Latest news with #ThousandSails
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Satellite coated in ultra-dark 'Vantablack' paint will launch into space next year to help combat major issue
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A satellite painted with one of the darkest materials ever created by humans, known as "Vantablack," will launch into space next year to help researchers try and solve a major issue that's plaguing astronomers across the globe. There are more than 14,900 satellites orbiting Earth. But experts predict that, within the next 50 years or so, the number of active spacecraft in low Earth orbit (LEO) could rise to more than 100,000. This sharp rise is thanks to private satellite "megaconstellations," such as SpaceX's Starlink network, which already accounts for more than 60% of the total number of spacecraft circling our planet. These machines are causing several problems that scientists are only just starting to properly understand, including uncontrolled reentries, radio signal interference — and light pollution. For several years, astronomers have been warning that sunlight reflecting off shiny metal satellite swarms will brighten the night sky, making it harder to study the cosmos. This issue is already impacting most optical observatories, which are getting repeatedly photobombed by satellites flying overhead. And the situation is expected to get worse due to newer spacecraft, such as China's "Thousand Sails" satellites, that far exceed the brightness limits suggested by astronomical authorities. One potential solution to this problem is to make satellites that do not reflect light. Therefore, researchers in the U.K. will soon launch a "shoebox-size" cubesat, named Jovian-1, which will have one side covered in a special "hull-darkening" material that absorbs 99.965% of light that hits it. By closely tracking the dark-coated spacecraft as it orbits our planet, the team will be able to tell if the material works as predicted — and whether it can withstand the rigors of space travel. The mini-satellite is scheduled to launch at some point in 2026. The project is being managed by the Joint Universities Programme for In-Orbit Training, Education and Research (JUPITER), a collaboration between the Universities of Surrey, Portsmouth and Southampton in the U.K.. Related: What goes up must come down: How megaconstellations like SpaceX's Starlink network pose a grave safety threat to us on Earth The hull-darkening material is a version of Vantablack, a substrate covered with vertical carbon nanotubes that absorb almost all the light waves that hit it from nearly every angle. It is often described as the blackest material on Earth, although this has been disputed by competitors in recent years. The new version, named Vantablack 310, is modified to withstand the harsh conditions of space, such as extreme fluctuations in temperature and bombardment by cosmic radiation. It was created by Surrey NanoSystems — a spinoff company from the University of Surrey that first created Vantablack in 2014. "Our latest coating technology, Vantablack 310, offers super-black performance across a wide range of viewing angles, while remaining robust to the challenging LEO environment," Kieran Clifford, a senior technologist and project lead at Surrey NanoSystems, said in a statement, adding that the goal was to ensure""sustainable and equitable access to a night sky for all." While hull-darkening could provide a potential solution to the light pollution issue, there are still several other megaconstellation issues that need to be solved. For example, even if a satellite does not give off light pollution, it would still emit radio pollution. Astronomers recently warned that this could lead to an "inflection point," beyond which ground-based radio astronomy would become effectively impossible. RELATED STORIES —World's 1st wooden satellite arrives at ISS for key orbital test —Doomed Soviet satellite from 1972 will tumble uncontrollably to Earth next week — and it could land almost anywhere —US company to use giant spinning cannon to blast hundreds of pancake-like 'microsatellites' into space The rising number of satellites also increases the chances of spacecraft colliding with one another, further contributing to the amount of space junk that is littered across LEO, which can in turn increase the chances of even more collisions. Additionally, private satellites have a short lifespan and most eventually fall back to Earth and burn up in our planet's atmosphere, releasing metal pollution into our skies that we are still trying to fully understand.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
How many satellites could fit in Earth orbit? And how many do we really need?
