I'd say that the lost satellites themselves would be less of an issue than the threat that their debris poses to the other satellites. A destroyed satellite wi

I'd say that the lost satellites themselves would be less of an issue than the threat that their debris poses to the other satellites. A destroyed satellite will create a debris cloud. This cloud will spread out because there is just one right speed for each orbit and imparting momentum on pieces will give each of them an own orbit. Starlink operates on different orbital planes with the same inclination [0][1]. At lower latitudes (i.e. closer to the equator) the angle between different orbital planes that Starlink operates on will be large [1]. In these areas, the speed difference between other satellites and these fragments will be larger than at others (think about cars at an intersection vs. all going in the same direction on a highway). That turns these fragments into a sort of orbital rounds of shot and the more satellites are affected, the worse it gets (i.e. a self-reinforcing problem). The Kessler syndrome is very similiar to this scenario. [2] [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_plane https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_plane [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink#/media/File:Starlink_SpaceX_1584_satellites_72_Planes_22each.png https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink#/media/File:Starlink_... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kessler_syndrome https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kessler_syndrome