Geomagnetic storm knocks 40 SpaceX satellites into Earth's atmosphere

Each satellite has or will re-enter Earth's atmosphere, meaning they will all need to be replaced.
Text: Ben Lyons
Published 2022-02-10

It has been revealed that nearly all of the Starlink internet satellites that SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket took into Earth's orbit a week ago have been knocked out of place and effectively destroyed, due to a geomagnetic storm.

Revealed in a SpaceX update, up to 40 of the satellites have or soon will re-enter Earth's atmosphere, where they will burn up before ever reaching the ground, and likewise will leave zero orbital debris.

While 40 lost satellites does seem like quite the large figure, SpaceX and Starlink currently has launched approximately 2,000 satellites, with plans to expand that number by 30,000 to provide true global internet coverage. This situation will mean that the Falcon rocket will have to make another trip into orbit to be able to deliver replacement satellites, but it's not a huge issue for the company in the grand scheme of things.

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