A new study has raised fears that the proliferation of near-Earth satellites will impact future space exploration. The focus is on SpaceX’s new direct-to-sale Starlink satellites (DTC), which aim to enable direct connections to smartphones. According to the results, they are about five times brighter than traditional Starlink satellites. The research was published by the Centre for the Protection of Dark and Quiet Skies from Satellite Constellation Interference, part of the International Astronomical Union, a global association of astronomers.
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Direct-to-sale satellites orbit at an altitude of 350 kilometers. This is lower than the regular Starlink internet connection satellites, which orbit the Earth at an altitude of 550 kilometers. Currently, SpaceX already has 100 DTC satellites in orbit. There are plans to increase their number to 7,500 – appropriate permits have been applied for. Smartphones can connect to satellites without special hardware. However, Starlink internet service requires a special antenna. In this way, SpaceX hopes to open up a new business area in collaboration with mobile network operators.
The brightness should be reduced further.
In January 2024, SpaceX launched the first six DTC satellites into orbit. In early attempts, text messages were successfully sent and video calls were made. Services will be gradually rolled out from this year. DTC satellites are slightly larger than Starlink internet satellites, which is due to their antenna.
On the occasion of the launch of the first satellites, SpaceX was confident that it would be able to reduce the brightness of the satellites in the sky. Elon Musk’s company reported that discussions with astronomers are planned for this purpose. The study also assumes that there will still be improvements – however, due to their lower altitude, the satellites will still be 2.6 times brighter than other Starlink satellites. However, it is positive that the DTC satellites spend a large part of their time in the Earth’s shadow. This slightly compensates for their impact on astronomical observations, the newspaper says,
(MKI)
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