SpaceX loses up to 40 satellites to geomagnetic storm after Starlink launch
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Last week, Elon Musk’s space company launched 49 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
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It looks like 40 of the 49 Starlink satellites will be destroyed due to a geomagnetic storm.
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These storms cause the atmosphere to warm and increases the atmospheric density at SpaceX’s low deployment altitudes.
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In a blog post, SpaceX said that the storm caused ‘up to 50 percent higher drag than during previous launches’ keeping the deployed satellites from reaching
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SpaceX touted its system to reduce space debris, saying last week's "unique situation reflects the great length [to which] the Starlink team has gone to ensure
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SpaceX assured that the satellites are designed to burn up entirely when they collide with the atmosphere so no debris reaches the ground.
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Last week, the International Astronomical Union announced the formation the Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky to combat the issue.
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SpaceX has got off to a rocky start this year with a SpaceX rocket launch aborted at the last moment due to a stray cruise ship last month.