More space trash because the US gave up on running fiber.
this post was submitted on 07 Jan 2024
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Ah fuck no, can we please stop polluting our low earth orbit with this trash? All of this is a bad idea, bad execution, and there are much better alternatives available
Oh good, more space junk in LEO
It's LEO. If they shut off navigation tomorrow, they'd all be falling cinders in a year.
I'd like to hope that in a few years when we collectively decide this was a bad idea we can start hitting them with lasers and ablatively decelerating them to burn up in the atmosphere.
I mean I don't have a lot of hope for that, but call it a wistful fantasy.
I’d like to hope that in a few years when we collectively decide this was a bad idea we can start hitting them with lasers and ablatively decelerating them to burn up in the atmosphere.
If we do nothing at all they'll burn up in 3-5 years anyway. Starlink operates in a very low orbit. Thats one of the reasons there have to be so many of them. A higher orbit (like MEO instead of LEO) would mean fewer needed satellites for the same level of coverage of the Earth.
I want to SHOOT THEM DOWN. Send a FUCKING MESSAGE.
(I know you're right I'm just a cranky pants)
Given that these low orbit spacecraft only last a few years before they deorbit, I wonder how long this incredibly expensive and climate destructive industry will last. Most industries try for low cost of ownership while this one seems to built in high maintenance.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Amazon's Project Kuiper, which uses optical inter-satellite link (OISL) technology to connect more than 3,000 satellites in a mesh network that blankets Earth, just cleared a final hurdle needed to launch next year.
Similar to SpaceX's Starlink, Project Kuiper is Amazon's plan to provide high-speed internet by launching and connecting 3,236 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO).
The firm launched two prototype satellites in October and began testing the systems required for the network to operate.
One key test was validating the optical inter-satellite link (OISL) technology, which uses infrared lasers to send data between the spacecraft.
Currently, Earthbound optical fiber cables power high-speed internet services by using light to transmit data over great distances.
Amazon plans for Project Kuiper to offer speeds of up to 400 megabits per second for most consumers when fully deployed in 2029.
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