How to build a computer from scratch: A beginner’s guide

The Digital Trends PC Build Guide

• Choosing the right components
• Putting the hardware together
• What to do if your new rig won’t boot

Building a computer used to be a complicated process, where careful selection of delicate parts was a necessity. When that collection of components finally booted for the first time, it was a triumphant experience. Knowing how to build a computer made you quite the tech-head.

Nowadays it’s easier than ever, with clear standards of compatibility, obvious choices for performance and value, and an actual building process that’s straightforward and well documented. That said, there are pitfalls to avoid and assumptions experienced builders make that newcomers won’t know.

To help out new PC builders and experienced enthusiasts alike, we’ve compiled this handy step-by-step guide that will take you from a pile of parts to a working computer in just a couple of hours.

Getting started

This guide is all about putting your components together. If you haven’t selected and purchased all the hardware you need, stop reading and go check out our PC build guide, which outlines recommended components for a variety of builds.

Have your parts? Good. Let’s get started.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Before you dig in, ensure there’s a clean workspace with plenty of room to open boxes and put parts together. Hopefully there’s already a pile of them in front of you, but if not, our PC build guide can walk you through that process.

There are a couple of safety issues to discuss before we actually start ripping open those boxes.

You can feel it

There’s an invisible risk when building a computer that can crush the most powerful system: Static electricity. The same force that lets you shock your friends when you wear wool socks can also fry components in a heartbeat. Fortunately, it’s easy to all but eliminate with a few simple steps.

One easy solution is to purchase an anti-static wristband. One end wraps around your wrist, and the other clips somewhere on the computer case, keeping the wearer constantly grounded. Touching the case frequently with the PSU plugged in, but turned off, achieves the same effect.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Apart from that, it helps to build in a room with a bare floor — carpets generate a lot of static — and wear rubber-sole shoes rather than socks. Many components are packaged in anti-static bags, and it’s a good idea to leave them there until just before installation.

Need help? Just ask

Building a PC for the first time can be a little tricky, but the good news is there are many resources to help. People who like building computers don’t often get the opportunity. If you have an enthusiast friend, they may jump at the chance to help put it together.

This guide is meant as a general overview of the process, and the instructions your parts came with may vary from our suggestions. When they do, default to the included instructions, and use our guide as a road map for the whole project.

Clever new LED lighting system thwarts unwanted smartphone photography

Why it matters to you

Whether it’s for reasons of privacy or copyright protection, this smart LED lighting system disrupts camera sensors by producing a flickering pattern that ruins photos.

In a world in which virtually everyone carries a high-quality camera with them in the form of a smartphone, enforcing “no photography” rules — for copyright or privacy reasons — is next to impossible. That’s a problem researchers at the University of California San Diego and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have attempted to solve with a new project. To do so, they’ve created a smart LED system, which produces a flickering pattern that interferes with the camera sensor on mobile devices.

“We developed LiShield, a smart LED ‘light shield’ which deters illegal photography of sensitive physical objects, such as people, museum art, or documents, and automatically enforces the visual privacy protection without any user intervention,” Shilin Zhu, one of the researchers on the project, told Digital Trends. “The basic principle is to illuminate the environment with an eye-transparent light waveform, so that captured images or video are distorted because of the camera’s rolling shutter mechanism.”

As Zhu mentions, what makes the solution particularly useful is that the flickering pattern is invisible to the human eye, since it takes place at such a high frequency — while nonetheless wreaking (temporary) havoc on a phone’s camera sensor.

University of California-San Diego/University of Wisconsin-Madison

The researchers have also come up with a way to let “authorized users” recover the image or video by sending waveform information about the light’s flickering pattern to the mobile device so that the two can sync together, or by piecing together several frames of video to create a still image. Zhu says that it is also possible to get the LED to generate structured light to embed an invisible watermark, which can then be detected after the fact by online servers to prevent illegal distribution.

At present, the technology works only with a single LED and a relatively small indoor space. In the future, the researchers want to explore methods of using multiple smart LEDs to cover a much larger area. “We are also developing a way to further enhance the protection so that the system can be used in applications which require high security, such as would be the case with the military,” Zhu continued. “We are happy to help anyone who is interested in commercializing this technology to take it into the real world.”

