Anyone can adopt a piece of space junk for this *very* important reason

Babies and pets are super cute and all, but who wants to adopt some space junk? Count us in! Owning something that is literally out of this world sounds like a pretty cool idea even if it technically belongs in the garbage. Besides, if you plan on becoming a citizen of the first space nation you might as well stake your claim on some space junk in advance.

Per The Daily Dot, outer space’s trash can officially become your personal treasure — and your Twitter pal. In an effort to raise awareness about the insane amount of space debris currently orbiting the planet, Cath Le Couteur and Nick Ryan have created Project Adrift, an art collective that tracks 27,000 pieces of orbital debris and converts their signals to music (insert goofy Space Jam joke here).

The adopted pieces of debris will send tweets to their Earth-bound “parents” when passing above the planet.  Those who are interested in adopting can choose from 1) the Vanguard I, the first solar powered satellite, which is the oldest object in orbit after being launched by the US in 1958; 2) the SuitSat, a trash-filled Russian space suit (yuck) that was dumped from the International Space Station in 2006; 3) and finally, a piece of the Chinese weather satellite Fengyun-1C that was destroyed by a missile, which nearly caused the amount of orbital debris to double.

With all of the troubles we face within the confines of Earth’s atmosphere, it may feel tempting to turn a blind eye to pollution that’s well beyond the planet’s surface. But as an article from Forbes that specifically pinpoints the impact of orbital junk that is larger than a couple of inches, space debris is extremely dangerous:

"Anything this size which is going fast enough to stay in orbit poses a significant threat to satellites, spacecraft, and space stations. The ISS will regularly maneuver out of the way of space junk if we see it coming soon enough. If there isn’t enough time to move the whole ISS, then the crew members of the ISS have to take shelter in one of the Soyuz capsules which are attached to the ISS in case an emergency evacuation is needed."

Le Couter’s mini-documentary offers a vivid breakdown on the impact of space debris:

So, a piece of space junk doesn’t sound as cuddly or cute as an infant or an animal, but we don’t mind showing it some much-needed attention, especially if it’s for the betterment of the environment.