SpaceX will gradually lower 4,400 Starlink satellites this year to improve space safety.
SpaceX announced it will lower approximately 4,400 Starlink satellites from 550 km to 480 km above Earth throughout 2026 to reduce the risk of collisions in low Earth orbit. The move will also shorten the satellites’ end-of-life decay time by more than 80 percent.
The decision follows a December incident in which one Starlink satellite created minor debris and briefly cut communications with another spacecraft. Michael Nicholls, SpaceX vice-president of engineering, said the adjustment will also mitigate risks from uncoordinated maneuvers and launches by other operators.
Estimates from the European Space Agency indicate over 40,000 objects orbit below 2,000 km, with more than 9,300 owned by SpaceX. Objects over 1 cm in size, over 1.2 million pose potential collision hazards.
Professor Hugh Lewis of the University of Birmingham said SpaceX carried out 144,404 collision avoidance maneuvers between December 2024 and May 2025, a 200 percent increase from the previous period.
Nicholls emphasized the satellite adjustments are part of SpaceX’s ongoing efforts to make orbital operations safer as congestion in low Earth orbit increases.
At least 10 people were killed after two high-speed trains collided in Spain on Wednesday, forcing the suspension of services on a major rail route...
Despite losing his bloc's majority in Israel's 120-seat Knesset in a hotly contested election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has manage...
The world's richest 0.1 per cent, just eight million people, produce more carbon emissions through their consumption than the poorest 3.5 billi...
Despite losing his bloc's majority in Israel's 120-seat Knesset in a hotly contested election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has managed to remain in the lead after 70 per cent of votes were tallied on Wednesday. Figures are subject to change as counting continues.
Russia and Ukraine have begun a regional ceasefire to allow the start of a humanitarian effort in the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky, both sides said on Tuesday, but they continue strikes elsewhere, including the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.
Russian strikes hit several parts of Ukraine overnight, injuring at least six people and targeting energy and port infrastructure, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said U.S. warnings about imminent Russian ballistic missile attacks had resumed.
Nearly two years after the 20 October 2024 parliamentary elections, Iraq’s Kurdistan Region remains without a cabinet. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) won 39 of 100 seats and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) 23, leaving neither able to govern alone.
The Pentagon is prepared to launch potentially major military operations against Iran within 96 hours of receiving an order from U.S. President Donald Trump, with sufficient forces already deployed in the Middle East, according to a CNN report.
NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang has praised Kazakhstan’s AI ambitions, highlighting its potential to become a global hub for Physical AI, launch startups and transform industries.
Türkiye is preparing to sue Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, over age-inappropriate content on social media, Turkish Education Minister Yusuf Tekin has said.
A judge in the U.S. state of New Mexico has ordered Meta to pay $25 billion after a jury found the company misled consumers, in a case linked to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Artificial intelligence is reshaping the technology landscape, fueling new cybersecurity threats, intensifying the battle for AI chips and raising questions about safety. From autonomous hacking to SpaceX’s mobile ambitions, here are five key developments shaping the industry.
Japan has launched an uncrewed spacecraft on a mission to collect the first-ever samples from one of Mars’s moons and bring them back to Earth, in a bid to uncover clues about the origins of the solar system.
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