A paper describing the work was recently presented on the first day of the ACM Mobicom 2017 conference, near Salt Lake City, Utah.

Adobe launches new programs and updates to old favorites at 2017 Max conference

Why it matters to you

Previously beta tested software is now available from Adobe, as well as updates to Adobe favorites.

In the largest Adobe Max conference yet, on Oct. 18, Adobe announced the launch of four new or newly-out-of-beta applications, including Adobe XD, Dimension, Character Animator, and a completely new Lightroom CC (read our separate article on Lightroom CC). The launch also comes with updates to Adobe’s existing Creative Cloud lineup, including Illustrator and Premiere Pro.

The launch touches on three major themes for next-generation experiences, accelerated creativity and smarter software through the artificial intelligence program, Adobe Sensei. Enhanced collaboration and cross-channel content is also a focus for the latest Adobe releases, all as part of the company’s largest launch since switching to the Creative Cloud (CC) more than five years ago.

Adobe XD

Adobe

Adobe XD, what Adobe calls an all-in-one user interface tool with “design at the speed of thought,” is now out of beta testing and available as version 1.0. The platform, previously called Adobe Experience Design, is designed for creating websites and apps but focuses on team collaboration. With Creative Cloud integration, the program allows users to share prototypes and gather and apply feedback inside the app, eliminating the need to upload or sync files. CC integration allows the files to also load in other applications, like opening an image in Photoshop and syncing the changes back to the original design.

XD also brings a number of modern contextual tools, like the ability to easily recreate a repeat grid pattern or populate a grid pattern with images and text. Previews load instantly — including the ability to view the preview on a mobile device while working on the file in real time.

Through a new assets panel, XD now allows several elements to be altered at once across the entire app or website design. For example, logos (when saved as symbols), colors and text can all be adjusted simultaneously, instead of manually going back in to adjust the element on every page.

Adobe Dimension

Project Felix also moves from the beta stages to version 1.0, all with a new name as Adobe Dimension. The software is designed for creating 3D graphics with the simplicity of a 2D program, Adobe says. Dimension simplifies the process by using a modular, intuitive user interface. Integration with Adobe Stock as well as Photoshop and Illustrator allows users to place 3D objects within the scene, adjusting effects such as lighting to make the new object match the surroundings. Adobe Sensi is also responsible for a number of features in Dimension 1.0, including auto align and auto horizon tools.

Adobe Character Animator

Adobe Character Animator, a program Adobe previewed during a Max conference two years ago, has also now fully emerged from development. The program allows designers to create two-dimensional characters inside of Photoshop or Illustrator, then bring them to life using voice and gestures, even for live presentations. Adobe says the program offers accurate lip sync and facial expressions. The new tool also allows designers to animate existing projects.

Updates for photo, video and design programs

A split creating the entirely new Lightroom CC, along with the traditional but re-named Lightroom  Classic rounds out the list of newly launched programs for Adobe. (The Lightroom and Photoshop updates are covered in detail here).

The launch is also bringing a number of new updates to Adobe’s existing favorites. Premiere Pro is gaining several new tools with immersive 360 and virtual reality workflows. Video editors can now also work on multiple projects simultaneously, along with access to new Motion Graphics templates inside of Adobe Stock.

After Effects also sees the same new immersive 360 and virtual reality updates. Enhancements to the GPU give After Effects more speed and more capability for creating effects such as animations and motion blur. Data-driven animations are also part of the release.

Adobe Team Projects 1.0 is also a new tool, designed to allow video editors to collaborate on large projects. The tool is designed to simplify the process of collaborating on video projects using Premiere Pro and After Effects.

Adobe Illustrator gains a new contextual properties panel in the latest update, along with enhancements to the artboard including expanding the limit on the number of boards inside a single file. Variable fonts, with customization made possible through width, slant and weight sliders, is also supported. The design tool also gains a new Puppet Warp tool.

InDesign also sees a number of text-focused updates, with endnotes and paragraph border support and other typographic enhancements.  The position and height of an object can also now be saved inside Object Styles, while text can now be included in the Creative Cloud library.

Typekit, Adobe’s font manager, is also getting a new feature powered by computer vision: reverse type search. The new tool allows designers to upload a photo of a text they like. Adobe Sensi will then work to match the font to the closest existing font in the library.

