Spacex’s newest fleet of satellites is tumbling out of orbit after being
struck by a solar storm.
Up to 40 of the 49 small satellites launched last week have either reentered
the atmosphere and burned up, or are on the verge of doing so, the company
said in an online update Tuesday night.
SpaceX said a geomagnetic storm last Friday made the atmosphere denser,
which increased the drag on the Starlink satellites, effectively dooming
them.
Ground controllers tried to save the compact, flat-panel satellites by
putting them into a type of hibernation and flying them in a way to minimize
drag. But the atmospheric pull was too great, and the satellites failed to
awaken and climb to a higher, more stable orbit, according to the company.
SpaceX still has close to 2,000 Starlink satellites orbiting Earth and
providing internet service to remote corners of the world. They circle the
globe more than 340 miles up (550 kilometers).
The satellites hit by the solar storm were in a temporary position. SpaceX
deliberately launches them into this unusually low orbit so that any duds
can quickly reenter the atmosphere and pose no threat to other spacecraft.
There is no danger from these newly falling satellites, either in orbit or
on the ground, according to the company.
Each satellite weighs less than 575 pounds (260 kilograms).
SpaceX described the lost satellites as a “unique situation.” Such
geomagnetic storms are caused by intense solar activity like flares, which
can send streams of plasma from the sun’s corona hurtling out into space and
toward Earth.
Since launching the first Starlink satellites in 2019, Elon Musk envisions a
constellation of thousands more satellites to increase internet service.
SpaceX is trying to help restore internet service to Tonga through this
network following the devastating volcanic eruption and tsunami.
London-based OneWeb has its own internet satellites up there. And Amazon
plans to start launching its satellites later this year.
Astronomers are distressed that these mega constellations will ruin
nighttime observations from Earth. The International Astronomical Union is
forming a new center for the protection of dark skies.
Source: Link
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Space & Astrophysics