orbital trajectories that significantly increase the difficulty and urgency of space situational awareness.

According to joint statistics from the U.S. Space Surveillance Network and the European Space Agency, there are only about 30,000 space targets that can be sustainably cataloged and tracked globally, while the total number of millimeter-sized debris with a diameter of 1 to 10 millimeters has exceeded 140 million pieces. The radar cross-section of such debris is usually less than 0.0001 square meters, which is equivalent to searching for a ping-pong ball 1,000 kilometers away. The existing radar monitoring system is simply unable to cover it.

The "invisible" hidden dangers have continued to fester:

● LeoLabs , a space situational awareness company , the number of "forced maneuvers" for collision avoidance by satellites worldwide in 2025 will increase sevenfold compared to 2019.

● The near-Earth orbit satellite insurance market has undergone significant adjustments due to the rising risk of orbital collisions. Insurance coverage for low-value satellites is low, with most satellites only having short-term insurance during the launch phase. The coverage and amount of in-orbit insurance are limited by risk management, requiring companies to bear some potential losses themselves.

● With the number of low-Earth orbit satellites increasing by 76% since 2019, space congestion has become a focal point in the global space industry. The issue is expected to attract increasing attention from capital markets in 2025, reflecting the industry's widespread concern about the scarcity of orbital resources and operational risks.

Space "Blindness" = New Infrastructure Gap

the increasing number of satellites in orbit globally and over 44,000 traceable pieces of space debris, the risk of orbital congestion and collisions continues to escalate. Space "blindness" has become a core pain point restricting aerospace development, and a space situational awareness system is a crucial new infrastructure to fill this gap. Currently, many countries around the world are accelerating their development in the space situational awareness field, guided by policy and supported by funding, to seize the initiative in future space governance.

● United States: By 2025, the Space Force will upgrade its advanced tracking system, with the Space Development Agency approving a $3.5 billion contract to build 72 missile tracking and early warning satellites to enhance the low-Earth orbit constellation's awareness capabilities.

● Europe: The European Space Agency will launch the European Space Resilience Programme by the end of 2025, allocating 1.2 billion euros to build a dual-use military and civilian space intelligence and surveillance network, enabling global revisit monitoring every 30 minutes.

● China: Guided by the "Action Plan for Promoting High-Quality and Safe Development of Commercial Spaceflight (2025-2027)," it supports space debris monitoring and collision early warning; the commercial "Star Eye" constellation plan has been launched, with 156 monitoring satellites planned, and a test satellite to be launched in the first half of 2026.

Interstellar Optical Remote Sensing: Rotate the remote sensing lens 90° to "test the light" of space first.

Our original track of Earth observation is still in its infancy, while interstellar optical remote sensing is consolidating the advantages of optical cameras and opening up an unprecedented space dimension for this technology.

Its main business remains focused on the research and development of "optical cameras," continuously refining its ultimate capabilities in high-definition imaging of the Earth; however, its next-generation payload is shifting its focus from the Earth's surface to deep space.

Utilizing our proven and mature imaging technology, we will create a "space debris microscope" that can provide accurate early warnings of collision risks for satellites in orbit. This will add a second growth curve to the company's portfolio, in addition to "high-definition Earth imaging" and "dual-mode space-ground empowerment."

To every fellow traveler gazing at the stars

Debris passing overhead takes only a fraction of a second, yet it's enough to wipe out billions of dollars in assets in an instant; while a 30-minute warning is the key to shaping the next space order.

At this moment, the "space sentinel" of interstellar light is quietly growing in the clean room—when it opens its eyes for the first time in the future, it will transmit not only cold data, but also traffic lights that humanity has lit for the universe.

Please look up, and stop being a bystander watching the spaceship disappear into the distance; this time, we invite you to plant the word "let" between the blueprints and the spectrum, so that even before it takes off, it can write order into the stars in advance.