Adobe also shared Spark Premium during Max, a paid version of the free design platform announced last month. Spark Premium now allows users to remove the Adobe branding and save details from their own brand, like colors and fonts.

Adobe also shared the expanded Adobe Live channel, a designated spot for streaming live tutorials and training videos and where fans can also watch Adobe Max presentations in real-time.

The 2017 Adobe Max event is expected to be the largest one yet, with 12,000 creatives expected, representing 62 different countries.

The new programs and updated software are all available through various CC subscription options.

Screen share comes to Facebook Live for streaming games, tutorials

Why it matters to you

A new feature simplifies the process of sharing a screen on Facebook Live, eliminating the need for third-party software.

Facebook Live doesn’t necessarily need your smartphone camera or webcam to start a video — now, the social media giant appears to be adding an option to share your screen instead of a live video selfie. With a new plug-in, Facebook Live can now broadcast a screen from a desktop computer.

The feature, first spotted by The Next Web, allows users to broadcast what’s on their desktop screen without third-party software, though the feature requires downloading the plug-in. The option also requires an updated Chrome browser.

When users head to the live video option on a desktop browser inside Facebook, a new screen share option is listed among the different Live settings. With the extension installed, users can choose to share their entire screen, a single Chrome tab, or the entire window on another application. A simple checkbox allows broadcasters to choose whether or not to include audio during the screen share.

The new screen-share option opens up a number of different potential live-streams, such as streaming video game play, sharing software tutorials or sharing a web page. With screen-share options for broadcasting with or without audio, as well as options for sharing entire screens or single application windows, a number of users may find the new features a simpler way to share.

The tool is new for Facebook Live’s built-in options, though third-party applications such as Open Broadcaster Software also allow the feature and a few more advanced options, including a picture-in-picture using the screen share and the web cam simultaneously. With the integrated option, however, starting a live screen share is simpler to do, which means if you don’t start a live screen share yourself, you’ll probably at least see a few more popping up in your news feed.

Facebook has launched a number of new features designed for live-streaming over the past year to beef up the relatively new but popular way to share on the social media platform. Those Facebook Live projects included the ability to live-stream with augmented reality filters, 360 live-streams, and adding an intro before the stream starts. At the same time, the social media platform started penalizing “live” broadcasts that aren’t actually live.

Take to the virtual skies with these free flight simulators

So do you feel the need? The need for … rapid forward movement at an altitude of 35,000 feet? Then you came to the right place. Flight simulation games have been around since electrical engineer Bruce Artwick introduced the prehistoric Microsoft Flight Simulator — before it was even called that — on the 8-bit Apple II back in the late-’70s, kicking off decades worth of commercial software.

As PC processing power advanced, flight simulators became increasingly realistic, letting users experience what it’s like to be a pilot from the comfort of their homes. While flight simulators can cost an inordinate amount of money, there are numerous viable options that won’t cost you a dime. Here are the seven best free flight simulators, from traditional flying sims to those that throw a bit of combat into the fray.

Old-fashioned flight sims

Google Earth Flight Simulator — Windows, MacOS, Chrome

Google Earth has many hidden features we tend to overlook. The interactive, virtual globe allows you explore the vast corners of the universe, from the Orion Nebula to the Vortex Galaxy, as well as comb all regions of our own planet in stunning topographic detail. Also buried within the software? A built-in flight simulator that lets users take control of either a Cirrus SR22 propeller plane or an F-16 Viper. Perusing the globe (or solar system) in GEFS is a little more immersive than scrolling around with your mouse and keyboard.

It’s not the most realistic or feature-rich simulator — there is no autopilot, sound, crash simulation, or much in the way of aircraft variety — but the software does give you a spectacular bird’s-eye view of the landscape with 3D buildings provided by Google’s satellite imagery. Onboard controls allow you to adjust your speed and altitude, but that is essentially it. Like many flight sims, GEFS lets you lift off from various airports around the globe, start directly in the air, or begin your flight from where you ended your previous session. GEFS Online — a separate flight simulator that utilizes the former Google Earth plug-in — adds additional airports, aircraft, and an element of online interaction with chat functions and a player-laden world. And yes, a third of all players choose Maverick, Iceman, or Goose for their username.

