
Allen Versfeld
Allen Versfeld is a life-long amateur astronomer and science writer. He has served as directors of the Astrophotography and Citizen Science sections of the Astronomical Society of South Africa, and plans to publish new episodes on the Urban Astronomer Podcast any day now.
You can find his social media on Mastodon
Recent Articles
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African Space Agency takes flight
May 04, 2025On 20 April, 2025, the African Space Agency (AfSA) was formally launched at an inauguration ceremony in Cairo, Egypt. The decision to create AfSA was made by the African Union (AU) in 2016 to coordinate the continent's approach to space, and enact the African Space Policy and Strategy. AfSA will coordinate African space cooperation with Europe and other international partners.
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More Greenhouse Gases Means Less Room for Satellites
April 13, 2025Whether your views on climate change are informed by politics or science, it's getting harder to ignore it's effects on our lives down here on Earth. But a surprising study reports that increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere could also be affecting the problem of space junk. As the heat energy stored in our atmosphere increases, its ability to scrub debris from Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) decreases, increasing the risk of satellite collisions and making it more likely that humanity could lose access to space entirely.