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If they're comparable with Starlink satellites they're 1/4 of a ton each, and made of a lot of parts that could fragment on impact. That's small in satellite te
by onion2k 5y ago
If they're comparable with Starlink satellites they're 1/4 of a ton each, and made of a lot of parts that could fragment on impact. That's small in satellite terms, but you wouldn't want to try to pick one up.
- bryanlarsen 5y agoWhen a satellite collides with a different satellite in the same orbit, none of the parts move to a higher energy orbit, and most move to a lower energy orbit. Given that the original orbit is 380 miles, almost all fragments will immediately deorbit due to atmospheric drag.
- Aachen 5y agoWait, starlink sats are 250kg? Given their number and all they have to do is forward some packets (no big equipment like a telescope), I kinda figured they'd be a few kilos each, like a bit more fancy than a cubesat.
- onion2k 5y agoI'm actually a little out of date - the newest ones are about 300kg. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink