Starlink satellites spotted as 'bright line' moved across Saskatchewan's night sky
Cole Bratushesky was lost for words, and an explanation, as he watched a bright line move across the sky Sunday night in Regina around 10 p.m.
“I look up and there’s a tube probably about three to six kilometers long, and just lights. Just lights, lights, lights,” he said.
“I’m wondering, ‘What the heck is this?’”
It was not a bird. It was not a plane. And despite Bratushesky’s first thought, it was not a UFO.
Astronomy professor Samantha Lawler has been fielding a number of questions about the train of lights in the last few days.
While she said it is “very freaky looking,” the lights are nothing more than satellites—53 SpaceX Starlink satellites to be exact.
“When they are first launched they are in a much lower altitude orbit and they are very close together so your eye actually can’t resolve the individual satellites,” Lawler said.
“It just looks like a very bright line moving across the sky.”
The growing influx of Starlink satellites over Saskatchewan's night skies have caused many residents to question what's happening over their heads.
According to the SpaceX website, the company launched the satellites to low-Earth orbit from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on April 29.
As days pass, the satellites will spread out, she said, reaching an orbit 550 kilometres above Earth. The satellites will still be visible, but not as bright.
While it will not be a permanent fixture in the night sky, Lawler said Starlink launches are “quite frequent,” which means it is “pretty common” to see this line of lights in the sky.
Starlink satellites are designed to deliver high-speed, broadband internet worldwide, including places where access has been unreliable, expensive or unavailable, according to its website.
CHANGING THE NIGHT SKY
There are more than 2000 Starlink satellites in orbit that make up more than one third of all active satellites, Lawler said.
As more satellites launch as planned, Lawler is worried of the impacts, including light pollution.
“They effectively dominate one particular altitude orbit,” she said, referring to the Starlink network.
“They are changing the way the night sky looks. When you go outside at night, if it’s within a couple hours of sunrise or sunset you will see Starlink satellites. They are bright and easily visible.”
Starlink provides a “very useful service,” Lawler said, but she believes the satellites can be engineered in a dark, safer and cleaner way.
On its website, Starlink said it has taken an experimental approach to reducing the brightness of its satellites, adding orbital brightness is “an extremely difficult problem to tackle analytically.”
The company said it works with astronomers to reduce satellite brightness and protect the natural night sky.
Aside from aesthetics, Lawler said further increasing the high-density orbit could lead to what is known as Kessler Syndrome.
“When two satellites collide it makes a bunch of debris that collides with more satellites that makes more debris,” she said.
“All of a sudden that part of orbit is unusable.”
An oversaturation of space junk, or debris, in that part of the atmosphere could impact future space flights, satellite launches, space telescopes and weather satellites, according to Lawler.
There are no environmental regulations in outer space, Lawler said, which is another concern for the astronomer.
Faulty or aging satellites that need to be replaced will “de-orbit” and burn up in the atmosphere. It is a quick and safe process, SpaceX said.
However, Lawler said it is still too soon to tell what impact it could have on the atmosphere.
She said there are discussions around regulating outer space and the atmosphere. However, regulations would have to happen at the international level. This would mean bringing the issue to the United Nations, which will take several years.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'I may have some nightmares:' Man survives being bitten by 2 sharks in Bahamas
A man who was bitten by two sharks in the Bahamas said Thursday he's 'thankful that I'm here' while sharing his story of survival.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.