The latest generation of SpaceX's Starlink satellites are leaking even more potentially disruptive radiation into low-Earth orbit than their predecessors, a new study shows. Researchers warn that the continuing unchecked deployment of the spacecraft could lead to an irreversible "inflection point," beyond which we can no longer properly study the universe's most exciting objects.
In July 2023, researchers discovered that SpaceX's Generation 1 Starlink satellites, first launched in 2019, are leaking unintended electromagnetic radiation (UEMR) into space. This radiation, which mainly consists of radio waves, is inadvertently given off by the satellites in multiple directions as they transmit radio signals to Earth. Unfortunately, these radio wave frequencies are very similar to those emitted by distant objects from across the cosmos, such as stars, exoplanets, black holes and pulsars, meaning that leakage from the satellites can obscure radio astronomers' readings.
