Scientists Turn Starlink Into a Giant Scanner For Earth's Upper Atmosphere (sciencedaily.com) 10
alternative_right shares a report from ScienceDaily: Researchers have found a clever new way to map a part of Earth's upper atmosphere that is notoriously difficult to observe. Using orbital data from roughly 1,200 Starlink satellites, they reconstructed changes in atmospheric density about 500 kilometers above Earth. [...] The resulting density patterns also showed strong consistency with observations from the European Space Agency's SWARM satellites, which measure changes in atmospheric density along their orbital paths.
The work expands on an earlier study by the same team. In that research, scientists estimated how thermospheric density changed over time and altitude using general orbital information called Two-Line Element, or TLE, data from Starlink satellites. The new analysis adds another dimension by examining how density varies horizontally across latitude and longitude, revealing more of the thermosphere's geographic structure.
The findings could have practical benefits as the number of objects orbiting Earth continues to grow. More accurate information about atmospheric density can improve predictions of satellite motion, helping reduce the chance of collisions between satellites and between satellites and space debris. The technique could also eventually support near-real-time measurements of atmospheric density around satellites. Such monitoring could improve space weather forecasting and contribute to safer, more dependable satellite operations in the future.
The work expands on an earlier study by the same team. In that research, scientists estimated how thermospheric density changed over time and altitude using general orbital information called Two-Line Element, or TLE, data from Starlink satellites. The new analysis adds another dimension by examining how density varies horizontally across latitude and longitude, revealing more of the thermosphere's geographic structure.
The findings could have practical benefits as the number of objects orbiting Earth continues to grow. More accurate information about atmospheric density can improve predictions of satellite motion, helping reduce the chance of collisions between satellites and between satellites and space debris. The technique could also eventually support near-real-time measurements of atmospheric density around satellites. Such monitoring could improve space weather forecasting and contribute to safer, more dependable satellite operations in the future.
I have a theory (Score:1)
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There it is.
Re: I have a theory (Score:3)
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Even better would be a camera on the other side of each unit, facing outward. The resolution of each individual camera wouldn't have to be that great, the sheer number of them and their exact known position and orientation would effectively be a giant 360 degree telescope. (I may be way off on the utility of something like this, but it seems to make sense.)
What?? Must be switched off immediately! (Score:1)
I mean, this could be used to see things about the non-existent climate change, right? It must be banned! Or maybe put 100% tariffs on every byte of data!
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I mean, this could be used to see things about the non-existent climate change, right? It must be banned! Or maybe put 100% tariffs on every byte of data!
Yes, you must inject one byte for every byte you take; can't let you get away with science. Maybe Congress should make it illegal to take publicly available information and use it for scientific purposes.
Since researchers used publicly available orbital information from Starlink satellites , I wonder how long it will be before Musk wants to get paid for the data.
Same with GPS (Score:2)
We do the same in the upper atmosphere tracking GPS signals with special satellites designed to measure delays or frequency shifts depending on gas composition.