Re: [Starlink] Starlink lost over 200 satellites in two months – tracker data

[Alexandre Petrescu <alexandre.petrescu@gmail.com>]

Le 02/10/2023 à 14:27, Michael Richardson via Starlink a écrit :
> Ulrich Speidel via Starlink <starlink@lists.bufferbloat.net> wrote:
>      > In the case of Starlink, there is also the minor issue that their initial
>      > constellation that they started commercial ops with isn't ISL-capable, so
>      > there may be an incentive here to retire some satellites early, perhaps, and
>      > fill their orbital slots with more capable birds.
>
> I think that it falls into the fail-early dot-com mantra :-)
> Shorter lifetimes means shorter times to upgrade the network.
> Not just the ISL, but also the rest of the forwarding hardware.
>
> Given that spaceX is putting these satellites up at marginal launch costs,
> and I think getting a very very significant R&D and publicity boost from the
> very rapid pace of launches and booster reuses, it seems like it's just a win-win-win.

I think it is excellent that a LEO constellation can be upgraded that 
fast.  It means there will be an ever improved service to end users.  
This reliable launch frequency, orbiting, de-orbiting, are extraordinary 
technical achievements.

However, as with everything, one should also think about the 
inconvenients.  It can't simply be a win-win-win, without someone to 
loose something.

Probably one of the inconvenients is the additional risks involved by 
re-entry, new collision avoidance necessities, and sky observation 
blockage.  There is also the risk of some unwanted collision hapening up 
there but deemed as wanted by some.  It is new unknowns - says a 
non-expert -  that we add to the already shaky overall system.  They 
should not be overlooked.

True too:  probably it is the technology too that might help alleviate 
these potential problems (if problems they are), and not the lack of 
technology.

Alex

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