SpaceX Satellites Disrupting Ability to Spot Killer Asteroids, Scientists Say

Over the last couple of years, growing satellite constellations have wreaked havoc on astronomy.

Astronomers are worried that the Starlink internet satellites could interfere with their ability to spot asteroids, as they are planning to launch thousands if not tens of thousands more satellites in the coming years.

Astronomers spotted 5,301 satellite streaks that can be attributed to Starlink satellites, in a new study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

According to Space.com, the majority of the streaks appeared in dawn or dust, which is a crucial period for spotting potentially dangerous asteroids coming from the direction of the Sun.

At least for now, the risks are slim.

Tom Prince, a physics professor at Caltech and co-author of the paper, said that there is a small chance that we would miss an asteroid or another event hidden behind a satellite streak, but compared to the impact of weather, such as a cloudy sky, these are rather small effects for

There are just shy of 1,500 satellites that have been launched by the company.

Since launching their first batches back in February, the space company has taken the astronomy community's concerns seriously. Sun visors are being tested to stop sunlight from being reflected back onto the ground.

The visors had an effect on the satellites brightness, reducing it to roughly a fifth as compared to the original design.

While it is a step in the right direction, Starlink satellites are still far too bright and could mess with other important observations.

There are streaks in the asteroid-hunting telescope's images.

Starlink internet at a volcano disaster site, then hesitates.

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