New brighter Starlink satellites worry astronomers
Published: Friday, Aug 30th 2024, 08:30
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The US aerospace company SpaceX is planning a new expansion stage for its Starlink satellite constellation. However, the plans have astronomers around the world on alert.
According to a study by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), these could shine much brighter than the existing satellites. This hinders astronomical observations. The study has not yet been reviewed by independent researchers. It was published on the Internet.
The new satellites will not only provide access to the Internet anywhere in the world via an antenna, like the previous Starlink satellites. These new direct-to-cell (DTC) satellites would also be directly accessible with a smartphone without an additional antenna, just like the terrestrial mobile network.
SpaceX launched six prototypes of the new satellites into space on January 3 of this year. Following successful tests, the company applied to the relevant regulatory authorities in the USA for permission to launch 7,500 DTC satellites, which are to orbit at an altitude of 340 to 345 kilometers. Reason enough for the IAU to take a close look at the impact of the new satellites.
Up to five times brighter
Anthony Mallama and his colleagues from the "IAU Center for the Protection of the Dark Sky from Interference by Satellite Constellations" not only collected reports from observers around the world about the six prototypes already orbiting in space. They also carried out precise measurements with the MMT9 robotic telescope at the Russian Selentschuk Observatory in the Caucasus. Overall, it was found that the new satellites shine up to 4.9 times brighter than the previous Starlink satellites.
However, the measurements can only provide an initial impression, the scientists emphasize. It is still unclear, for example, how much the satellites' antenna contributes to their brightness. In the past, SpaceX has shown itself to be cooperative with astronomers: With the help of a whole series of measures - such as less reflective exterior coatings - the brightness of the satellites could be reduced.
"If such measures are comparably successful with the DTC satellites, the increase in brightness could be reduced by around half to 2.6 times in the best-case scenario," Mallama and his colleagues write.
Satellite burns up over Switzerland
SpaceX currently operates over 6,000 Starlink satellites in low Earth orbits - this figure is set to rise to over 34,000. And the more there are, the more difficult it will be for sky researchers to observe undisturbed. For two years now, the IAU has therefore been operating its own satellite monitoring system, which astronomers can use to plan their observations.
Many people in Switzerland became aware of the satellites on Tuesday evening when a Starlink satellite burned up and created a spectacular tail of fire. According to experts, the satellite was no longer needed and was therefore deliberately steered into the atmosphere to burn up.
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