Laser 'license plates' help satellites dodge orbital collisions

NASA Debris Plot

The number of artificial satellites orbiting the Earth has increased exponentially in recent years, from under 1000 in 2010 to over 11,000 today. As the amount of traffic in orbit has increased, so has the risk of collision. Collisions are expensive and create even more orbiting objects, with more than 40,000 pieces of debris now in low …