satellites

Some of the most advanced satellites in the world seemed untouchable. Two hackers showed that they could be kidnapped

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In satellites, each maneuver depends on software that is rarely subjected to public security evidence. Demonstrations in controlled environments have put vulnerabilities on the table that, under certain conditions, could allow the Remote Space Systems Control. It is not a timely failure or an isolated experiment: it is a sign that security should be reviewed with magnifying glass before it becomes news for wrong reasons. In August, during conferences Black Hat USA and Def with held in Las Vegas, researchers shared their findings, According to IEEE Spectrum. The work focused on two key pieces: the Core Flight System (CFS), used in NASA multiple missions, including the telescope James Webband Yamcs, a control system of the European company Space Applications Services. The failures, however, were identified and corrected before their dissemination. The finding reopening the debate on cybersecurity in space Behind the finding are Andrzej Olchawa and Milenko Starcik, experts from Visionspace with direct experience in space operations. They analyzed open source software with the mentality of an adversary, seeking reproducible vulnerabilities. They did not need months of analysis: in a few hours they managed to locate 37 failures that, in controlled scenarios, allowed to manipulate critical systems. They acted on their own environments and coordinated with developers to patch the software before disseminating their conclusions. The analysis of the Core Flight System (CFS) revealed that, although it is a key piece in NASA missions, its exploitation would not be simple. To compromise it would take toCceso Physical to a land station and operate at frequencies reserved for space communications. Even so, researchers warn that, in the hands of a state actor with sufficient resources and coverage, this scenario is plausible. In their demonstration they explained that, with that capacity, it would be possible to raise orders to the satellite and modify their behavior. Yamcs, unlike CFS, was more accessible to an attacker. The researchers showed that a campaign would suffice Phishing Successful to load a malicious configuration in the control center. With that entrance door they could issue arbitrary orders or alter files, all from any location with Internet connection. The exercise showed how this vector opens a much larger and less protected attack surface. In Black Hat USA 2025, Andrzej Olchawa deepened the reach of the tests and shared details on how vulnerabilities exploited. He stressed that All maneuvers were executed in simulated environments and that no real satellite was at risk. His explanation sought to give unlarmed technical context, showing precisely how far actors with sufficient knowledge and access to the right systems could reach. “In some cases, we were able to send arbitrary telecomandos to the ships through the mission control system. In others, we managed to take control of the entire control center and, in other cases, if you are able to send telecomands to the ship, you can get remote execution of code directly in it.” The threat panorama has changed: where there were private networks and local stations before, there are now remote control, cloud services and connections from home. This evolution multiplies the attack possibilities, according to researchers, and explains why theoretical vulnerabilities are now a reason for alert. An example is THE ATTACK AGAINST VIASAT IN 2022which affected thousands of users and coincided with the beginning of the war in Ukraine. The case suggests that space systems are not isolated from global conflicts. Corrections arrived on time for open projects, with updates that mitigated the techniques demonstrated in the laboratory. The pending challenge is in closed systemswhere the absence of access to the code limits the review by external experts. Images | Gontran Isnard | Xataka with Grok In Xataka | Perseverance has found what, according to NASA’s director, is “the clearest indication of life we ​​have seen on Mars”

Flight 10 was a success and showed that the rocket can launch Starlink satellites

