Re:OneWeb successfully launches 34 more satellites into orbit
by 34679 on Sunday March 22, 2020 @10:11AM
(#22655022)
What percentage of the sky do you envision will be occupied by man made objects?
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Re:OneWeb successfully launches 34 more satellites into orbit
by Veedrac on Sunday March 22, 2020 @10:20AM
(#22655092)
Very small, but that's not a useful measure. For astronomy, remember that bright, fast-moving objects will leave sizable streaks in images that halo a lot[1]. OTOH, intensity varies with time and satellite height. With regards to how much space we have, note that a satellite is taking up an orbit, not a point, and it's a lot harder to fit things in those safely, since they have a tendency to overlap.
[1]: https://nationalastro.org/news/starlink-satellites-imaged-fr...
Re:OneWeb successfully launches 34 more satellites into orbit
by _Microft on Sunday March 22, 2020 @02:00PM
(#22656987)
To put this question into perspective:
The Iridium flare which you saw in video [0] so nicely next to what looked like a full-moon was produced by a flat, reflective surface of less than 2m² area at a distance of over 600km. Percentage does not matter here.