FURY!!!!!!!

[Goldenmole 19]

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanocallaghan/2020/07/31/amazon-is-going-to-add-3000-more-satellites-into-earths-orbit--and-people-are-not-happy/?sh=22f024d77628

WHAT? Excuse me? I have only recently found out about this, and i cannot believe it. To quote Stargazerslounge member Baldyman "I wonder what we will fill up with junk first. The oceans or the atmosphere?"

How dare anyone be given permission to do this? Is there something i can sign to try and stop it? I don't know who i am more furious at, Amazon or the FCC. I know this was announced a while back, but i am still making this article regardless. Please let me know what i can possibly do to try and stop it.

My sorrow cannot be expressed fully. If polluting our own planet wasn't enough... ugh. I know you probably have all heard it before, but i felt i must put something. Thank you for your time.

Edited February 14 by Goldenmole

[Davey-T 18,227]

And they're not the only ones at least three more companies have plans to add thousands more.

Dave

[mark81 1,010]

I, like many others feel the same... I saw a huge stream of those Musk satellites go up last year - I did throw a stone in the general direction but I think I missed... I also threw a few choice words that way too... 

I guess there will be petitions online somewhere, but once its been approved there's very little to be done... 

This sort of thing can be soul destroying if you think about it too much... I do a lot of beach cleaning and it never fails to amaze me how quickly the plastic bottle tops regroup...

Mark

[DaveL59 2,920]

you wonder at what point will they find they are unable to launch any new missions out to deep space or the moon with the ever increasing garbage in orbit...

[PeterW 1,396]

I was “enjoying” seeing the streams go over, but they seem to be harder to see now... as time went on seeing predicted bright ones from Heavens Above got harder. So it seems their plans to make them less visible by design and flight orientation are working, how well will have to be for others to say. 
 

Peter

[runway77 24]

Private corporations for their own private profit are destroying the science of astronomy and the night sky right before our own eyes. According to law of the jungle. Without any proper worldwide discussion. We don't even know what other environmental negative effects do these satellites have on the biosphere. I am wondering where this world is going..

Edited February 14 by runway77

[John 35,530]

Shocking though it is, this is rather old news. The FCC granted Space-X permission to launch over 12,000 satellites back in 2018. The condition with that permission was that they were all up there in operation by 2024.

 

 

Edited February 14 by John

[carastro 8,951]

I signed this petition some time ago but it doesn't seem to have grown much since.

https://secure.avaaz.org/community_petitions/en/SpaceEx_Starlink_Fifty_thousand_telecom_satellites_will_make_astronomy_impossible/?aVIigpb&newuser=1  

[Goldenmole 19]

https://secure.avaaz.org/community_petitions/en/SpaceEx_Starlink_Fifty_thousand_telecom_satellites_will_make_astronomy_impossible/?aVIigpb&newuser=1

Can everyone please sign this! It would be much appreciated, however little you think it will help.

[Jiggy 67 863]

Should it not be the case that a decision to effectively pollute Earth’s orbit with thousands of pieces of junk, thereby threatening the enjoyment of space by a worldwide population, be made by a worldwide organization rather than made by an organization in one particular country?....

[Goldenmole 19]

5 hours ago, Jiggy 67 said:

Should it not be the case that a decision to effectively pollute Earth’s orbit with thousands of pieces of junk, thereby threatening the enjoyment of space by a worldwide population, be made by a worldwide organization rather than made by an organization in one particular country?....

I couldn't agree with you more. Respect.

[Jiggy 67 863]

I suspect Amazon needs to pollute Earth  orbit with thousands of satellites so they can pollute our skies with thousands of drones delivering parcels containing toys for the dog etc!

[John 35,530]

https://spacenews.com/spacex-submits-paperwork-for-30000-more-starlink-satellites/

The submissions for approval seem to go to the ITU which is part of the United Nations. From their webpage:

"The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies – ICTs.

Founded in 1865 to facilitate international connectivity in communications networks, we allocate global radio spectrum and satellite orbits, develop the technical standards that ensure networks and technologies seamlessly interconnect, and strive to improve access to ICTs to underserved communities worldwide.  Every time you make a phonecall via the mobile, access the Internet or send an email, you are benefitting from the work of ITU. 

ITU is committed to connecting all the world's people – wherever they live and whatever their means. Through our work, we protect and support everyone's right to communicate."

 

[theropod 190]

Re the above: those rights are apparently superseded the rights of others to enjoy the night sky.

[John 35,530]

29 minutes ago, theropod said:

Re the above: those rights are apparently superseded the rights of others to enjoy the night sky.

Global communications produces a lot more £'s / $'s revenue than enjoying the night sky does.

I'm not happy about it at all as an amateur astronomer of course but these are the realities that drive global decision making whether we like them or not, I'm afraid.

 

 

[Jiggy 67 863]

My reading of the article posted by @John is a bit different from John’s. I’m sure it’s far more complicated than any of us could understand but my understanding of that article is that the ITU control frequency’s and the “technical stuff”

The ITU, a United Nations entity, coordinates spectrum at the international level for satellite operators to prevent signal interference and spectrum hogging. National regulators submit filing on behalf of their country’s satellite operators.

[Jonny_H 110]

Call me cynical but with things like this I don't believe any petition can/will put a stop to it. Mainly down to the amount of money involved.....money talks as the old saying goes - rightly or wrongly.

As I said me being cynical!

Is a disgrace though and what will it do to our hobby!?

Edited February 15 by Jonny_H

[Stargazer33 1,067]

To be honest, I think general light pollution is far worse. These satellites really only affect long exposure astro photography. Having the odd satellite go through your field of view when you're doing visual astronomy isn't a huge issue. 

Shops and offices, not to mention government/council buildings leaving their lights on all night; poor/ill directed street and security lighting, affect not only astronomers, but humans in general; not to mention the massive detrimental affect it has on insects and animals. 

[Merlin 172]

Musk and Co. have a Wild West attitude towards space: grab what you can, while you can. It’s free! Musk said that he would like to die on Mars. It’s certainly bleak enough.
Astrophysicists are expressing a genuine concern about orbital  space clutter, with regard to its effects on both optical and radio astronomy.

[DaveL59 2,920]

ack where's that "fingers crossed" emoti...

 

that he's on the first mission in the splat-ship he's been building  

[wulfrun 493]

2 hours ago, Merlin said:

Musk said that he would like to die on Mars.

If only that could be arranged....how about now?

[Neil H 644]

It's always been the way if you have money you can do what you like , I know FLO do a cloud gun we need a satellite gun a really big one 

[Carbon Brush 1,044]

I remember as a child in early 60s being shown a daily newspaper (very small) entry telling us when and where to look for what was (I think) a high altitude reflective weather balloon passing over.
One of very few objects that moved in the night sky. I think there may have been two of these ballons?

About 10 years ago I invited a few friends around to watch the August Perseids show. The intention being to have a list of satellite passes as the 'warm up' act before the meteor show got going around midnight.
I think there were something like 80 satellites that were visual or small binos brightness over 2-3 hours.
As it happens, the cloud makers were working that night and we only saw the police helicopter nearby

That is one illustration of how things have changed in my lifetime.

Another illustration (refered to in earlier posts) is plastics pollution. Yes it is bad. But at least we are thinking about it, and actually doing something about it. Too little, yes. But we are starting.
Going back to the 60s. Nothing (apart from scrap metal) was recycled. Most rubbish went on the fire, or in a bin. Yes we had less plastic packaging and plastic products. But recycling was all but zero.