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--- transportation:satellites [2025/12/15 22:57] – [Collision 2024 Feb] timb
+++ transportation:satellites [2026/01/03 21:47] (current) – [Orbit] timb
@@ Line 1520: / Line 1520: @@
 https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/11/worried-about-orbital-debris-private-space-companies-push-to-end-asat-tests/
+==  Is Russia Developing an Anti-Satellite Weapon to Target Starlink? ==
+Posted by EditorDavid on Saturday December 27, 2025 01:34PM
+An anonymous reader shared this report from the Associated Press:
+<blockquote>
+Two NATO-nation intelligence services suspect Russia is developing a new anti-satellite weapon to target Elon Musk's Starlink constellation with destructive orbiting clouds of shrapnel, with the aim of reining in Western space superiority that has helped Ukraine on the battlefield. Intelligence findings seen by The Associated Press say the so-called "zone-effect" weapon would seek to flood Starlink orbits with hundreds of thousands of high-density pellets, potentially disabling multiple satellites at once but also risking catastrophic collateral damage to other orbiting systems.
+Analysts who haven't seen the findings say they doubt such a weapon could work without causing uncontrollable chaos in space for companies and countries, including Russia and its ally China, that rely on thousands of orbiting satellites for communications, defense and other vital needs. Such repercussions, including risks to its own space systems, could steer Moscow away from deploying or using such a weapon, analysts said. "I don't buy it. Like, I really don't," said Victoria Samson, a space-security specialist at the Secure World Foundation who leads the Colorado-based nongovernmental organization's annual study of anti-satellite systems. "I would be very surprised, frankly, if they were to do something like that." [Later they suggested the research might just be experimental.]
+</blockquote>
+https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/12/27/2023253/is-russia-developing-an-anti-satellite-weapon-to-target-starlink
@@ Line 2857: / Line 2871: @@
 https://gizmodo.com/chinese-spacecraft-got-disturbingly-close-to-smashing-into-a-starlink-satellite-2000699907
+== SpaceX Alleges a Chinese-Deployed Satellite Risked Colliding with Starlink ==
+Posted by EditorDavid on Sunday December 14, 2025 09:24PM
+"A SpaceX executive says a satellite deployed from a Chinese rocket risked colliding with a Starlink satellite," reports PC Magazine:
+<blockquote>
+On Friday, company VP for Starlink engineering, Michael Nicolls, tweeted about the incident and blamed a lack of coordination from the Chinese launch provider CAS Space. "When satellite operators do not share ephemeris for their satellites, dangerously close approaches can occur in space," he wrote, referring to the publication of predicted orbital positions for such satellites...
+[I]t looks like one of the satellites veered relatively close to a Starlink sat that's been in service for over two years. "As far as we know, no coordination or deconfliction with existing satellites operating in space was performed, resulting in a 200 meter (656 feet) close approach between one of the deployed satellites and STARLINK-6079 (56120) at 560 km altitude," Nicolls wrote... "Most of the risk of operating in space comes from the lack of coordination between satellite operators — this needs to change," he added.
+</blockquote>
+Chinese launch provider CAS Space told PCMag that "As a launch service provider, our responsibility ends once the satellites are deployed, meaning we do not have control over the satellites' maneuvers."
+And the article also cites astronomer/satellite tracking expert Jonathan McDowell, who had tweeted that CAS Space's response "seems reasonable." (In an email to PC Magazine, he'd said "Two days after launch is beyond the window usually used for predicting launch related risks."
+https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/12/15/033255/spacex-alleges-a-chinese-deployed-satellite-risked-colliding-with-starlink
@@ Line 3885: / Line 3918: @@
 https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/01/1847244/eu-to-boost-satellite-defences-against-gps-jamming-defence-commissioner-says
+== GPS is vulnerable to jamming—here’s how we might fix it ==
+GPS jamming has gotten cheap and easy, but there are potential solutions.
+Sarah Scoles/Undark – Dec 29, 2025 7:10 AM
+In September 2025, a Widerøe Airlines flight was trying to land in Vardø, Norway, which sits in the country’s far eastern arm, some 40 miles from the Russian coast. The cloud deck was low, and so was visibility. In such gray situations, pilots use GPS technology to help them land on a runway and not the side of a mountain.
