SpaceX has been developing a constellation of 42,000 satellites known as “megaconstellation” for decades. Ultimately, these high-altitude, solar-powered vehicles will serve as telecommunications nodes in earth orbit. However, the project has faced opposition from astronomers who fear the bright objects will interfere with their observations. And scientists worry that the metal burning in Earth’s atmosphere may cause unpredictable climate changes.
While the constellation is still under development, the technology is already being tested. The first two satellites were launched in December 2016. Although the constellation is still far away, the technology is ready to start communicating. A self-pointing antenna is installed on each Starlink satellite and scans the sky for the first available overhead satellite. The antenna locks onto the nearest overhead satellite and maintains the connection as new ones appear. Originally, SpaceX had planned to connect every satellite in the constellation with its neighbor using lasers, but the initial launch was not equipped with this capability.
The initial launch of 51-Starlink satellites was successful. The rocket launched 51 satellites in September and successfully deployed the first three. They will spread into two shells in different orbits. The first shell will contain 520 satellites and the second shell will hold 720. The second shell will contain 1,584 satellites. The second shell will have a total of 510 satellites. The Starlink network will be able to provide Internet coverage in areas where fiber-optic cables are not feasible.
A geomagnetic storm affected the satellites’ deployment process. The storm lowered the density of the Earth’s atmosphere. But the Starlink team commanded the satellites into “safe-mode,” which minimizes drag and allows the edge-on flight. It is important to note that the satellites’ orbits are highly complex and can cause radiation issues. This is why the team works closely with the 18th Space Control Squadron. And LeoLabs provided ground-based updates to the Starlink team.
After a geomagnetic storm, the satellites are placed in orbit to serve the Earth. This is what makes them useful to the earth and helps us communicate with our neighbors. But geomagnetic storms also have other problems. If your spacecraft gets into an orbit that is too low, it will not have any signal, and will burn up. Eventually, the Starlink constellation of spacecraft will also become visible.
Since the first launch, SpaceX launches more Starlink satellites and submits paperwork for another 30,000. After a few days, the company reports that all of the satellites are in contact with each other. The mission is an enormous success, and the company is on its way to announcing the first dedicated Starlink launch. After the successful launch, the next step is to deploy more of the same constellation of satellites.
Once launched, the Starlink satellites have reached their operational orbit of 550 km. This is an extreme orbit, but they are still subject to drag, so they are constantly changing their orientation to avoid collisions with other satellites. And the satellites are only visible to us on the ground at sunrise and sunset, a few hours a year, so if you want to see the sky from below, make sure you watch the sky at these times.
While Starlink’s antennas have a white diffuse backside and parabolic antennas, it is also the solar array that powers the satellites. In the launch and parking orbits, the solar array is the most visible part of the satellite. This is due to its reflective and polar positions, and it also keeps the solar cells cool. During the launch, the team worked closely with the 18th Space Control Squadron.
The Starlink team had to deal with geomagnetic storms, which cause the atmosphere to warm and become dense. To prevent this problem, the team had to command the satellites into a safe-mode to reduce drag. In order to avoid collisions, the team worked closely with the 18th Space Control Squadron and LeoLabs provided frequent updates from ground radars. The satellites were safely deployed during this time.