The Download: satellites' climate impact, and OpenAI's frantic release schedule

In September, a unique chase took place in the skies above Easter Island. From a rented jet, a team of researchers captured a satellite's last moments as it fell out of space and blazed into ash across the sky, using cameras and scientific equipment. Their hope was to gather priceless insights into the physical and chemical processes that occur when satellites burn up as they fall to Earth at the end of their missions. This kind of study is growing more urgent. The number of satellites in the sky is rapidly rising--with a tenfold increase forecast by the end of the decade. Letting these satellites burn up in the atmosphere at the end of their lives helps keep the quantity of space junk to a minimum.