GEFS is not the most pragmatic approach to virtual flying, but it’s easily accessible to casual users and doesn’t require any external software should you decide to use Google Chrome instead of the desktop app. Google also offers a basic GEFS user guide if you’re having trouble with the controls.

YSFlight — Windows, MacOS

Sometimes it feels as though YSFlight has not evolved much from its humble beginnings, but that is not such a bad thing. The software is incredibly light on system resources — that is no surprise given the simulator’s basic design and less-than-impressive visuals — yet it still offers a robust set of built-in features. And for just a few megabytes, who can really complain?

The sim provides more than 70 aircraft to choose from, spanning everything from the Blue Angels F-18 Hornet to an Apache helicopter, along with a wide array of maps that encompass a host of well-known regions from around the globe. Additional features, such as wind variables and a day-night component, can also be tweaked with relative ease. It’s a very customizable piece of software, allowing you to do anything from flying in Delta formation with artificial intelligence wingmates to engaging in aerial dogfights with your friends. While you do so, the Atari-esque HUB delivers details on in-flight speeds, elevation, direction, and other essential information. Gameplay footage can also be recorded and replayed directly within the program — a nice touch, to be sure — and YSFlight also includes joystick support as well as standard controls for your mouse and keyboard.

The most incredible aspect of the game, however, is its homespun history. Soji Yamakawa, aka Captain YS, created the simulator on his own as a university project in 1999. He continued to develop the project as a hobby over the ensuing years, though, the software hasn’t received a substantial update in quite some time. There are far more beautiful flight sims out there, but YSFlight keeps it simple and still welcoming.

FlightGear  — Windows, MacOS

FlightGear is the undisputed champ when it comes to advanced settings and pure, unrestricted customization. The open-source software’s roots date back to 1997, but the developers and the rabid community of users have been expanding and tweaking the freemium title’s extensive map and feature-set ever since. Update 3.1 arrived in September, bringing the program up to current computing standards. However, quality and customization come at a price: The software is the most resource-intensive option on our list.

Once installed — a process that can be a hassle if you’re unused to the barebones nature of open-source software documentation — users can navigate the beautiful, 3D-rendered environments in a Cessna 172 or choose from a deep variety of virtual aircraft that includes a Boeing 777, an A6M20 Zero, and even a Zeppelin NT07 airship. The software makes use of a limited amount of built-in scenery, but you can download various regions of the globe and more than 20,000 airports directly through FlightGear‘s website, via BitTorrent, or by purchasing an optional Blu-ray disc. The daunting installation process and interface are also easier to deal with if you’re willing to spend some time using the FlightGear wiki, which walks you through the setup process and helps you with taking off, landing, and other basic flight procedures.

FlightGear is consistently praised for its ongoing dedication on the part of the development community and its realism, earning high marks for everything from the overall flight controls to minute details such as lighting. And while it may be big, bulky, and full of high-flying muscle, the abundance of user-curated documentation and stellar support functions are enough to keep any newcomer afloat.

X-Plane — Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS

Disclaimer: The full version of X-Plane 10 is a paid product. The demo version includes all aircraft and features, but pilots are limited to the greater Seattle area and flights cannot last longer than 15 minutes. Users can also download demos of X-Plane 8 and X-Plane 9 for free via links on the official website. The forthcoming X-Plane 11 is set for release this holiday season. 

Laminar Research’s X-Plane 10 is not for the faint of heart. Though building and ground detail can be sparse at times, the game more than makes up for it with sheer scale. The default installation allows you to hop into one of more than 30 aircraft and explore the globe to your heart’s content, from London to Los Angeles and beyond. X-Plane takes itself seriously, so much so that the developers claim that it’s “… not a game, but an engineering tool that can be used to predict the flying qualities of fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft with incredible accuracy.”

This accuracy is achieved — in theory, at least — through a unique aerodynamic model known as “blade element theory.” This theory simulates flight by modeling forces on each component of the aircraft simultaneously, rather than using the predefined lookup tables that have become the standard for simulating aviation. The Blade element theory is often used to pre-compute aerodynamic forces for simulations that have not been run. This affords X-Plane users more freedom when designing potential aircraft to add to the game, though it can be more finicky (and less accurate) when piloting existing aircraft.

