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A comment on Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t compete, SpaceX says. Parent comment

Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by switz on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @05:12PM (#28385573)
Not OP, but I can think of two reasons – too many LEO satellites can actually hinder views of the night sky[0] and additionally, the risk of kessler syndrome[1].

I'm in no way equipped to give a scientific risk assessment of either, so I'll defer to others to share if they feel it's major concern. But whether these are present issues or not, they're worth considering and thinking about as we move forward with more LEO deployments. The latter issue especially, given that once it occurs, it'll be extremely difficult (nigh impossible?) to rectify in short order.

[0] https://astrobites.org/2020/09/25/leosats/

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kessler_syndrome

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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by maccam94 on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @05:28PM (#28385722)
Kessler Syndrome is not really an issue at lower LEO, the atmospheric drag quickly (in ~5 years) deorbits anything without functioning propulsion and navigation systems.
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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by switz on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @05:49PM (#28385934)
My mistake, I appreciate you correcting me.
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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by logicx24 on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @05:26PM (#28385702)
Amazing, we now have sky NIMBYs complaining about satellites hindering views.
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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by dylan604 on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @06:20PM (#28386244)
just because you live in a place where you can't even see the night sky doesn't mean other people should be robbed of their view.
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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by Lapsed on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @06:37PM (#28386394)
No one lives in a place where they can see starlink satellites with their naked eye once they are in operational orbit.
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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by BenjiWiebe on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @07:18PM (#28386778)
I'd be in favor of requiring all city lights to be turned off after 7pm so I could see the night sky better in my rural location. (/sorta s)

A small city 40 miles away hurts the view far more then the Starlink satellites do.

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Re:Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t... by mgraczyk on Wednesday September 01, 2021 @05:27PM (#28385709)
The night view is a potential issue, but Kessler syndrome is not. These satellites will decay on extremely short timescales. Until many of them start blowing up and launching debris in higher orbit, we don't need to worry too much about this.
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