Noah Haggerty
Tue, October 29, 2024
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 21 Starlink satellites launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base in January. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
More than 100 space researchers signed a letter urging the federal government to perform an environmental review before allowing SpaceX to continue launching thousands of satellites for its internet service, Starlink.
The Federal Communications Commission has licensed Elon Musk's company to launch nearly 12,000 satellites into space — more than double the number of non-SpaceX satellites orbiting Earth. SpaceX is asking the FCC to allow it to launch over 20,000 more.
While the FCC evaluates the potential harms of satellite constellations, it currently exempts almost all telecommunications projects — including satellites — from facing formal environmental reviews. The researchers' letter, released on Thursday, argues that much has changed since the rule was created almost four decades ago.
"This is a new technology," said Lucas Gutterman, the director of the Designed to Last Campaign at Public Interest Research Groups, or PIRG, which organized the letter. "It could have benefits for the public and that's great, but the benefits need to be weighed against the potential harms, and the way you do that is with an environmental review."
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Gutterman said PIRG has heard back from the FCC and is excited to meet with the agency to discuss the group's concerns.
The Starlink constellation provides internet coverage across the globe, especially to rural communities and countries without reliable cell tower service. The service has provided internet access to Ukrainian soldiers, hurricane victims and commercial flight passengers.
SpaceX's satellites are designed to have a roughly five-year lifespan, after which SpaceX ground controllers will deorbit the satellites, let them burn up in Earth's atmosphere and launch replacements. This injection of metals and other compounds into the upper atmosphere from the incineration of the spent satellites has the potential to disturb the delicate balance of elements and molecules in the air, the letter argues.
"The industry has moved faster than regulators can act and faster than the public has really been aware," Gutterman said. "The results aren't in — we just don't actually have the data on what effects this new technology could have."
In a 2022 report, the Government Accountability Office — a nonpartisan federal agency tasked with saving taxpayer money and increasing government efficiency — recommended the FCC review whether the satellite constellations normally have significant environmental impacts. The FCC agreed with the findings.
The space researchers who signed the letter not only study the effects of satellites and rocket launches on the atmosphere but also rely on clear skies for their observations.
As satellites whiz past the field of view of telescopes, they leave streaks in astronomers' images. To compensate, scientists have had to frequently retake images and develop more sophisticated computer programs to remove the streaks.
"Picture an open book. Then picture a big marker streak across the page," said David Jewitt, a distinguished professor of astronomy at UCLA who signed the letter. "That's what they do."
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Jewitt first heard about the letter while dealing with satellite streaks on his observations from a telescope in Spain.
"It was so obvious that the number of satellite trails is just way, way up since I started doing astronomy," he said. "People want to use space for good purposes. Communication is a good purpose. ... So, there has to be some moderation between the effective use of space and its effects on our view of the night sky."
Environmental review of satellite mega-constellations would be a first step along a path of much-needed space policy reform, Gutterman said.
Currently, there is limited international cooperation in regulation of satellite constellations, and within the United States, oversight of different aspects of their life cycles — from launch to orbit to decommissioning — is handled by separate agencies.
Setting clear international standards and streamlining the process in the U.S. would be a win-win for concerned scientists and the space industry, Gutterman said.
It's not the first time Starlink has run into pushback from the public and government officials. After the first few batches of satellites were launched in 2019, astronomers around the world raised concerns about the satellites' reflectivity. In response, SpaceX began applying a coating to the satellites to make them less shiny.
And earlier this month, the California Coastal Commission rejected a SpaceX plan to increase the number of rocket launches from Vandenburg Space Force Base to 50 a year, on the grounds that SpaceX was increasingly using the launches for its Starlink satellites instead of for military missions.
SpaceX subsequently sued.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
NASA Backs Proposal to Orbit Starlink Satellites Closer to Earth
PC Mag
Tue, October 29, 2024
SpaceX has received support from NASA in its proposal to orbit satellites about 200 kilometers closer to Earth.
SpaceX wants permission to orbit its cellular Starlink satellites 340 to 360 kilometers around Earth, the benefits of reduced latency for an upcoming direct-to-cell Starlink service. The issue is that SpaceX wants to potentially orbit thousands of Starlink satellites below the International Space Station, which circles the Earth between altitudes of 360 to 470 km.
In 2022, NASA the proliferation of Starlink satellites as a potential obstacle to sending missions to the International Space Station. But in a Tuesday letter to the FCC, the space agency said it has been working with SpaceX on a "visiting vehicle study" to assess whether low-orbiting satellites can operate below the space station in 300km orbits.
"Given the progress made and the continued positive collaboration between SpaceX and NASA, NASA supports FCC action that would allow SpaceX to initially operate 400 satellites continuously in the 300 km orbital shells,” the agency added. “This support reflects the ongoing cooperation between both parties to ensure safe and effective satellite operations.”
But for now, it looks like NASA only wants to let SpaceX orbit the satellites closer to Earth on a trial basis. Its letter alludes to granting the company a “Special Temporary Authority” to orbit the cellular Starlink satellites in the 300km orbits for 60 days, which SpaceX requested in May.
“Upon completion of the visiting vehicle study, NASA will coordinate any change on the number of satellites it endorses in the 300 km orbital shells,” the space agency added in the letter.
Still, the NASA letter is a win in SpaceX’s efforts to upgrade the Starlink network by lowering the satellites' orbits, which could raise opposition from rival companies, in addition to . Earlier this month, the company also made a with the FCC to operate nearly 30,000 second-generation Starlink satellites, including in the 340-360km orbit range.