X-Plane is incredibly detailed, with little touches such as detailed weather modeling and the potential for system failures. Nearly every component of a plane can fail randomly, which, while frustrating, helps create a more realistic simulation experience and goes to show just how much work was put into the program. Users can also pilot anything from a B-2 Bomber to a space shuttle, and there are hundreds of additional aircraft available via both freemium and premium add-ons. X-Plane can be a bear at first, sure, but you will be doing barrel rolls in no time with a little practice.

Make your home smell more welcoming with the Renaisscent diffuser

Why it matters to you

Looking for a way to make your home more welcoming? You might consider starting with scents, with the help of the Renaisscent.

Wake up and smell the coffee, or just about any other scent, thanks to a new waterless, app-controlled scent diffuser. The Renaisscent is the 21st-century answer to your grandparent’s bowls of potpourri and your parent’s sticks-in-a-jar approach to making their home smell more welcoming. Rather than depending on dried flowers or liquids that can spill or hit just one scent note, the Renaisscent operates without water and can be controlled from anywhere via your smartphone.

The portable little device actually makes use of a fan to diffuse its wide array of scents. With three different modes available, you can determine how intensely you want the fan to blow, and consequently, the range of your fragrance. Capable of diffusing up to six different fragrances at once and running for up to six hours at a time, the Renaisscent is ready to impress your guests with its sleek design and its straightforward function.

Within the Renaisscent are three fragrance capsules, and each capsule contains three fragrances. You can mix and match these scents to create the exact aura and ambiance you like, just about whenever you like it. With the accompanying app, you can set your diffuser to wake you up with a certain aroma, or to put you in a relaxing mood about halfway through the day. Simply set the time when you want your scent to diffuse, set the fan power to determine its intensity, decide on your duration, and pick your fragrances. From there, just sit back and smell the roses (or whatever the scent may be).

Available in three elegant colors, the Renaisscent is entirely battery operated and can be recharged using a Micro USB, so you don’t have to worry about finding an outlet in order to enjoy your favorite scents. That also makes the device the perfect travel companion — even if you can’t bring home with you, perhaps you can bring the smells of home in your suitcase.

Weighing in at less than half a pound and standing less than five inches tall, the Renaisscent should blend in seamlessly with any decor. The diffuser is available for pre-order on Indiegogo for $119, though it’s unclear when these products are shipping.

Update: The Renaisscent is now available for pre-order.

Google Play Music gets a huge redesign on Android TV

The new design is part of the v8.1 update, and it looks pretty incredible.

Android TV tends to get placed on the backburner for not only third-party app developers but Google’s own applications as well. The YouTube Android TV app finally got an update earlier this summer after radio silence for over a year, and following that, Google Play Music is now receiving a complete overhaul with a brand-new UI.

Android Police initially spotted the changes, and although the core functionality of Google Play Music on Android TV remains mostly unchanged, the updated interface looks much more modern and a lot cleaner.

The new look comes as part of the v8.1 update for Play Music, and upon opening it for the first time, you’ll see that Google has ditched the grey background in favor of one that’s pretty much pitch black. The bright orange navigation panel has been replaced with a white one, a new search button makes it easier to find your favorite tunes, and the available navigation options have been greatly simplified.

Google also updated the now playing and playlists screens, and while the changes do strip away some of the Material Design elements that were previously available, the end result is one that looks tremendously better than the same basic interface we’ve had for around three years at this point.

There are a lot of other smaller changes here and there throughout the app, and although you won’t find any new features or functions, this fresh coat of paint is one that we’re really happy to see.

The update should be rolling out now to the Google Play Store, but if want to get the new look on your Android TV device right now, you can download the APK here.

NVIDIA Shield TV vs. Amazon Fire TV vs. Roku Ultra vs. Apple TV: Which 4K streaming box should you buy?

Be the envy of the neighborhood with the $34 Oxyled Waterproof LED Projector Light

Your house will be the life of the party…any party.

Is this deal for me?

Amazon has the Oxyled Waterproof LED Projector Light on sale for $34.49 using coupon code TTQBPLM6 during checkout.