+But on this day, GPS systems weren’t working correctly, the airwaves jammed with signals that prevented airplanes from accessing navigation information. The Widerøe flight had taken off during one of Russia’s frequent wargames, in which the country’s military simulates conflict as a preparation exercise. This one involved an imaginary war with a country. It was nicknamed Zapad-2025—translating to “West-2025”—and was happening just across the fjord from Vardø. According to European officials, GPS interference was frequent in the runup to the exercise. Russian forces, they suspected, were using GPS-signal-smashing technology, a tactic used in non-pretend conflict, too. (Russia has denied some allegations of GPS interference in the past.)
+Without that guidance from space, and with the cloudy weather, the Widerøe plane had to abort its landing and continue down the coast away from Russia, to Båtsfjord, a fishing village.
+The part of Norway in which this interruption occurred is called Finnmark. GPS disruption there is near-constant; problems linked to Russian interference have increased since the invasion of Ukraine.
+https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2025/12/gps-is-vulnerable-to-jamming-heres-how-we-might-fix-it/
@@ Line 5782: / Line 5830: @@
 https://www.theregister.com/2024/06/24/nasa_ought_to_pay_up/
+==== SpaceX ====
+== Report: Starship Debris Came Closer to Airplanes Than SpaceX Admits ==
+A new report by the Wall Street Journal reveals a failed SpaceX Starship test flight endangered three airplanes.
+Passant Rabie - December 22, 2025
+SpaceX’s test flight of Starship forced the rerouting of several passenger flights earlier this year, with visible sightings of falling rocket debris, according to documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal.
+Starship lifted off on January 16 from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Texas. The rocket’s seventh test flight did not go according to plan; Starship’s upper stage suffered an engine glitch that forced an early shutdown, causing it to break apart and rain down bits of rocket debris over Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean.
+Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) documents reveal that the rocket’s mishap posed an “extreme safety risk” for three airplanes with a total of 450 passengers on board, according to the Wall Street Journal.
+Air traffic controllers rerouted several airplanes to ensure their safety. The three flights, including a JetBlue plane headed to San Juan, Puerto Rico, were forced to fly through a temporary no-fly debris zone in order to avoid the risk of running out of fuel. Additionally, two planes were forced to fly close to one another and faced a risk of collision.
+https://gizmodo.com/report-starship-debris-came-closer-to-airplanes-than-spacex-admits-2000702634
@@ Line 6665: / Line 6736: @@
 https://gizmodo.com/the-space-stations-russian-segment-wont-stop-leaking-air-2000637333
+== After Half a Decade, the Russian Space Station Segment Stopped Leaking ==
+Posted by msmash on Saturday January 03, 2026 04:01AM
+A small section of the International Space Station that has experienced persistent leaks for years appears to have stopped venting atmosphere into space. ArsTechnica:
+<blockquote>
+The leaks were caused by microscopic structural cracks inside the small PrK module on the Russian segment of the space station, which lies between a Progress spacecraft airlock and the Zvezda module. The problem has been a long-running worry for Russian and US operators of the station, especially after the rate of leakage doubled in 2024. This prompted NASA officials to label the leak as a "high likelihood" and "high consequence" risk. However, recently two sources indicated that the leaks have stopped. And NASA has now confirmed this.
+"Following additional inspections and sealing activities, the pressure in the transfer tunnel attached to the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station, known as the PrK, is holding steady in a stable configuration," a space agency spokesman, Josh Finch, told Ars. "NASA and Roscosmos continue to monitor and investigate the previously observed cracks for any future changes that may occur."
+For the better part of half a decade, Russian cosmonauts have been searching for the small leaks like a proverbial needle in a haystack. They would periodically close the hatch leading to the PrK module and then, upon re-opening it, look for tiny accumulations of dust to indicate the leak sites. Then the Russian cosmonauts would apply a sealant known as Germetall-1 (which has now been patented) to the cracks. They would close the hatch again, monitor the pressure inside the PrK module, and begin the search anew for additional leaks. This process went on for years.
+</blockquote>
+https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/01/02/196256/after-half-a-decade-the-russian-space-station-segment-stopped-leaking
@@ Line 8614: / Line 8699: @@
+===== Dog Fighting =====
+==  Military Satellites Now Maneuver, Watch Each Other, and Monitor Signals and Data ==
+Posted by EditorDavid on Saturday December 20, 2025 11:34AM
+An anonymous reader shared this report from the Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2025/space-military-satellite-china-united-states/). (Alternate URL https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/why-us-and-chinese-satellites-are-dogfighting-in-orbit/ar-AA1SAnEY):
+<blockquote>
+The American patrol satellite had the targets in its sights: two recently launched Chinese spacecraft flying through one of the most sensitive neighborhoods in space. Like any good tactical fighter, the American spacecraft, known as USA 270, approached from behind, so that the sun would be at its back, illuminating the quarry.
