There has been quite a bit of controversy around Elon Musk’s Starlink program, which has launched over 8,000 satellites into space to power its satellite internet network. We’ve seen many reports over the years, from claims that Starlink satellites might be killing the ozone, to warnings that solar storms could be killing satellites like those used by Starlink. However, the latest news surrounding the internet company and its satellite clusters could be something far more troubling.
According to reports by the Associated Press, Russia could be working on a new type of anti-satellite system that would target satellites like those used in Musk’s Starlink constellation. Russia might be targeting Starlink specifically because the internet company’s satellites provide Ukraine with satellite internet support.
The information indicated in the reports suggests the main conversation revolves around a ploy to release thousands of pellets into the same orbit that Starlink’s satellites use. It’s a play on a classic dilemma that already haunts some scientists, who have long discussed the dangers of having too much junk in Earth’s orbit.
Starlink satellites wouldn’t be the only ones affected
Putting a plan like this into motion wouldn’t affect only Starlink, either. In fact, the reports suggest that if Russia were to enact this method of disrupting Starlink satellites, it would add additional risk to its own space operations. That’s because space debris that can’t be controlled becomes a weapon against anything it encounters in space.
Whether it would be Starlink satellites or even Russian satellites, Russia wouldn’t be able to control which satellites and operations were affected. It’s very possible that future space operations could be influenced by the deployment of such a weapon. This doesn’t even take into account that inoperative satellites are already dangerous on their own, and that many enter a deorbit phase, which sees them fall back to the Earth.
Beyond the threat of additional debris being put into orbit, other countries like Lebanon also rely on Starlink for internet services, not just Ukraine. Russia would be effectively limiting internet access for those countries as well, which could cause more tension. Whether Russia actually moves forward with the plan remains to be seen. But knowing that it might do something that could lead to catastrophic levels of debris in Earth’s orbit is certainly going to concern scientists even more, as Earth’s satellite problem is already bad enough without more junk being added to the equation.