I love this projector light! It makes a great addition to your party lights and decor. You can skip the lights and decor altogether and just use this projector and your house will still look mighty festive. This projector includes 12 slides, ranging from Christmas to Halloween and snowflakes to stars images. You are set to be festive all year long.

Choose between the 4 working modes for slow, medium, fast or fixed images. The timer allows for an automatic 6-hour loop so no need for other programming. This projector is safe to use indoors and waterproof for use outdoors.

It’s is easy to install, too. It is recommended to place the lamp 10 – 15 feet away from the surface you want to have it display on, and you can either set it on the ground or use the included stake to secure it. The 16.4-foot power cable is convenient for a hard-to-reach power socket. And that’s it, the installation is complete.

I have a few useful tips for first-time projection users to reach the optimum projection performance. You will want to pick a surface area that can be easily seen from a distance and has nothing blocking it. Be sure your space is dark with little to no light around so you can see the projection clearly. With this particular projection light, it is suggested to not be over 16 feet away from your projection surface area.

With Halloween right around the corner grab a gallon of Great Party & DJ Fog Juice too add to your fog machine to make your house extra spooky.

TL;DR

• What makes this deal worth considering? – With this offer, you are getting $20 off its sale price. This projector also has a nice 4.2-star rating.
• Things to know before you buy! – You can use this projector for more than the obvious holidays and occasions. It includes slides such as butterflies, lipstick, stars and more.

See at Amazon

More from Thrifter:

• Discover the hottest holiday toys of 2017
• Amazon Prime Student is now available as a $5.49 monthly subscription

For more great deals be sure to check out our friends at Thrifter now!

Bixby 2.0 gains a developer SDK, available on additional devices, and sounds more natural

Samsung announced Bixby 2.0 at its annual developer conference, and there’s a lot to talk about.

Last week, a report surfaced with the claim that Samsung would be announcing a brand new version of Bixby on October 18 at its Samsung Developer Conference. October 18 is upon us, and wouldn’t you believe it, we’ve got some Bixby news to talk about.

Samsung used its developer conference to formally announce Bixby 2.0, and while the core Bixby experience will remain the same for those using the assistant on the Galaxy S8, Note 8, etc., there are some big under-the-hood changes that aim to make Bixby even smarter and more powerful than it currently is.

The first big update has to do with the fact that Samsung is opening up the Bixby SDK to third parties. Samsung will be using a private beta program to initially release the SDK to select developers, and over time, the company’s hope is to allow anyone to create new skills and services for its AI.

Per Samsung’s Vice President and Head of Service Intelligence of Mobile Communications, Eui-Suk Chung:

We know Samsung cannot deliver on this paradigm shift by ourselves – it can only happen if we all, across all industries, work together, in partnership. With Bixby 2.0, the doors will be wide open for developers to choose and model how users interact with Bixby in their services across all application domains e.g., sports, food, entertainment, or travel – the opportunities are truly endless.

This is easily the biggest change to Bixby, but that’s not all that Samsung announced. Bixby 2.0 will bring the assistant to other connected devices (including refrigerators, TVs, speakers, etc.) and use improved language capabilities to sound more natural and perform more complex tasks. With this update, Samsung says that Bixby will be able to “really get to know and understand not only who you are, but who members of your family are, and tailor its response and actions appropriately.”

Bixby didn’t have the smoothest launch here in the States, and while it will probably take some time for the changes in 2.0 to have a noticeable impact on most people’s day-to-day use, we’re still excited to see Samsung double-down on the platform. Bixby has a lot of room to grow, but what we’re seeing here is encouraging.

Samsung Bixby: Everything you need to know!

The robots that will sweep Earth’s skies

After six years in space, China’s first orbital station, the Tiangong-1 (aka the “Heavenly Palace”) has finally outlived its operational limits and begun its descent back to Earth. It’s expected to re-enter the atmosphere in a few months, whereupon a majority of the 9.3-ton station should burn up before reaching the surface. This is how defunct satellites are supposed to be disposed of. Unfortunately, until very recently, that hasn’t often been the case.