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After Three failed attempts And the occasional catastrophic explosion, Spacex can breathe calm. He Starship’s tenth test flight He has fulfilled all the objectives that until now had resisted. Short. He larger rocket in the world Not only did it take off and reached space. He also displayed his first payload, a engine in vacuum re -founded and survived an infernal reentry to merit in a controlled way in the Indian Ocean. Starship’s tenth test flight demonstrates that Spacex’s iterative design still works. And although the vision of a totally reusable ship to colonize Mars is still far, Starship can already start throwing Starlink satellites. A promising start. At the scheduled time, the 33 Raptor engines of the Super Heavy propeller came alive, promoting with a deafening rumble the mole of more than 120 meters high. Although one of the engines failed halfway, it did not affect the mission at all, demonstrating the redundancy of the system. As he burned his 4,900 tons of propellant, the huge Starship rocket exceeded the phase of greater aerodynamic stress and hot separation, lighting the motors from the upper stage before separating. The Super Heavy began its return, but this time it did not look for a soft landing, but to complete a series of risky maneuvers. A skyscraper floating in the air. Booster 16 successfully performed its air in the air to change trajectory. After planning for a few minutes with its aerodynamic grilles and approaching the Gulf of Mexico, intentionally deactivated one of its central engines to test if a backup engine could take over. The most incredible moment came just after, when the 70 -meter rocket used two engines to fly over the ocean in stationary flight before turning off and meriting. As A commentator said“A 20 -story building in the air has just floated.” A milestone that demonstrates to what extent Spacex has controlled the capture of the super heavy with the launch tower, although the reentry is hard. The dispenser fish in action. While the Super Heavy completed its mission, the Starship 37 ship continued on its way to space. Once in his suborbital trajectory, the time for two of the most anticipated tests of the day came. First, the opening of the load bay and the first deployment of a payload. Using a mechanism that Remember a caramel dispenser fishthe ship eject one by one eight Starlink satellite simulators. This test is essential, since Starship’s future as a heavy load vehicle depends on it. Everything ready to launch Starlinks. Spacex plans to launch up to 60 Starlink V3 satellites in future Starship missions, adding 60 tbps capacity to the constellation with each launch, A more than 20 times higher figure to which a Falcon 9 can carry with the current V2 Mini. The rocket is able to reach orbit, display load (yes, it takes a minute per satellite) and then exorbitant. Flight 10 has returned to demonstrate the redempted of a huster engine in a vacuum. This capacity is indispensable to stop the rocket in a controlled way or perform a translunar injection for NASA Artemis missions. Surviving hell to tell. After an hour of flight, Starship began his reentry in the Earth’s atmosphere at hypersonic speeds. This is the time when the previous missions had failed. On this flight, however, the ship showed a robustness that reminds of the first releases. Although the cameras on board showed visible damage (some parts of the ailerons burned and the engines bay suffered a small explosion), the crucial thing is that Starship maintained aerodynamic control throughout the descent. Guided by its spoilers, the incandescent plasma of the resentment with total stability furrowed. The flight culminated with gentle and controlled ameter In the Indian Ocean. Although the ship was quite chamuscada, the simple fact of having completed the reentry and frightening in this way after three consecutive failures is a gigantic victory for Spacex. It is the definitive proof that Starship can start with Starlink launches. Image | Spacex Em xataka | It was hired by Spacex at age 14. Now, with 16, the young genius has turned his back on Elon Musk to go to Wall Street

Russia is building a nuclear weapon capable of destroying all satellites in orbit

