We are taking the circular economy to space before we have fully built it on Earth.
As space activity grows, so does the amount of equipment left behind. Satellites reach the end of their missions, components become obsolete, and valuable materials remain locked in orbit.
Researchers are now exploring a “Circular Space Economy”: ways to reuse, repair, refurbish, recycle, and even recover resources in space.
What makes this fascinating to me is the perspective it creates. Space forces us to think about resources differently, because every kilogram launched has a cost.
Maybe that constraint could teach us something valuable for Earth too. When resources are limited, designing out waste stops being an option and becomes a necessity.