For the past 50 years, we’ve been filling Low Earth Orbit with defunct satellites, launch vehicle upper stages, and various bits of broken spacecraft (including frozen water, coolant and paint flecks). Most of this comes from failed launches or spent experiments. In 1963, for example, the US military unloaded 480 million needle-sized antennas into orbit to see if they’d act as a crude radio reflector array. The idea was that radio signals from Earth would bounce up into the atmosphere and bounce back down off of them, enabling longer distance radio service. Though satellite communications have since made this technology obsolete, those antennas are still up there, just floating around waiting to go full-on Gravity with a passing satellite.

By the start of the 21st century, LEO had become increasingly crowded with satellites — more than 7,000 have been launched since Sputnik first circled the globe — though only 1,500 of them remain active. That number is expected to swell to more than 18,000 man-made objects in orbit in the coming decades as private industry begins sending up communications and observation satellites in addition to national governments. In fact, of the 98 launches that took place worldwide in 2016, nearly half carried private communications satellites.

Today, there are an estimated 20,000 pieces of debris bigger than a softball in Low Earth Orbit and another 50,000 the size of a marble. We’re not sure how much junk smaller than that is in orbit — it could be on the magnitude of tens of millions — because we lack the technology to track them from the ground. This trend is sure to cause havoc if we don’t start cleaning up after ourselves.

In some ways it already has. In 2007, China destroyed its Fengyun-1C weather satellite with a ballistic missile as a show of force to the international community. Doing so spread more than 3,000 pieces of debris throughout LEO. America’s response a few months later, blew a defunct spy satellite to smithereens, though a majority of that debris field reportedly re-entered the atmosphere. Two years later, in 2009, a defunct Russian satellite crashed into an American Iridium satellite, spreading another 2,000 bits of space junk.

“It’s a serious, serious challenge,” Launchspace founder, Marshall Kaplan, told Space.com in 2013. “This is not a U.S. problem… it’s everybody’s problem. And most of the people that produced the debris, the serious offenders, like Russia, China, and the United States, are not going to spend that kind of money. It’s just not a good investment.”

“We’ve reached the point of no return,” he continued. “The debris will continue to get worse in terms of collision threats… even if not another satellite were launched, the problem will continue to get worse.”

This cascade of collisions is known as the Kessler Syndrome, named for former head of NASA’s space debris program, Donald Kessler. He mathematically proved in the 1970s that there is a saturation point of how much stuff we can place into LEO. Once we reach that critical mass, the items in that orbit are sure to set off a massive collision cascade, even if we don’t place any additional objects in that orbit. “If we’re not at the critical mass, we’re pretty close to it,” Kessler told The Atlantic in 1998.

But it’s not just our satellite communications that are in danger of being destroyed, all that space trash poses serious threats to manned missions as well. In 1983, a fleck of paint travelling at around 17,000 MPH, struck the windshield of the Challenger space shuttle and left a pea-sized pit. This happened with such startling regularity (read: literally during every mission) that NASA took to orbiting the shuttle upsidedown and backwards (relative to its direction of travel) so that the rockets would take the brunt of the impacts rather than the crew cabin.

The ISS isn’t much better off. That 2009 collision between the Russian and American satellites forced the ISS crew to scramble for safety aboard the Soyuz spacecraft should a piece of debris blast through the station’s hull.

Despite the dangers, there’s plenty we can do to mitigate the damage that this debris does. The first step is to know what, and how much of it, we’re dealing with. The Department of Defense has established the Space Surveillance Network to do just that. The SSN is able to track objects as small as 2 inches across at LEO and as small as 3 feet in geosynchronous orbit — around 21,000 of them in total.

The system doesn’t track each item continuously but rather uses a predictive method that calculates their orbital momentum so ground-based observers can “check in” with individual objects by pointing their telescopes to where and when the item should be overhead. All together, the DoD’s array of sensors and telescopes, which are spread from Hawaii to Greenland to the Indian Ocean, observe around 80,000 satellites (and pieces thereof) every day.

Of course, simply knowing where these debris fields are doesn’t alleviate the threat that they pose. We’ve got to come up with a means of inciting that space junk to fall back to the surface. And while nobody has managed to successfully deploy an orbital debris reclamation system yet, a number of space agencies are working on everything from magnetized wire lanyards and gigantic nets to “space brooms” and kamikaze robo-grapplers.

