this post was submitted on 18 Sep 2023
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Starlink quietly lost over $250,000,000 in burned satellites this summer. (tiblur.com)
submitted 1 year ago by theanon12@kbin.social to c/tech@kbin.social
21 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Not one major news outlet is covering the destruction of Starlink this summer. Though Lemmy might enjoy Elon losing more money.

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[–] CubbyTustard@reddthat.com 8 points 1 year ago (2 children)

this is just a mathematical reality of LEO satellites like this. They are hitting the thermosphere which causes drag and they need to constantly adjust their altitude to keep in place and not fall to the earth. Currently 5 years is all the fuel they can carry. If they were higher they would last longer but the network latency would be very bad so it's a tradeoff.

whether or not we need this LEO constellation idk but this isn't some big gotcha. Elon (and everybody else) would love to have longer LEO orbits but until there is some new tech this is what we've got.

[–] neocamel@lemmy.studio 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The article seems to indicate that the loss of 200 satellites is largely attributed to solar flares, not orbit degradation.

[–] ripcord@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago

And the point of the article is that this is higher than expected.

It is also potentially interesting for people that weren't aware of how often these satellites will deorbit and so the potential costs associated. Even people aware that this happens may not have thought about it much with Starlink or be aware of the scope.

OP is being a little stupid with the editorializing, and the article could be better, but the article is generally good and useful.

[–] lte678@feddit.de 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The difference between an orbit that lasts 5 years and one that lasts a hundred is approximately 100-200km, the limit is quite sharp and actually quite tricky to get exactly right. That will cost you about a millisecond or two in latency tops. It is more likely that SpaceX is required to adhere to rules made by the FCC/FAA.

[–] ripcord@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago

550km height is partly to ensure that they WILL deorbit in a reasonable time if failed or EOL. Which is important for such a huge number of (relatively cheap) satellites.

[–] Ubermeisters@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (6 children)

That's because we're not fucking morons like you and we understand the realities of life.

Listen, fuck Elon, to be crystal clear. But also, OP, fuck you too for being the same brand of cringe.

Spaceship is hard you're going to lose a bunch of satellites if you're putting that money up there, it's planned and this is within the norms. Maybe dont be such a gigacunt, it's super unattractive.

[–] ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social 15 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Okay, being harsh and insulting just isn't necessary. Yes, OP got something wrong — they posted something that they thought was significant but actually isn't — but why not correct them like a reasonable person? In general, we should be trying to encourage discussion and foster a positive community, and that means treating other people like human beings when they don't know much about space stuff.

But noooooo, we need dopamine from cussing out people who've been on Kbin for a day because they dared post about satellites being lost without knowing that it doesn't mean that much. You might as well have told them to fuck off and never come back. And of course, this is the comment that gets all the upvotes.

How are people supposed to feel comfortable posting when any error they make is going to be met with insults and blocks? You're talking to another person, ffs, and personally attacking them over something as small as this. Communities aren't enjoyable when people are supporting this stuff.

[–] eltimablo@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Making an error is one thing. Gloating about something that's been accounted for and is completely expected as if it's some major gotcha without an ounce of understanding is, in my opinion, 100% worthy of derision.

[–] ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

But here's the thing: OP didn't know that it was accounted for and expected. And if it wasn't expected (or we, like OP, weren't aware), many of us would probably also mock Elon sort something of the sort. It's not malice. It's simply not knowing something.

Why couldn't this commenter have maturely and informatively told OP why they were wrong? That would've made OP aware of their mistake and cautious of making similar errors in the future without discouraging them from contributing entirely. It's clearly not difficult to do, as other comments did it.

The only reason for someone to personally insult someone over this is because it makes them feel better, they find it funny, etc. It doesn't help OP or the community. It's just for someone to get a quick laugh from bringing down other people for not knowing something, and that's not something people should support or condone on the fediverse.

[–] Ubermeisters@lemmy.zip 0 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

You're giving OP too much credit and assuming I don't know what I'm talking about. That's cool, you do you, but know that this isn't the first time OP has posted this, and it's not the first time someone has told them this. Also OP is sus in general.

[–] eltimablo@kbin.social 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It doesn't help OP or the community.

While I agree with most of what you said, I disagree on this point. Could he have worded it better? Been nicer? Tried understanding OP's extremely warped perception of reality? Sure, but at the same time, OP set the tone by making an extremely smug, ignorant post. An old adage comes to mind: "arguing with an idiot is like playing chess with a chicken - it's just going to knock all the pieces over, shit all over the board, and strut around like it won." In cases like that, a stern "fuck off" is not only warranted, but in the best interests of building a healthy community. I want to debate things with people, not play chess against a chicken.

[–] ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

OP set the tone by making an extremely smug, ignorant post.

Neither smugness nor ignorance warrants this kind of response.

Starting with the latter, someone not knowing something, especially something benign like "Oh, expensive satellites being lost is expected," is in no world a reason for insulting them or telling them to leave. It's not like OP is maliciously trying to spread misinformation. They shared news that they thought was a bad look for Elon Musk but actually wasn't. The appropriate response is a simple correction, not a stern "fuck off", and definitely not a barrage of personal insults.

As for smugness, let's assume that this post was about something that actually showed Elon Musk screwing up. In that case, it being smug would be fine—nay, expected—here. Smug comments against Elon Musk for doing dumb stuff happen all the time, and nobody's telling the people making those comments to get bent. Here, OP really thought that this was another Elon fail, in which case nobody would be complaining about the tone of the post. So it's just a matter of OP being wrong and thus the tone not really being appropriate (since Elon isn't messing up here), not a bad attitude that needs to be shooed away from the community.

Also, "extremely warped perception of reality"? Come on. It's just not knowing what losses are expected with satellites.

[–] Ganondorf@kbin.social 7 points 1 year ago

Please take this hostile, hateful and juvenile attitude elsewhere. No one here is impressed or captivated by it nor do we want it in this community.

[–] Rayston@kbin.social 5 points 1 year ago

Your not wrong...your just an asshole.

[–] NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social 4 points 1 year ago

You're kind of a Dick. Minus the kind of part

[–] theanon12@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

He's taking government money to the tune of billions of dollars and wasting it on space. We are starving down here.

[–] eltimablo@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago

Yeah, but you know what's really, really important for space travel?

A cheap, efficient, and reliable source of portable food production.

[–] athos77@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

OP has submitted this link elsewhere. In the comments there, in response to someone asking about the site's legitimacy, I checked and then commented:

OP is also the only person who's submitting the site here. Also, one of the links from the site that they submitted here is of "Interesting video from South America showing what looks like an alien abduction", to which OP added the comment "Kiind of interesting don't know if you guys can see the person being sucked into the cloud". So yeah, I suspect you are correct to be dubious about this source.

[–] grahamsz@kbin.social 5 points 1 year ago

Here's a reputable site that says SpaceX is no longer operating (or has otherwise lost) 378 of the 5000 satellites they've launched

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2023/09/starlink-7-2-6-14/

However that's an all time number, not just the last few months. The biggest single hit I'm aware of was a batch in 2022 that hit a solar storm that engineers thought they could weather.

[–] zeroblood@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 year ago

Objects in orbit experience very minor drag from what's left of Earth's atmosphere up there. Objects in low orbit like starlink satellites experience more drag. Unless it gets periodically boosted to a higher orbit it burns up in the atmosphere falling back to earth. This is all well understood and planned for. Satellites falling out of orbit is literally the norm.

[–] AcesFullOfKings@feddit.uk 4 points 1 year ago

Quietly