The history of human civilization is a history of exploring and exploiting resources.

From the Stone Age to the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, the Steam Age, and the Information Age, humanity's ability to utilize Earth's resources has rapidly expanded.

However, all the resources upon which past human development depended were finite and confined to the small rocky planet of Earth.

In the current era of space exploration, humans are faced with infinite resources. For instance, there are at least a trillion stars in the universe, and even the most inconspicuous of stars, with their billionth of radiation energy, have shaped all known life on Earth.

Nevertheless, the dream of developing the distant interstellar space with current human spacefaring technology remains distant. Humanity can only start with the first step at hand, especially in the near-Earth orbit, which ranges from 200 to 2000 kilometers from the Earth's surface.

This region serves as the interface between Earth and the vastness of space, possessing both the characteristics of space and relative ease of development, making it the preferred orbit for human-crewed spaceflight and most spacecraft.

Once in the near-Earth orbit, minimal fuel is needed to maintain a stable orbit around Earth, and spacecraft are in a steady state of weightlessness. This creates a perfect experimental environment that is nearly impossible to sustain long-term on Earth.

For example, water droplets in space quickly form perfect spheres naturally, biological growth and movement are unaffected by gravity, and the spacecraft surface serves as a platform for high-tech experiments, even in the unique space radiation environment.

In space, Earth's atmosphere, magnetic field, and ionosphere influence on spacecraft is significantly lower than on Earth's surface. For instance, when space telescopes enter cosmic space, they can observe almost all electromagnetic waves. On Earth, due to the shielding effect of the geomagnetic field/ionosphere, atmospheric interference, and human light/electromagnetic pollution, most electromagnetic wave bands are unreachable.

In the space age, space telescopes like "Hubble," "Spitzer," and "Herschel" have extensively reshaped human astronomy.

Furthermore, the near-Earth orbit is closer to Earth, with higher orbital velocity and shorter periods. Deploying remote sensing satellites in near-Earth orbit provides more explicit observational information and allows for faster global coverage.

After networking, it can become a perfect "sky net," with significant implications. Earth is the cradle of humanity, and the near-Earth orbit is humanity's first "learning walker."

As companies worldwide hastily launch satellites into near-Earth orbit, astronomers are considering potential impacts: How many satellites can space accommodate? What happens if the limit is exceeded? What impact will the increasing launches, burns, and space debris have on the Earth's surface and the atmospheric environment?

How will astronomical observation and discovery be affected? What can astronomers, satellite companies, and other stakeholders do to mitigate their negative impacts?

Aaron Boley, a planetary astronomer at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, is interested in space's sustainable utilization and development. He notes that humanity increasingly relies on space activities, such as global navigation, time synchronization for banking and other purposes, global security monitoring, disaster relief, post-disaster recovery, understanding climate change, and providing internet access.

"We want to use space more because it can significantly improve human life on Earth," says Boley. However, he points out that issues like the ozone hole in the stratosphere, the accumulation of plastics in the oceans, and climate change are warning signs that "we, as humans, have an astonishing ability to underestimate our impact on the environment." Unbridled exploitation of space "could potentially diminish the future potential of using space."