In 2012, NASA granted North Carolina-based Star Technology and Research $1.9 million to develop the ElectroDynamic Debris Eliminator (EDDE). This device, upon reaching orbit, would unfurl a 6-mile long tether which generates an attractive field as it moves through the Earth’s magnetic field. When the EDDE encounters a piece of space junk it captures it in a large net and drops the ensnared garbage into a lower orbit where the thicker atmosphere pulls it out of orbit. This is essentially the same process that JAXA’s Kounotori 6 spacecraft was attempting when a technical glitch caused that mission to fail earlier this year.

The European Space Agency has floated a similar idea except that in addition to, or even perhaps instead of, their orbital garbage truck would hunt its quarry using a tethered harpoon. It’s part of the ESA’s e.Deorbit mission which is scheduled to launch in 2021. The harpoon, which is being developed by Airbus Defense and Space, is just one of the proposed capture methods that will be tried during that mission.

Accurately piercing the hull of a defunct satellite using a space harpoon in microgravity is as technically challenging as it sounds. So rather than try to spear and reel in derelict objects, the startup Swiss Space Systems (S3), has devised a robotic grappler that clamps onto debris and drags it into the atmosphere. Dubbed the Clean Space One project, this 66-pound janitor satellite would be about the size of a breadbox. After being launched from the European Suborbital Reusable Shuttle in 2018, the CSO is tasked with tracking and capturing a non-operational Swisscube satellite, then dragging it back to Earth. The mission is expected to cost around $16 million.

One problem persistent debris capturing satellites like the ESA’s e.Deorbit face is maintaining a steady supply of propellent. You don’t want your janitor satellite to become another piece of debris simply because it ran out of power. Texas A&M University is working on a clever solution to that issue with the Space Sweeper with Sling-Sat (4S). This satellite would first capture a piece of debris then whip around, slinging the trash into the atmosphere while pushing itself into the path of its next target. By repeating this process, the 4S should be able to hop from one bit of trash to the next without having to expend an expensive and limited supply of fuel.

But what if we didn’t need to send new robots into orbit to capture the olds ones? In 2011, Raytheon BBN Technologies and the University of Michigan teamed up to devise the Space Debris Elimination (SPaDE) system. Rather than rely on satellites, SPaDE would puff concentrated bursts of atmospheric gas into the paths of LEO debris. The added friction from these gasses should be sufficient to slow the debris down enough that it falls back to Earth. Unfortunately, the SPaDE project never got beyond the drawing board.

Then again, why even expend the effort to drag dead satellites into the atmosphere when you can simply repurpose their functional (albeit unpowered) pieces? That’s what DARPA hopes to do with its Phoenix project. This system would rely on a new class of microsatellites, dubbed “satlets”, which would seek out and affix themselves to dead satellites in geosynchronous orbit.

Each satlet would restore an essential satellite function (ie power, movement control or sensors) and share data, power and thermal management capabilities among themselves. By connecting these devices in different combinations, deactivated satellites could be resurrected and their operational lifespans drastically increased. DARPA expects to launch a demonstrator mission around 2020 and commercialize the technology shortly thereafter.

This mission could prove valuable for both the military and the commercial space industry, DARPA program Manager Gordon Roesler told Via Satellite in 2015, wherein a civilian firm would own and operate the satellites themselves and the military “could just pay a commercial operator for the service.”

Despite the myriad capture options that these various systems offer, they all share one aspect in common: not one of them is ready to be put into service. It’s not economically viable at this point to send up robots like the d.Deorbit to dispose of a single piece of space junk and likely won’t be for years to come. What’s more, the government may soon face a legal minefield in its cleanup efforts as more and more privately-owned satellites come to occupy and operate in LEO.

“Removal from orbit, collision avoidance, satellite servicing and repair, satellite recycling in orbit, debris storage locations, change to using a ‘stable plane’ at higher altitudes especially in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO)… are all possibilities,” Donald Kessler told Space.com in 2013. “Some are mutually exclusive and may not be appropriate at all altitudes, while others could combine to be more effective.”

“I believe it is time that the international community takes a serious look at the future of space operations,” he concluded. “There’s need to begin a process to answer these questions and determine which path will most effectively provide a sustainable environment for spacecraft in Earth orbit.”