+But then one of the Chinese satellites countered by slowing down. As USA 270 zipped by, the Chinese satellite dropped in behind its American pursuer, like Maverick's signature "hit-the-brakes" move in the movie "Top Gun." The positions reversed, U.S. officials controlling their spacecraft from Earth were forced to plot their next move. The encounter some 22,000 miles above Earth in 2022 was never acknowledged publicly by the Pentagon or Beijing. Happening out of sight and little noticed except by space and defense specialists, this kind of orbital skirmishing has become so common that defense officials now refer to it as "dogfighting..."
+Much of the "dogfighting" activity in space is simply for spying, defense analysts say, with specifics largely classified — snapping photos of each other's satellites to learn what kind of systems are on board and their capabilities. They monitor the signals and data emitted by satellites, listening to communications between space and the ground. Many can even jam those signals or interfere with orbiting craft that provide missile warnings, spy or relay critical information to troops... Traditionally, once a satellite was in orbit, it largely stayed on a fixed path, its operators reluctant to burn precious fuel. But now, the Pentagon and its adversaries, notably China and Russia, are launching satellites designed to fly in more dynamic ways that resemble aircraft — banking hard, slowing down, speeding up, even flying in tandem.
+</blockquote>
+https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/12/20/0418259/military-satellites-now-maneuver-watch-each-other-and-monitor-signals-and-data
@@ Line 8676: / Line 8782: @@
 https://hackaday.com/2024/05/12/ircb-s73-7-satellite-found-after-going-untracked-for-25-years/
@@ Line 10153: / Line 10260: @@
 ====== Russian ======
+== NATO Suspects Russia Is Developing Orbiting Clouds of Shrapnel to Take Down Starlinks ==
+The intelligence findings are alarming, but some space security experts aren’t convinced Russia would take such a misguided risk.
+Ellyn Lapointe - December 22, 2025
+Of the more than 14,000 active satellites in low-Earth orbit today, roughly two-thirds belong to Elon Musk’s Starlink. Governments worldwide—including the United States—depend on these satellites for remote communications, military operations, and internet access. It appears Russia may be developing a new strategy to take them down.
+NATO intelligence findings reviewed by the Associated Press suggest Russia is developing a weapon that would target Starlinks with destructive orbiting clouds of shrapnel. The “zone-effect” weapon would flood their orbits with hundreds of thousands of high-density pellets to disable multiple satellites at once, the AP reports.
+Gizmodo could not independently verify the findings but reached out to the U.S. Space Force (USSF), Russia’s presidential press office, and SpaceX for comment. None responded by the time of publication.
+The suggestion that Russia may be investing in new ways to target Starlinks doesn’t come as a surprise. The satellites have played a critical role in Ukraine’s defense against President Vladimir Putin’s invasion. What does shock some experts is the idea that Russia would pursue an attack strategy that could endanger its own satellites and those of its allies.
+https://gizmodo.com/russia-is-developing-orbiting-clouds-of-shrapnel-to-take-down-starlinks-nato-suspects-2000702532
+===== ROS / Russian Orbital Station =====
+== Russia is about to do the most Russia thing ever with its next space station ==
+“Russia, meanwhile, will be left to carry on the legacy of the ISS, with all its problems.”
+Eric Berger – Dec 19, 2025 8:04 AM
+For several years now, in discussing plans for its human spaceflight program beyond the International Space Station, Russian officials would proudly bring up the Russian Orbital Station, or ROS.
+The first elements of ROS were to launch in 2027 so it would be ready for human habitation in 2028. Upon completion in the mid-2030s, the station would encompass seven shiny new modules, potentially including a private habitat for space tourists. It would be so sophisticated that the station could fly autonomously for months if needed.
+Importantly, the Russian station was also to fly in a polar orbit at about 400 km. This would allow the station to fly over the entirety of Russia, observing the whole country. It would be important for national pride because cosmonauts would not need to launch from Kazakhstan anymore. Rather, rockets launching from the country’s new spaceport in eastern Russia, the Vostochny Cosmodrome, would easily reach the ROS in its polar orbit.
+That was the plan, at least until this week, when a Russian official dropped a bombshell.
