About 50,000 years ago, an asteroid traveling at 26,000 mph slammed into what is now Windsor, Ariz.

The impact, estimated to have the energy of 20 million tons of TNT, left a crater a mile wide, with a circumference of 2.5 miles and a depth of more than 550 feet.

“The American southwest is a breathtaking testament to forces of nature that have shaped our world,” says Tom Wilkinson in “Space Junk 3D,” which is showing through Feb. 14, 2013, at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science Phipps IMAX Theater.

If nature can do this much damage, Wilkinson said, “what’s going to happen with all the man-made objects put into space?”

This 38-minute film examines the cosmic junkyard that has resulted from 50 years of launching satellites and other objects into space. Whether people are tweeting, friending someone on Facebook, or checking out the weather forecast on TV, Wilkinson said, “Our busy lives on earth have become deeply connected to space.”

All these modern-day activities rely on satellites, but once these objects no longer function, they are left where they are. On Feb. 10, 2009, an incident shed light on the dangers of this practice. Two satellites, the Iridium 33 (owned by Iridium Communications Inc.) and Kosmos 2251 (owned by Russian Space Forces) collided at more than 26,000 mph. The Russian satellite hadn’t been in service for nearly 15 years.

That collision resulted in 100,000 pieces of debris circling in low orbit, Wilkinson said. He pointed out that even the smallest of debris, like a paint chip, could wreak havoc on a space shuttle.

Gradually, this ever-growing debris field will shrink and slow down, forming rings around Earth similar to those around Saturn.

However, scientists are working to find the best solution to clean up space — making it safer to travel and preventing man-made objects from being flung toward the planet. A few of the solutions being considered include lasers to disintegrate the trash and nets to catch the pieces. The museum is at 2001 Colorado Blvd. in Denver. Tickets range from $8 to $10.