I think that will change very quickly when we have a collision in space. I imagine SpaceX, for instance, would be pretty interested in cleaning up space junk if two of their LEO satellites collide.
the point of SpaceX putting things into LEO (which we should really call SLEO or something, because it's super-low) is that the orbits are self-clearing on a reasonable timescale, months or single-digit years.
GEO is likewise not a problem because things out there are really far apart and they generally don't cross each other's orbits.
MEO (where GNSS services live) is the real danger. Thankfully there aren't a ton of objects there, but deorbiting the dead ones should be a very high priority on anyone's list.
How much money would SpaceX lose per day in that event? I imagine the thread of a cascading set of collisions becomes more likely after the first one, also. I think SpaceX would be very interested in clearing debris as soon as possible in the event of a collision. Months or single-digit years likely would cost SpaceX many billions.
> would be pretty interested in cleaning up space junk if two of their LEO satellites collide.
SpaceX satellites are passively de-conflicted. Which means that the orbits are planned such that the satellites never can be at the same place at the same point in time. But yes SpaceX does care a lot about debris in their orbital shell.
GEO is likewise not a problem because things out there are really far apart and they generally don't cross each other's orbits.
MEO (where GNSS services live) is the real danger. Thankfully there aren't a ton of objects there, but deorbiting the dead ones should be a very high priority on anyone's list.