+https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/12/russia-is-about-to-do-the-most-russia-thing-ever-with-its-next-space-station/
@@ Line 10356: / Line 10508: @@
 https://tech.slashdot.org/story/24/05/23/2237209/spacex-launches-first-satellites-for-new-us-spy-constellation
+===== Orbit =====
+== Starlink is lowering thousands of satellites' orbits to reduce risk of collisions ==
+Satellites orbiting at around 342 miles will be dropped down to about 298 miles, Starlink's VP of engineering says.
+Cheyenne MacDonald - Thu, January 1, 2026 at 7:05 PM PST
+Starlink will lower the orbits of roughly 4,400 satellites this year as a safety measure, according to engineering VP, Michael Nicolls. In a post on X, Nicolls wrote that the company is "beginning a significant reconfiguration of its satellite constellation," in which all satellites orbiting at around 550 kilometers (342 miles) will be lowered to around 480 km (298 miles). The move is intended to reduce the risk of collisions, putting the satellites in a region that's less cluttered and will allow them to deorbit more quickly should an incident occur.
+"Lowering the satellites results in condensing Starlink orbits, and will increase space safety in several ways," Nicolls wrote, also pointing to the coming solar minimum — a period in the sun's 11ish-year cycle when activity is lower — as one of the reasons for the move. The next solar minimum is expected to occur in the early 2030s. "As solar minimum approaches, atmospheric density decreases which means the ballistic decay time at any given altitude increases - lowering will mean a >80% reduction in ballistic decay time in solar minimum, or 4+ years reduced to a few months," Nicolls wrote.
+https://www.engadget.com/science/space/starlink-is-lowering-thousands-of-satellites-orbits-to-reduce-risk-of-collisions-030509067.html
+== SpaceX begins “significant reconfiguration” of Starlink satellite constellation ==
+“Biggest advantage of lower altitude is that beam diameter is smaller for a given antenna size.”
+Stephen Clark – Jan 2, 2026 11:03 AM
+The year 2025 ended with more than 14,000 active satellites from all nations zooming around the Earth. One-third of them will soon move to lower altitudes.
+The maneuvers will be undertaken by SpaceX, the owner of the largest satellite fleet in orbit. About 4,400 of the company’s Starlink Internet satellites will move from an altitude of 341 miles (550 kilometers) to 298 miles (480 kilometers) over the course of 2026, according to Michael Nicolls, SpaceX’s vice president of Starlink engineering.
+“Starlink is beginning a significant reconfiguration of its satellite constellation focused on increasing space safety,” Nicolls wrote Thursday in a post on X.
+The maneuvers undertaken with the Starlink satellites’ plasma engines will be gradual, but they will eventually bring a large fraction of orbital traffic closer together. The effect, perhaps counterintuitively, will be a reduced risk of collisions between satellites whizzing through near-Earth space at nearly 5 miles per second. Nicolls said the decision will “increase space safety in several ways.”
+https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/01/spacex-begins-significant-reconfiguration-of-starlink-satellite-constellation/
+== Starlink to lower orbits of thousands of satellites over safety concerns ==
+Move will see spacecraft shift from 550 km to 480 km as collision risks rise
+Dan Robinson - Fri 2 Jan 2026 14:44 UTC
+Starlink is to lower the orbits of about half its satellite constellation over the course of this year, citing safety concerns.
+The change was announced by Michael Nicolls, VP of Starlink engineering at the satellite operator's parent company, SpaceX. He said the firm plans to lower all of its units that orbit at about 550 km down to roughly 480 km during 2026.
+This comes after one Starlink satellite failed last month. During an incident, the sat both vented propellant, sending it tumbling out of control, and released debris. That followed claims from SpaceX that a Chinese satellite launch came within 200 meters of colliding with another of Starlink's units, although the company has not so far said that a collision caused the loss of its satellite.
+Nicolls claimed that changing orbits would increase space safety in several ways.
+"As solar minimum approaches, atmospheric density decreases which means the ballistic decay time at any given altitude increases – lowering will mean a >80 percent reduction in ballistic decay time in solar minimum, or 4+ years reduced to a few months," he stated.
+The volume of debris and planned satellite constellations is also notably lower below 500 km, he added, which will reduce the likelihood of collisions.
+Starlink's orbital migration is expected to involve about 4,400 of the more than 9,000 satellites it currently has in operation. The maneuver is being carried out in coordination with other operators, regulators, and US Space Command, the firm says.