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In 1962, the world looked on the edge of the nuclear abyss when the United States discovered the installation of Soviet missiles in Cubaa few kilometers from its coasts. The tension derived from that geopolitical pulse symbolized the fragility of the strategic balance and the ease with which a technological advance or risky play could precipitate the planet towards a total confrontation. Today, more than sixty years later, United States evokes That historical episode when warning about a similar threat, although transferred to space. A new crisis. The announcement that Russia would be developing a Orbital nuclear weapon Able to disable the totality of the satellites in land low orbit has turned on alarms in Washington, with direct comparisons to That crisis of the missiles of Cuba that we commented. According to the declassified data For the US Congress, this system would combine an initial physical attack that would generate a reaction in orbital destruction chain with a nuclear pulse destined to fry the electronics of all affected satellites. The result. It would be, in his opinion, devastating: With the collapse of GPS, communications, intelligence and early missile alert systems, all critical elements for global safety and economy. The United States argues that the weapon, not yet operational, could be unusable for orbit for a whole yeargenerating an unprecedented strategic vacuum in which both Washington and its allies would be exposed to conventional or even nuclear threats without the coverage of their space constellations. The role of satellites. Today orbit More than 12,000 satellites that fulfill vital functions for modern life: from television and navigation services to international military and economic architecture. In fact, the war in Ukraine has already demonstrated its vulnerability when the Russian attack against Viasat In 2022 he left tens of thousands of users without service in much of Europe. More recently, the kidnapping of a satellite signal to issue the Victory Day Parade In Ukraine he showed how cyberspace and outer space are intertwined as new battlefields. The experts They warn that it is enough to exploit outdated software or insecure communication links to disable key satellites, which makes space a Achilles heel of Western democracies. The new space race. We have gone counting. The announcement of the possible Russian weapon coincides with the resurgence of the Spatial competition for the domain of the extraterrestrial resources. The moon has become The centerpiece Of this rivalry: its wealth In Helio-3fuel potential for future nuclear fusion reactors, has triggered plans to establish permanent bases. NASA advertisement the installation of a small nuclear reactor as an initial step to consolidate presence before they do so Russia or Chinathat they already project their own lunar plants. The control of strategic areas of the lunar surface is perceived as a determinant to define the next global hegemony in energy and technology, in a context where the growing demand for energy for artificial intelligence accelerates competition. China between half. While Russia is silent about the alleged antisatellite weapon, China has reacted denouncing Washington for “militarizing space” and accusing it to expand military alliances that convert spatial domain into a war zone. Beijing insists that he opposes an arms race outside the earth, although in parallel promotes projects of space mining and Bases on the Moon that place it on the same competitive board as the United States and Russia. Chinese rhetoric is presented as a guarantor of the international order against a United States accused of exacerbating tension, although the simultaneous development of Technological capabilities of Great reach It reveals a broader power game. Washington’s response. Created In 2019the US space force has assumed the task of protecting national interests in orbit, from communications constellations to military intelligence and navigation satellites. Its fleet includes The X-37ban unmanned ferry that executes prolonged secret missions In orbit and symbolizes Washington’s will to dominate this area. Although small compared to branches such as the army or the navy, the space force It expands and the pentagon Plan to consolidate Soon its headquarters. For US military controls, safe access to space is already a vital interest in national security. The perspective of Russia deploying a space nuclear weapon raises the challenge to a Unpublished scale: The possible paralysis of world satellite infrastructure, with military, economic and psychological consequences comparable to a strategic nuclear attack. A turning point. Be that as it may, the ghost of a “missile crisis in space” reflects that the competition is no longer limited to land, sea and air, not even to cyberspace, but reaches the orbital and lunar domain as new power scenarios. If the United States is right and Russia is allowed to advance with An antisatellite weaponthe global strategic balance could be altered radically, inaugurating an era in which the great powers dispute not only territories, but also access to the infrastructure that sustains modern life. The urgency, both for some and for others, seems clear: or firm limits are established in the military use of space, or the risk that the next great international crisis explodes hundreds of kilometers above our heads will be increasingly real. Image | Steve Jurvetson In Xataka | Bombard the poles with nuclear weapons or build a giant magnet: the most reposted ideas to terraft Mars In Xataka | China has just taken another step in the technological and spatial conquest: an orbital computing network designed for AI

The hidden reason why Elon Musk Lanza Satellites of Archienemigos like Jeff Bezos: The radio spectrum