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. In the last five years, the number of satellites orbiting Earth has more than doubled and will likely double again within a similar timespan, thanks to the efforts of private companies such as SpaceX. But while these spacecraft can provide important benefits, they are also causing multiple issues that are only just being realized by scientists. So, how many satellites can we expect to see in our skies in the coming decades? And — more importantly — how many is too many? As of May 2025, there are around 11,700 active satellites in orbit around Earth, ranging from military spy satellites and scientific probes to rapidly growing private satellite networks. But the rate at which spacecraft are being launched into space is increasing year-on-year. The biggest contributor to this trend is SpaceX's Starlink constellation, which currently has around 7,500 active satellites in orbit — more than 60% of the total number of operational orbiting spacecraft, Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer at the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics who has been tracking satellites since 1989, told Live Science. All of these have been launched since May 2019. However, other organizations are also beginning to develop their own "megaconstellations," such as Amazon's Project Kuiper and China's "Thousand Sails" constellation. It is also getting easier to put new satellites into space thanks to the reusability of rockets, such as SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, which is being used to launch multiple competing satellite networks. Other companies are also exploring new ways of launching larger payloads, including shooting hundreds of satellites into space at once using a giant spinning cannon. Related: There was nearly 1 rocket launch attempt every 34 hours in 2024 — this year will be even busier All of this activity has left researchers wondering how many satellites could eventually end up orbiting our planet and what problems they might cause along the way. "Megaconstellations are planning to cover most of the Earth's surface," Fionagh Thomson, a senior research fellow at the University of Durham in the U.K. who specializes in space ethics, told Live Science. But there is still "a large amount of uncertainty" over how large they might get and how damaging they could become, she added. It is difficult to estimate how many satellites will be launched in the future because satellite companies often change their plans, Aaron Boley, an astronomer at The University of British Columbia in Canada who has extensively studied the potential effects of megaconstellations, told Live Science. "Companies update their plans as they develop their systems, and many proposed systems will never be launched. But many will," Boley said. Proposals for more than 1 million private satellites belonging to around 300 different megaconstellations have been submitted to the International Telecommunications Union, which regulates communications satellites, according to a 2023 study co-authored by Boley. However, some of these, including a proposed 337,000-satellite megaconstellation from Rwanda, are unlikely to come to fruition, the researchers noted. The proposed number seems massive, but most private satellites have short lifespans. For example, the average Starlink satellite spends around five years operational, after which it falls back to Earth and burns up upon reentry. So even if all 1 million proposed satellites are launched, they will not all be orbiting Earth at once. While it is tricky to predict how many satellites will be launched and when, researchers have estimated a maximum number of spacecraft that can coexist within low-Earth orbit (LEO) — the region of space up to 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) above Earth's surface, where a vast majority of private satellites operate. Above this upper limit, or carrying capacity, satellites would likely start constantly crashing into one another. McDowell and Boley, as well as other astronomers — including Federico Di Vruno at the transnational Square Kilometer Array (SKA) Observatory and Benjamin Winkel at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Germany — all believe that the carrying capacity for LEO is around 100,000 active satellites. Above this number, new satellites will likely only be launched to replace those that come to the end of their operational lives. It is unclear exactly when this carrying capacity will be reached. However, based on the current rate of increasing launches, several experts told Live Science that it could happen before 2050. Given the impending rise in satellite numbers, researchers are hard at work trying to figure out what problems they may cause. A major issue associated with megaconstellations is space junk, including rocket boosters and defunct satellites, that will litter LEO before eventually falling back to Earth. If space junk collides , it could create thousands of smaller pieces of debris that increase the risk of further collisions. If left unchecked, this domino effect could render LEO effectively unusable. Researchers call this problem the "Kessler syndrome" and are already warning that it should be tackled now, before it is too late. Megaconstellations also threaten to severely limit ground-based astronomy in two main ways: First, light reflecting off satellites can interfere with optical astronomy by photobombing telescopes as they pass overhead; Second, electromagnetic radiation that unintentionally leaks from communications satellites can interfere with radio astronomy by obscuring signals from distant objects, such as faraway galaxies. If the carrying capacity is reached, some experts fear that the level of radio interference could render some types of radio astronomy completely impossible. Related: Controversial paper claims satellite 'megaconstellations' like SpaceX's could weaken Earth's magnetic field and cause 'atmospheric stripping.' Should we be worried? Satellites can also impact the environment via greenhouse gases that are emitted during rocket launches, as well as through metal pollution that is accumulating in the upper atmosphere as defunct satellites and other space junk burn up upon reentry. Given all these potential impacts, most researchers are calling for companies to reduce the rate at which they launch satellites. "I don't think a full stop on satellite launches would work," Boley said. "However, slowing things down and delaying the placement of 100,000 satellites until we have better international rules would be prudent." While private satellites help monitor Earth and connect rural and disadvantaged communities to high-speed internet, many experts argue that these benefits do not outweigh the potential risks. Others are more skeptical and question whether the payloads being put into orbit will really do any good or if they are just a way for companies to make more money. "Do we really need another CubeSat in space that allows us to take selfies?" Thomson asked. "And in reality, does connecting remote communities [to the internet] help solve systemic issues of inequality, poverty and injustice?" RELATED STORIES —Chinese scientists call for plan to destroy Elon Musk's Starlink satellites —World's 1st wooden satellite arrives at ISS for key orbital test —Geomagnetic storm sends 40 SpaceX satellites plummeting to Earth Many benefits could also be achieved with fewer satellites. The proposed numbers are so high, mainly because there are so many different companies competing to provide the same services. "It would be better to cooperate more, in order to need fewer satellites," Winkel told Live Science. "But I find that highly unlikely given the current situation in the world."
