Space companies are scrambling to solve the problem of defunct satellites

Two long-defunct US satellites came within 155 feet of colliding at nearly 33,000 miles per hour on Jan. 29, about 560 miles (900 km) above the Earth. If that sounds like a long time, consider that the two satellites that nearly crashed this week were launched in 1967 and 1983, and would have de-orbited a decade ago or more if they had followed similar specifications. When most satellites were operated by the government or large companies closely tied to it, managing spacecraft was fairly easy.