US issues first ever fine for space junk

[space otter]

well here we are       polluters of the sea and sky and reproducting like rabbits
what's next - do you think??   

US issues first ever fine for space junk to Dish Network

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-66993647

By Imran Rahman-Jones
Technology reporter
The US government has issued its first ever fine to a company for leaving space junk orbiting the Earth.

The Federal Communications Commission fined Dish Network $150,000 (£125,000) for failing to move an old satellite far enough away from others in use.

The company admitted liability over its EchoStar-7 satellite and agreed to a "compliance plan" with the FCC.

Space junk is made up bits of tech that are in orbit around the Earth but are no longer in use, and risk collisions.

Officially called space debris, it includes things like old satellites and parts of spacecraft.

The FCC said that Dish's satellite posed a potential risk to other satellites orbiting the Earth at its current altitude.

Dish's EchoStar-7 - which was first launched in 2002 - was in geostationary orbit, which starts at 22,000 miles (36,000km) above the Earth's surface.

Dish was meant to move the satellite 186 miles further from Earth, but at the end of its life in 2022 had moved it only 76 miles after it lost fuel.

"As satellite operations become more prevalent and the space economy accelerates, we must be certain that operators comply with their commitments," said FCC enforcement bureau chief Loyaan Egal.

"This is a breakthrough settlement, making very clear the FCC has strong enforcement authority and capability to enforce its vitally important space debris rules."

The $150,000 fine represents a tiny proportion of Dish's overall revenue, which was $16.7bn in 2022.

However, the fine may still have an impact on other satellite operators, according to Dr Megan Argo, senior lecturer in astrophysics at the University of Central Lancashire.

"The fact that they've actually used their regulatory powers for the first time is certainly likely to at least make the rest of the industry sit up and pay attention," said Dr Argo.

"The fact that they have used it once means that they are likely to use it again.

"The more things we have in orbit, the more risk there is of collisions, causing high-speed debris. [This could] go on and potentially hit other satellites, causing yet more debris and potentially cause a cascade reaction," she added.

It is estimated that more than 10,000 satellites have been launched into space since the first one in 1957, with over half of them now out of use.

According to Nasa, there are more than 25,000 pieces of space debris measuring over 10cm long.

Nasa boss Bill Nelson told the BBC in July that space junk was a "major problem", which has meant that the International Space Station has had to be moved out of the way of debris flying past.

"Even a paint chip... coming in the wrong direction at orbital speed, which is 17,500 miles an hour [could] hit an astronaut doing a spacewalk. That can be fatal," he said.

[Littleenki]

The prison warden doesnt like it when someone messes with their web of oppression, they are building systems to encircle the earth like a set of steel bars, but more expensive.

I never even knew there was a system in place to issue fines like that, sure feels like we are all being compressed into our tiny boxes more and more each day.

People could do without their TV for spell anyways 😂

Le

[space otter]

wow no wonder there is so much junk up there 

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-67023719

By Jonathan Amos
Science correspondent
@BBCAmos
Jeff Bezos, the founder of the online retail giant Amazon, is expanding his interests in space.

On Friday he launched two prototype satellites for a broadband mega-constellation he calls Project Kuiper.

Mr Bezos is planning to put up more than 3,200 spacecraft in the next few years to deliver internet connections to anywhere on the globe.

He hopes to challenge Elon Musk's Starlink, which already offers satellite internet in many countries.

The two small satellites launching on Friday - KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2 - will trial the necessary technology.

They were carried into a 500km-high (310 miles) orbit by an Atlas-5 rocket.

The flight from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida launched at 14:00 EDT (18:00 GMT).

Amazon began research and development on the $10bn (£8bn) Project Kuiper in 2018.

The ambition is to join the rapidly growing market for high-bandwidth, low latency (minimal delay) internet connections that are bounced across the sky, as opposed to through fibre connections on the ground.

Elon Musk's SpaceX company is the leader in the field and already has more than 4,800 working spacecraft in orbit.

UK-based Eutelsat-OneWeb has also built out a network of 620 satellites, but the list of wannabes in the sector is growing all the time with similar projects announced in Canada, the EU, and China, in addition to proposals from other US companies.

Mr Bezos is in a hurry to deploy his network.

Amazon has a licence from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to use the necessary radio frequencies, but the terms of this licence demand that at least half of the Kuiper system is in orbit by July 2026, and that the full roll-out be completed by July 2029.

This will demand a furious launch campaign, and Amazon has agreements in place with rocket companies for almost 100 flights.

A potential stumbling block, however, is that the bulk of these missions is booked on vehicles that have yet to enter service and it's not uncommon for new rocket systems to fail on their early outings.

If this were to happen, it could dramatically compromise the speed with which Amazon is able to get Kuiper up and running.

As with other mega-constellation systems there will be scrutiny of the potential for any interference the Kuiper satellites might pose for astronomy.

There's considerable concern that the growing number of spacecraft in orbit will severely impact telescopic observation of the Universe.

If not carefully engineered, spacecraft can appear as very bright, trailing objects as their surfaces catch the rising and setting Sun.

Just this week, astronomers reported on the glare coming from an experimental telecommunications satellite called BlueWalker-3.

This spacecraft has a 64-sq-m (690-sq-ft) antenna to connect with mobile phones direct from orbit. At times, BlueWalker-3 would appear as one of the 10 brightest objects in the entire sky, the scientists said.

Added to concerns about interference are worries over the traffic management of large populations of satellites.

Multiple collisions in congested space would create debris that might then restrict what anyone can do in orbit.

Kuiper is one of several space projects being developed by Mr Bezos. The Amazon billionaire has another company called Blue Origin which has started to fly "tourists" high above the Earth in a rocket and capsule system called New Shepard.

Blue Origin is also working on a much bigger vehicle called New Glenn, as well as on concepts for an astronaut landing craft for the Moon and a commercial space station to be flown in Earth orbit.

[Littleenki]

As an astrophotographer the last few years has been very disappointing, due to increasing satallite tracks across frames during imaging.

Mainly starlink, which causes the tracking software to drop frames due to focus being affected by the satellite trailing across the sky.

It fairly easy to cure in photoshop, for now, but it has caused me to have to spend an extra hour or two on certain targets to achieve sufficient exposure time for an acceptable image.

And now Bezos wants in on it.
I think there should be a moratorium on excessive satellites until they can find a way to dispose of some of the dead stuff floating around up there, and definitely a slowing of competition among these megalomaniac opportunists with no regard for humans.

Truth is, it really is about time for an asteroid to reset this shitshow, but it seems everytime a reset occurs humans almost always find a way to become what we are today, and the cycle repeats.

Guess Ill just spend more time outside at night with nature, my telescopes, glass of scotch and my pupperdoodle Gypsy, could be worse😉

Le