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
China's Starlink-rival satellite megaconstellations could litter orbit for 100+ years
China's satellite megaconstellation plans could clog low Earth orbit with large spent rocket stages, analysts warn. Those rocket stages could stay in orbit, increasing the risk of collisions, for over a hundred years. The government's Guowang and the commercial Qianfan (Thousand Sails) internet constellations will each consist of 10,000 satellites. The first launches for these constellations started last year. Over a thousand launches will be required to finish lifting the constellations to space. Scientists have already warned that SpaceX's Starlink constellation can obstruct important scientific observations. It could also lead to a devastating scenario known as Kessler Syndrome. Now, China's new constellations will add to this problem. Unlike Starlink, the rockets lifting the satellites may also leave a large, long-lasting debris footprint in space. China's space administration has faced heavy criticism in the past for its space practices. In 2022, several launches for its Tiangong space station ended with a dangerous, uncontrolled rocket reentry. One of these forced Spain to close its northern airspace for a short period. Controlled reentry burns require more fuel and financial resources to operate, but they ensure no one is harmed and no property is damaged on the ground. Now, amid rising concerns regarding orbital sustainability, China is leaving the upper stages of rockets in low Earth orbit (LEO). To be precise, it is leaving spent rocket boosters in persistent orbits, meaning they could remain there for over a century. This is according to space and orbital debris awareness consultant Jim Shell, owner of Novarum Tech LLC. In a thread on social media platform X, Shell explained that "there will be some 1,000+ PRC [People's Republic of China] launches over the next several years deploying these constellations." 'I have not yet completed the calculations but the orbital debris mass in LEO will be dominated by PRC upper stages in short order unless something changes (sigh),' he continued. 'For both constellations, the rocket upper stages are being left in high altitude orbits — generally with orbital lifetimes greater than 100 years.' To be precise, China's Long March 6A and 8 rockets are leaving their upper stages in orbits between 447 and 484 miles (720 and 780 kilometers). This is according to data from the US Space Force. As reported by SpaceNews, this is much higher than the roughly 372 mile (600 km) threshold aligned with global best practices. At such high altitudes, the lower atmospheric density results in less atmospheric drag, meaning space debris can stay in orbit for many decades. The reason for this is that the Guowang and Qianfan satellites orbit at almost double the altitude of Starlink, meaning they fly roughly 621 miles (1,000 km) above Earth. It is worth noting that the first Guowang launch in December 2024 did use a Yuanzheng-2 upper stage, which is capable of deorbiting itself. Older models were responsible for the uncontrolled reentries. China is also developing a range of reusable medium-lift rockets. These will likely compete for Guowang and Qianfan launch contracts. However, how these handle reentries is not yet known. As SpaceNews points out, China is still looking to ramp up production of its Long March 5B and Long March 8 rockets. Though China has the Yuanzheng-2 at its disposal, it is unclear whether these will be used for the majority of Guowang and Qianfan launches. The nation has a track record of ignoring established best practices in space in recent years. Following one of China's uncontrolled rocket reentries in 2022, former NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said: "the People's Republic of China did not share specific trajectory information as their Long March 5B rocket fell back to Earth. All spacefaring nations should follow established best practices and do their part to share this type of information in advance to allow reliable predictions of potential debris impact risk, especially for heavy-lift vehicles, like the Long March 5B, which carry a significant risk of loss of life and property." Chinese government officials have been known to wave away the criticism, putting it down to anti-Chinese propaganda. In an interview with IE in 2022, Harvard astronomer and astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell said China's 'reentries are objectively worse than what other countries are doing. I praise China's space program when it does good things, as it often does. And I criticize them when they are bad. This is bad.' Of course, China isn't the only nation lifting megaconstellations to orbit. Elon Musk and SpaceX have also faced criticism for their practices. The company currently has more than 6,700 Starlink satellites in orbit. It plans to eventually lift 30,000. While SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets do perform a controlled reentry burn, the satellites themselves cause problems for the global scientific community. Starlink satellites have reflective surfaces that obstruct observations by ground-based telescopes. Though SpaceX does control its rocket reentries, it does still leave large parts in orbit. These have, on occasion, crashed down onto rural areas. Last year, University of Regina astronomer and space debris awareness advocate Samantha Lawler told IE, she went to see "terrifyingly large" chunks of a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule that had fallen not far from her home. "I hate to say this, but I really do think it will take a death before government regulators pay attention to the problem of space debris," she continued. Lawler believes Starlink satellites have us on the verge of Kessler Syndrome, a scenario whereby one collision dramatically increases the probability of more collisions in a destructive, cascading effect. In an interview with IE in 2022, Meredith Rawls, an astronomer at the University of Washington, said the Starlink problem is 'unsustainable'. What's more, 'If SpaceX were the only company poised to launch (tens of!) thousands of satellites, we'd be staring down a very different situation,' she continued. 'As it is, we have only seen the tip of the iceberg.'
