Solar storm wreaks havoc on Starlink satellites

Last week, the company Stalink announced that it was launching 49 new satellites into orbit.

These would be part of the company's constellation of satellites to offer internet access. Unfortunately, 40 of those 49 satellites were damaged in a solar storm.

This was, without a doubt, one of the most disastrous launches the company has had in recent years. The information comes from the company itself who issued a statement in this regard and explained what happened.

The satellites that Starlink, in conjunction with SpaceX, launched into low earth orbit were unable to reach it due to a geomagnetic storm. This caused the satellites to encounter greater resistance than expected and since they did not reach Earth's orbit, they fell.

These satellites will end up destroyed, since they will disintegrate in the atmosphere as they have not reached their orbit.

What is a solar storm and why does it affect electronic devices so much?

A solar storm or geomagnetic storm is a disturbance that occurs in the magnetosphere. The causes of this is a wave of solar wind or a coronal mass ejection that disturbs the magnetic field of the earth.

This causes the electric current found in the magnetosphere to increase. This is something that can end up frying the circuits of electronic devices, and this is because the atmosphere heats up.

However, this was not what happened in this case, since this phenomenon also causes the atmosphere to increase its density, which makes it more difficult to pass through. According to Starlink reports, the satellites encountered 50% more resistance, causing them to be unable to reach their destination.

It is not the first time that a satellite ends up destroyed

Although the news is that 80% of the satellites launched have ended up destroyed, it is noteworthy that this is not the first time this has happened. Several times this has already happened, but in smaller numbers, either satellites that have gone out of orbit or that have failed to launch, the fall of Starlink satellites has already happened.

In fact, just a few weeks ago a satellite fell into the Cantabrian Sea. However, a satellite crashing to earth is unlikely, as satellites are designed not to create debris that could fall to earth. These types of satellites have a special design that causes them to disintegrate in the atmosphere, reducing a collision to practically zero.

Starlink tried to save the satellites

In the same statement, it was learned that Starlink tried to save the satellites to recover them. However, this could not be possible, as they were unable to glide to a "safe orbit". So the satellites were left adrift and later they will end up disintegrating.

This clearly represents a millionaire loss for the company that will have to rebuild and launch the satellites into the atmosphere again.

Let’s remember that these were part of the more than 40,000 satellites that the company plans to deploy in Earth orbit to bring Internet to every corner of the world.