Comment by xor@sh.itjust.works on The New Space Race Is Causing New Pollution Problems | Earth’s stratosphere has never seen the amounts of emissions and waste from rockets and satellites that a booming space economy will leave behind

i’m starting to think maybe we shouldn’t burn tons of fuel for billionaires to be space tourists… …
regarding starlink, all satellites eventually deorbit and burn up in the atmosphere… but yeah it’s the quantity and time frame

The only difference between “burn up on reentry” and “burn up in a bonfire” is altitude. I’ll call the police of my neighbor is burning TVs in their backyard every other day.

like i said, quantity and frequency…
if your neighbor burned a tv in a bonfire every 3 years, and used that tv to answer mysteries of the universe and had to burn it to do that… you’d be okay with it.

The starlink constellation is-

Nearly 12,000 satellites are planned to be deployed, with a possible later extension to 42,000.

If they last 5 years that’s 2400-8400 deorbiting per year. These aren’t the ones “answering the mysteries of the universe” these are the ones selling internet access.

From the article-

plunge through the atmosphere and disintegrate, leaving a stream of pollutants in their wake. Although scientists do not yet know how this will influence Earth’s environment, Dr. Ross thinks that it will be the most significant impact from spaceflight.

well i was contrasting how say, the hubble telescope is a worthwhile satellite that will eventually burn up in the atmosphere, while starlink is wasteful…

Hubble is so far away it won’t reenter for a very long time. And that’s 1 versus 12000.

what is your point?
my point is you’re agreeing with me a lot but misinterpreting me entirely… so you’re trying to argue with me.
…
i’ll repeat my point reeeeeally simply:
yes, starlink wasteful, bad satellites.
some satellites good, like hubble.

Starlink only answers the mysteries of Google but I agree with your frequency point. The satellites burning up in the atmosphere release an inconceivable fraction of the total emissions the global economy releases into the atmosphere.

well i was contrasting how say, the hubble telescope is a worthwhile satellite that will eventually burn up in the atmosphere, while starlink is wasteful…

Before you call it wasteful, consider the people who now can use it as a proper link to modern society… Rural Canadians in particular like myself, and others in rural areas around the world.

Canada is famous for its poor quality and expensive telecom services, and before Starlink I paid the same amount for a 1mbps 3g connection, 20gb cap, high ping and marginally usable uptime.

Starlink is bringing modern connectivity to huge areas of the world that were underserved, and breaking local monopolies while it does so. If some satellites have to burn up to do so, compare it to all the e-waste here on the ground created just for entertainment purposes and at least it’s serving a valid purpose.

i have considered that, and it does serve a very good purpose there…
but still, launching a shitload of satellites wastes a lot of fuel and energy, and deorbiting them is rather wasteful.
im sure the same thing could be done without treating satellites like kleenex…
one of those things where profit and preserving the environment clash.

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The New Space Race Is Causing New Pollution Problems | Earth’s stratosphere has never seen the amounts of emissions and waste from rockets and satellites that a booming space economy will leave behind(www.nytimes.com)

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