SpaceX launching 20 Starlink internet satellites from California on Oct. 30
Mike Wall
Mon, October 28, 2024
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 22 Starlink satellites to orbit from Florida on June 23, 2024. | Credit: SpaceX
SpaceX plans to launch another batch of its Starlink internet satellites from California early on Wednesday (Oct. 30).
A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 20 Starlink spacecraft, including 13 with direct-to-cell (DTC) capability, is scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base today, during a nearly hour-long window that opens at 7:07 a.m. ET (1207 GMT; 4:07 a.m. local California time).
SpaceX will stream the launch live via X, beginning about five minutes before liftoff.
If all goes according to plan, the Falcon 9's first stage will come back to Earth about eight minutes after liftoff. It will touch down on the drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You," which will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
It will be the 14th launch and landing for this particular booster and its 11th Starlink mission overall, according to a SpaceX mission description.
The Falcon 9's upper stage will haul the Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit (LEO), where they'll be deployed about an hour after liftoff.
SpaceX has already launched more than 100 Falcon 9 missions in 2024, about two-thirds of them devoted to building out the Starlink megaconstellation.
The company currently operates more than 6,400 Starlink spacecraft in LEO, according to astrophysicist and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell. About 250 of them are DTC satellites.
Editor's note: This post was updated on Oct. 29 to reflect the most current launch window provided by SpaceX.
Let There Be Broadband: SpaceX Lights Up Starlink in US National Radio Quiet Zone
PC Mag
Mon, October 28, 2024
SpaceX's Starlink is now rolling out to thousands of residents living in the "National Radio Quiet Zone" in Virginia and West Virginia, where wireless signals are restricted.
The access arrives following a three-year effort between SpaceX and US scientists to prevent Starlink from disrupting local radio telescopes, which is why the quiet zone exists.
"Based on these results, SpaceX will begin a one-year assessment period to offer residential satellite internet service to 99.5% of residents within the NRQZ starting October 25,” the Green Bank Observatory said on Friday.
The radio quiet zone around the observatory restricts cellular and Wi-Fi signals, although many residents do have Wi-Fi and fiber-based broadband.
The quiet zone is needed to help radio telescopes detect the faintest signals from deep space. SpaceX has refrained from beaming Starlink internet to the area because the radio signals from its satellites could disrupt or even damage the “eye” of the radio telescopes.
In August, SpaceX said it was ready to start rolling out Starlink access to users in the radio quiet zones around the Green Bank Observatory and another telescope in New Mexico. To prevent interference, the company developed a system that can quickly steer satellite beams away from the radio telescopes as they pass overhead
As a result, Starlink is now live in 42 of the 46 cell areas around the Green Bank Observatory’s telescopes; previously, the satellite internet access was unavailable across all 46 sites.
“This collaboration will allow residents to access high-quality, high-speed internet, and also expand opportunities for improved communication, like those needed by emergency services and first responders,” says Green Bank Observatory Director Jim Jackson. During the one-year-period, SpaceX and the observatory will monitor and try to resolve any interference issues.
A growing number of counties in the area have called for the dissolution of the National Radio Quiet Zone, citing the danger of people not having access to emergency services.
"This is still keeping a portion of Pendleton and Pocahontas Counties in the dark ages of communications systems,” Pendleton County Emergency Services Coordinator Rick Gillespie told West Virginia's WOWK-TV.
In an email, Gillespie also told PCMag that the Roam version of Starlink had actually been available across 100% of the quiet zone for the past two years. But after SpaceX announced its agreement with the Green Bank Observatory, about 0.5% of the quiet zone has lost the Starlink access, he said.
"This means that a large section of southeastern Pendleton County and an even larger section of northern Pocahontas will NOT be able to utilize Starlink," he added in a statement. "Those areas ARE the 0.5% exclusion zone. In many cases, Starlink was the only Internet provider option residents and emergency responders had. This is unacceptable."
In response, Gillespie has been urging representatives of the National Radio Quiet Zone to loosen the radio restrictions, enabling wireless communications for local public safety services. "Throughout this process, any adjustments to the NRQZ regulations have been made without our involvement. These restrictions continue to escalate without our input, which must cease," he added.
We've reached out to the Green Bank Observatory and SpaceX for comment, and we'll update the story if we hear back.
Florida's Space Coast breaks record for most launches in a year
Matt Trezza
Mon, October 28, 2024
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With the launch of a SpaceX rocket on Saturday, the Space Coast hit a major milestone, with 73 launches this year.
The Falcon Nine carried 22 Starlink satellites into orbit. At Jetty Park, Mary Harris said her son works for Blue Origin, and she never gets tired of watching the rockets go up.
"I still like to catch the night ones, because they're really nice, I like them."
Saturday’s record-breaking mission capped off a very busy week in space news. NASA’s crew of eight members returned to Earth on Friday, after a nearly eight-month mission. The SpaceX Dragon capsule splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico just before 3:30 a.m., EST. The three NASA astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut spent 235 days in space, the longest of any human SpaceX mission.
"It wasn’t that long ago when we were happy to have 20 launches a year. We’re doing four to five times that now. It’s almost surreal now," said Don Platt, Associate Professor of Space Systems at Florida Tech.
On Wednesday, SpaceX launched another Falcon Nine mission that carried 23 Starlink satellites into orbit. KSC officials said that after some infrastructure upgrades, they aimed to host five commercial human space flight companies on-site by next year.
"It is the vision that we laid out back in 2014 with the Kennedy Space Center master plan," said Tom Engler, Center Planning & Development Director for the Kennedy Space Center.
With two more months to go in the year, there are still plenty more launches expected. Launch 74 is set for Wednesday. Jerry Eller, a Merritt Island resident, said the space industry has the potential to bring more people together.
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