Yay!
Kessler Syndrome! Kessler Syndrome! Kessler Syndrome!
/s
this post was submitted on 09 Jul 2026
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Low Earth orbit means that the debris will get dragged down by the atmosphere before it becomes a cascading problem. Thankfully.
Assuming none of the debris gets pushed into higher orbits.
Orbits are elipses, which are loops. So after the explosion gives an object more energy it's in a new orbit right? That orbit has LOOP. Which means it has to come back to a similar point it's at now. Therefore if an object passes through low orbit, no one explosion can make it be in a high orbit. At best it'll be an ellipse with a point in high orbit and a point in low orbit.
Any amount in low orbit means a decaying orbit due to drag with eventual falling out of the sky.
If you get to the high orbit point and you get a SECOND explosion that's perfectly timed you could theoretically enter a new high orbit that's stable over the long term and contribute to Kessler syndrome.
Blowing up a low orbit satellites can lead to many particles reaching high altitudes, if only temporary as you say, where they can cause cascades. Unstable orbits make the probability of collisions smaller, but they need to shatter only one satellite to end up with a mess in stable orbits.
Space is pretty big. I understand the odds are non zero but it's still really small in this scenario.
There’s a whole concept about this, a Kessler countdown of some sort. Some scientists are trying to figure out in the hypothetical situation where all satellites in orbit lost attitude control and evasive maneuver capabilities, how long would it take to initiate the Kessler syndrome. Apparently we went from months to days within the last decade.
An astrophysicist I follow on Matodon is super vocal about it. I’ll have to find her posts.
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I think it will depend on how they would disable the satellites. There's a lot of Starlink satellites, it's a lot of particles if they use explosives...
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So we can directly pollute the upper atmosphere with heavy metals? I’m sure that’s a good thing. /s
Happens all the time with meteors. There's a lot of atmoshpere and only so many Starlink satellites; far too few satellites to meaningfully affect anything.
On the plus side, global cooling achieved through a shield of reflective debris!
Who needs GPS and climate data anyway, right?
GPS is comically higher than starlink.
I’d be much more worried about a direct attack.
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That's not what these satellites are used for.
That is inevitable. The sky will be filled with the trash of struck down satellites and nothing can leave earth for a while. Before starlink, China had already demonstrated that they can shoot down satellites. No investigation needed.
Even the worst Kessler syndrome scenarios don't stop new satellites from being launched through the debris-containing altitudes to reach clear orbits.
filled with the trash of struck down satellites
It's already full of trash of operating satellites. Starlink is very very low orbit. When pieces go in random directions (assuming significant enough vertically), they either go back to the atmosphere (air will stop it, duh) or slightly higher up to be in an orbit that's original height on one side and slightly higher on another.
Yay! but the Ukraine war effort Boo! but less space junk! Yay! but all those just... normal Starlink customers who need internet Boo! but fuck Musk! Yay!
I'm gonna need a drink.
How about a frozen yogurt? I call it frogurt.
Why not frozurt? It sounds less cursed!
Blowing up satellites turns it from 1 bit of space junk into thousands...
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I think by pure count, the amount of space junk would go up. The pieces would just be a lot smaller.
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We already have the technology if memory serves. Since civilians are the last to know, there have probably been satellite killers in orbit for years.
It's fun for Musk to get fucked, but I believe Ukraine uses Starlink to defend itself
It's not even secret, there have been highly publicized tests of ground- and air-launched interceptor missiles, and a fair few tests observed by amateur astronomers where military satellites rendezvoused and closed to observation/weapons range with dummy targets. It's very hard to hide anything that happens in orbit.
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Space wars?
Sorry, space is closed.
I wonder how much taxpayer money will be spent trying to protect musk's satellites.
Honestly, they are so cheap compared to anything that could kill them. The best passive defense strategy is to just launch more.
Obviously there are lots of active defense measures that would be on the table. But that would likely be the chosen passive defense strategy.
Hopefully elol gets the point that he cant take up unlimited place in space for his 5g radars, sharing is caring
That's great. No space for anyone.
According to the authors of the concept, if the resilience of a satellite constellation is ensured by its sheer number, then the response should be a weapon cheap enough to destroy satellites faster than SpaceX can launch new ones.
Smells of the good old forgeting that the target wont just sit by
At least they arent putting everything in one basket this time with physical destruction being the last option
Whats a satellite constallation destroyer but a anti ICBM weapon under a diffrent name?
they already have anti-satellite missiles, they just need to build alot of them. or have jamming satellites of thier own,.
Ooh I'm actually all for this! Destroy ALL the satellites!
I could get on board with that.
Yeah! Fuck Starlink!
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