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On Monday morning, Spacex completed its 100th launch so far this year. But aboard the Falcon 9 rocket there were no new Starlink satellites, but a lot of 24 competition satellites. How have we reached a point where Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, rivals on so many fronts, collaborate in space? A little context. Starlink has been growing without opposition for six years. At this time, Spacex has deployed More than 8,000 satellitesconsolidating an almost absolute domain of the satellite broadband Internet market. Now, a competitor with a comparable financial muscle has entered the scene: the Amazon Kuiper Project. The company founded by Jeff Bezos has begun to display its own megaconstellation to offer high -speed connections worldwide and compete directly with the Elon Musk service. Time against. The main challenge for Kuiper is time. The license granted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of the United States requires him to have half of his constellation in orbit (that is, 1,618 satellites of a total of 3,232) before July 2026. Unlike Spacex, which has a complete vertical integration, Amazon does not manufacture its own rockets. To fulfill the deadline, the technological giant made in 2022 the “greater commercial acquisition of history of history”, signing contracts with ULA to use its atlas V and Vulcan rockets, with Arianespace to use the European rocket Ariane 6, and with Blue Origin, the aerospace company of Jeff Bezos himself, to use the gigantic new Glenn rocket. The problem is that most of these pitchers are new and have suffered important delays. They are just business. Although Bezos tried to prevent Amazon from using Spacex services, the most honest option with shareholders was to hire several Falcon 9 rockets, which thanks to their unique reuse capacity usually offer the lower price per kilogram Put in orbit. Spacex has already shown that he is willing to launch satellites of his competitors. Between 2022 and 2024 he launched four lots of satellites for Eutelsat Oneweb, his European rival, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine took the Soyuz and proton rolling from the market. For Spacex, this is a round business because the money of its competitors is pocketed, which can reinvest in its own satellite constellation. But there is another reason. A strategic issue that goes beyond the launch business. The coin of covert change is the increasingly saturated radio spectrum. According to one Wall Street Journal ResearchSpacex has used its dominant position in the release market to press its rivals and obtain a crucial advantage for Starlink: spectrum rights. The radio spectrum is the electromagnetic wave set that are used for wireless communications. It is a resource finite, invisible and absolutely essential so that satellite constellations can send and receive data without interference. Governments around the world, through organizations such as FCC in the United States, are responsible for assigning rights to use it. Spacex needs more spectrum. And he needs it desperately to be able to serve the More than four million Starlink users As it continues to expand. According to the Journal, Musk’s company would have asked companies such as Oneweb and Kepler Communications to give him part of his spectrum rights as a condition for launching his satellites. Although Spacex denies it, the report details how Oneweb, after running out of the Russian rockets, reached an agreement with Spacex that included “spectrum concessions” to ensure the releases it needed. Elon Musk’s web. This strategy places Spacex competitors in an incredibly difficult situation. It is a dilemma that the analyst Tim Farrar Describe as “Carefully choose”. Companies such as Echostar or GlobalStar have had to decide between going through the Spacex ring, giving competitive advantages, or paying more for slower access to space with other rocket companies. If there are. Ast Spacemobile, who had opted for the New Glenn rocket of Blue Origin, found that Bezos’s rocket would not be ready on time And their satellites, much heavier than expected, will have to wait. Apple’s case. In 2022, Musk I had offered Apple exclusive access to Spacex For 5,000 million dollars, an offer that Apple rejected. Apple ended up closing an agreement with GlobalStar for its satellite emergency service, but later, the delay in the launch of GlobalStar’s satellites by Spacex seems to have benefited Starlink. The explanation of the delay and renegotiation of the launch contract seem to have to do with that Apple will end up reaching an agreement To offer Starlink Direct-to-Cell on the iPhone 13, a model that is not compatible with the GlobalStar service. This gave Starlink an advantage in the race for the cell connection at a time when Apple already debated internally if he could compete with the rhythm of Spacex. The giant Starlink. In the end, each launch of a competition or agreement satellite by the spectrum becomes a tactical victory for Elon Musk. Not only does it charge for the service, reinforcing the finances of a company whose income They are about to overcome NASA’s budgetbut it uses its domain to ensure the most vital resource for the future of global communications. Image | Spacex In Xataka | The Ukraine Army has an almost important problem as Russia: Starlink belongs to Elon Musk