+There has been growing unease over the number of satellite launches, particularly into low Earth orbit (LEO). As well as Starlink, Amazon's Project Kuiper aims to loft over 3,000 satellites to deliver broadband from space, while China is understood to have plans to put more than 10,000 into orbit to provide its own rival services to Starlink.
+https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/02/starlink_lower_orbits/
+==  SpaceX Lowering Orbits of 4,400 Starlink Satellites for Safety's Sake ==
+Posted by EditorDavid on Saturday January 03, 2026 12:45PM
+"Starlink is beginning a significant reconfiguration of its satellite constellation focused on increasing space safety," announced Michael Nicolls, Starlink's vice president of engineering:
+<blockquote>
+"We are lowering all Starlink satellites orbiting at ~550 km to ~480 km (~4400 satellites) over the course of 2026. The shell lowering is being tightly coordinated with other operators, regulators, and USSPACECOM. Lowering the satellites results in condensing Starlink orbits, and will increase space safety in several ways... Starlink satellites have extremely high reliability, with only 2 dead satellites in its fleet of over 9000 operational satellites. Nevertheless, if a satellite does fail on orbit, we want it to deorbit as quickly as possible. These actions will further improve the safety of the constellation, particularly with difficult to control risks such as uncoordinated maneuvers and launches by other satellite operators.
+</blockquote>
+https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/01/03/075205/spacex-lowering-orbits-of-4400-starlink-satellites-for-safetys-sake
@@ Line 11527: / Line 11748: @@
 https://astrobites.org/2025/08/12/starlink-ska-low/
+===== Anomaly =====
+==== 2025 ====
+== A Starlink Satellite Is Tumbling Toward Earth After a Strange Anomaly in Orbit ==
+The satellite suffered a sudden drop in altitude, suggesting there may have been a small explosion.
+Passant Rabie - December 19, 2025
+SpaceX has lost contact with one of its broadband satellites, which is now falling toward Earth due to an unspecified and seemingly mysterious anomaly.
+The company revealed that a Starlink satellite experienced an anomaly on Wednesday that led to a complete loss of communication. The satellite suddenly dropped around 2.5 miles in altitude (4 kilometers) and created a small field of debris, according to SpaceX.
+“The satellite is largely intact, tumbling, and will reenter the Earth’s atmosphere and fully demise within weeks,” SpaceX wrote on X. It’s not clear what caused the satellite to tumble, but the loss of altitude and small bits of debris suggest it, or at least a part of it, may have exploded in orbit.
+LeoLabs, a space technology company that tracks orbital debris, detected tens of objects within the vicinity of the satellite following the anomaly. The company wrote that the incident was likely caused by “an internal energetic source rather than a collision with space debris or another object.”
+As the number of orbital objects increases, it also becomes harder to keep track of them. Astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, who monitors objects in orbit, suggests that the Starlink satellite may not have dropped from its altitude and that the data point was wrong. Follow-up observations of the satellite in question are needed to figure out exactly what may or may not have happened to the Starlink.
+https://gizmodo.com/a-starlink-satellite-is-tumbling-toward-earth-after-a-strange-anomaly-in-orbit-2000701874
+== A Starlink satellite just exploded and left 'trackable' debris ==
+SpaceX says it presents no threat to the ISS or its crew.
+Steve Dent - Fri, December 19, 2025 at 4:00 AM PST
+SpaceX said it experienced an anomaly with one if its Starlink satellites that was likely caused by a small explosion. "The anomaly led to venting of the propulsion tank, a rapid decay in semi-major axis by about 4 km [2.5 miles] and the release of a small number of trackable low relatively velocity objects," Starlink wrote in a post on X. Orbital tracking company LeoLabs assessed that the issue was caused by an "internal energetic source rather than a collision with space debris or another object."
+SpaceX said it's working with NASA and the US Space Force to track the remains of the object. "The satellite is largely intact, tumbling and will reenter the Earth's atmosphere and fully demise within weeks," the company said. It's trajectory is well below the International Space Station (ISS) so it poses no risk to the lab or its crew. Starlink has yet to say how many pieces it's tracking.
+The incident happened just days after a Starlink satellite narrowly avoided a collision with a rival Chinese satellite from CAS Space last week. Starlink vice president Michael Nicholls said that the incident happened due to a lack of coordination between the two companies. "When satellite operators do not share emphemeris for their satellites, dangerously close approaches can occur in space," he wrote on X.
+https://www.engadget.com/science/space/a-starlink-satellite-just-exploded-and-left-trackable-debris-120002814.html