After a few years the orbit will degrade enough that it’ll start to fall back to earth. At that point, the satellite will either burn up completely on re-entry, or partially and the rest will fall to earth.
Either way, each of these satellites will be completely gone from orbit after a few years.
Hard to say, but with how few sizeable chunks of natural stone/metal meteors make it through it’s tough to expect some relatively fragile satellites would survive the trip down.
Yay more space trash in earth orbit
At LEAST it’s low orbit so it’ll burn up (relatively) quickly.
Does it burn up completely? Nothing gets left behind?
nope https://mastodon.social/@tayledras/112541250492523932
That’s part of a Dragon capsule, not a Starlink satellite.
ah. my bad.
After a few years the orbit will degrade enough that it’ll start to fall back to earth. At that point, the satellite will either burn up completely on re-entry, or partially and the rest will fall to earth.
Either way, each of these satellites will be completely gone from orbit after a few years.
Hard to say, but with how few sizeable chunks of natural stone/metal meteors make it through it’s tough to expect some relatively fragile satellites would survive the trip down.
We’re only now starting to try and ensure spacecraft are designed in such a way that they completely break up.
Shape/size/material all have an impact on whether something completely breaks up
https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Preparing_for_the_Future/Discovery_and_Preparation/Design_for_demise_bringing_spacecraft_down_safely_and_efficiently
Kessler Syndrome! Let’s Go!
Thankfully, these things are at least too low to stay in orbit indefinitely like that
Almost as if people thought ahead about this stuff.
Wild concept, that planning ahead thing is