launch satellites to space without rocket

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Adak is a small island at the western end of Alaska. With a military past for its proximity to Russia, today it has less than 400 inhabitants. In this almost pospocalyptic scenario, A Californian startup called spinlaunch Plan to build a giant centrifugator for catapult satellites to space. The perfect place for a space catapult. Although the argument of a science fiction film seems like the company, the company has signed an alliance With The Aleut Corporation, owner of much of Adak Island, to build its orbital launch platform there. The choice of the island is not accidental. Its northern latitude and its location in the Pacific allow polar and high inclination launch trajectories without the need to fly over populated areas. Air and sea traffic are also minimal. Adak was an important air base of the United States until 1997, so it has an operating airport and a deep water port, which would greatly facilitate the logistics of building and operating the installation. In addition, the island has enormous wind, hydraulic and geothermal potential that would allow feeding the electric centrifuger with renewable sources. How the spinlaunch centrifuger works. The Californian startup He did a concept of concept in 2022. The system is essentially a kinetic accelerator sealed in vacuum. Inside, a carbon fiber arm rotates the projectile that the satellite contains at hypersonic speeds, reaching 7,500 km/h. At the precise moment, the projectile is released and triggered to heaven by a fireplace. Once it reaches an altitude of 60 km, where the atmosphere is very dim, a small engine turns on to give the final thrust that allows the orbital speed to reach. In one of its most spectacular tests, They placed a camera aboard To see it in the first person. The greatest technical challenge is the brutal acceleration that subjects the payload to forces of up to 10,000 g. Spinlaunch has collaborated with NASA to demonstrate that satellites specially designed for centrifuging can survive the extreme trip. But although Keep working In perfecting the system, it has had to diversify its business so as not to fail. Launches in rockets to finance the tyrachinas. After years of silence, Spinlaunch reappeared in April 2025 with a plan that left many of his perplexed followers: displaying his own constellation telecommunications satellites. The most surprising: the 280 satellites of the Meridian project would be put in orbit using traditional rockets. Although many thought it was a tacit form of leave the catapultthe project on Adak island shows that the intention is to move on. In the words of David Wrenn, CEO of Spinlaunch: “The launch market is relatively small compared to the economic potential of satellite communications, more focused on costs than benefits.” So, if Meridian is successful, the centrigurator in the most remote town in the United States could end up seeing the light in the most post -epocalyptic environment imaginable. Image | Paxson WoelberSpinlaunch In Xataka | What to use rockets when you can use kinetic energy: this is the spectacular Spinlaunch space release system

China already thinks about strategies to neutralize Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites. Your plan: submarines and powerful lasers

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Chinese scientists have developed strategies to neutralize the Starlink Satellite Network of Elon Musk, which Beijing considers a military threat. According to the medium The Independentamong the proposed measures are furtive submarines equipped with spatial lasers, attack satellites with ionic propellants and sabotage of the supply chain. An analysis of 64 academic articles published in Chinese magazines reveals the concern of the Asian country for Spacex’s spatial domain. Why worries so much Starlink. The constellation of satellites carried out by Elon Musk controls two thirds of all active satellites in the world, with more than 8,000 operational units. Its ability to provide fast and cheap connectivity anywhere on the planet, including remote areas, makes it a strategic tool. Chinese researchers They fear that the United States will use it as a military weapon after checking its effectiveness in Ukraine, where facilitated the communications of the Ukrainian army and the control of combat drones. What China poses. Several Chinese researchers and scientists have proposed multiple approaches To counteract Starlink. Engineers of the Popular Liberation Army suggest creating a fleet of spy satellites that follow those of Musk, collecting signals and using corrosive materials to damage their batteries. Other researchers propose optical telescopes to monitor the network, generation of false objectives through Deepfakes and the use of powerful lasers to burn equipment. They have also identified vulnerabilities in the Spacex supply chain, which has more than 140 main suppliers. They will not only be countermeasted. Beijing is not limited to planning countermeasures: it is building its own alternative. In 2021 the Chinese state company created SATNET To develop Guowang, a military megaconstellation that already has 60 operational satellites of the 13,000 planned. In parallel, The Qianfan companysupported by the Shanghai government, has launched 90 satellites of the planned 15,000 and already competes for contracts in Brazil, Kazakhstan, Malaysia and several African countries. The geopolitical context. The Ukraine War marked a turning point in Starlink’s global perception. The conflict showed that the control of satellite communications can tip the balance. What worries China is that a single man like Musk can also interrupt critical services. The medium raises as an example that time in which the tycoon He denied his coverage For a Ukrainian counterattack in Crimea. This dependence on private actors He has not only alarmed Chinabut also to traditional allies of the United States such as the European Union, which invests billions in Your own Iris2 constellation. What comes now. The overwhelming domain of Starlink in space, which already operates in more than 140 countries and only has dead areas in North Korea, Iran and China, has triggered a undercover space race. While Amazon develops her Project Kuiper With just 78 satellites, China accelerate your programs To reduce Musk’s advantage. Interestingly, one of the papers of Chinese researchers simply had the following title: “Be careful with Starlink”. It is clear that space control will be an advantage for armed conflicts and commercial wars that are being released. Cover image | Spacex and Arthur Wang In Xataka | The US has realized how risky it is to continue pressing China. His reverse looks for a “face to face”

satellites that are divided into more satellites to harass the enemy

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The orbit of the earth is gradually becoming A tense chess board. The last play has been starred by Russia with the deployment of an unknown object by the spy satellite Kosmos 2558. Short. On June 26, a Russian military satellite who had been chasing an American spy satellite for three years has decided to open up and release a new object. It is not the first time that this behavior is observed in a Russian ship. In fact, “it is the third time that happens in five years, and the second this year,” according to An analysis of the expert Marco Langbroek. A Russian doll in space. The protagonist of this story is the Kosmos 2558, a military satellite that Russia launched to space in August 2022. Since its orbit, its mission has been an open secret: closely and without rest the ship uses 326, a spy satellite of the National Office of Recognition of the United States (NRO). Now, almost three years after starting its persecution, Kosmos 2558 has released a subsatellite, designated ‘object C’. Langbroek’s observations in Sortrackcam from Leiden (Netherlands) confirmed this behavior. Your telescope captured the new ‘object C’more dim, the night of June 28, two and a half days after separating from his nodriza ship. It appeared 16 seconds after Kosmos 2558, already at a distance of 143 kilometers. Langbroek has compared this behaviorin which a satellite generates other satellites, with a Russian ‘matrioshka’. The orbital harassment of the levelir program. This has not been an isolated incident, but the last piece of a Russian space program known as ‘levelir’. Judging by their history, the objective of these “inspector satellites” is to periodically approach interest ships of other powers, especially American, to demonstrate certain capacities in orbit: In May 2025, Russia placed the Kosmos 2588 satellite in an orbital plane almost identical to the US 338 American satellite and began to perform periodic approaches What if they were latent weapons? Russia describes these launches as “inspection missions”, but for the Pentagon, the explanation falls short. What remains to be inspected after three years? What these satellites do demonstrate is their ability to maintain a latent system to activate it years later with some of the most important spy assets in the United States in space, something that makes US military planners nervous. If we add to these matrioshkas, potential “latent anti -attack weapons”, the intricate series of maneuvers he has been performing The trio of Russian ships Kosmos 2581, 2582 and 2583it is seen that Mother Russia is still able to check her opponents in the terrestrial orbit. Image | Toño Ortiz (CC by-C-SA 2.0), Marco Langbroek (Sattrackcam) In Xataka | Russia does not want the enemy to fit its territory. The solution is Kalina, a laser weapon to blind satellites

China has launched four supersecretos satellites since March. We don’t know anything about them except for four Buddhist gods

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China continues strengthening their military positions In space. Almost always discreetly, but lately he has played the mystery. Surely there is someone in the Pentagon thoroughly investigating the deities of Buddhism. Context. Until recently, the patches of Chinese space missions did not stand out for their originality. They used to follow a fairly formulist design: circular shapes, a mixture of red and blue, and national symbols. But something is changing. We saw it with the patch of the last Shenzhou manned mission to the Tiangong Space Station, which He broke the mold With a triangular form. Now Ars Technica He has put the focus on four intriguing patches linked to four ultrasect satellite launches. These emblems have an artistic quality and colors that contrast with previous designs. They represent the four celestial kings of Buddhism. And this is where the thing gets interesting. The four heavenly kings. Since March, China has put in orbit four secret satellites with the names of these Buddhist gods. According to tradition, the four celestial kings are protective deities that guard the four cardinal points against the forces of evil and protect the dharma, the teachings of Buddha. The question is whether their names give a clue about the purpose of the satellites or the Chinese are playing the mistake. In China, the four celestial kings are known as: Duōwén Tiānwáng, Northern Guardian, “the God who hears everything,” represented with an umbrella. Zēngzhǎng tiānwáng, South Guardian, “The god of growth”, bearer of a sword. Tiānwáng, Eastern Guardian, “the defender of the nation”, which holds a rope musical instrument. Guăngmù tiānwáng, western guardian, “the God who sees everything,” represented with a snake. The four secret satellites. Coinciding with this iconography, China has launched four military satellites to the geostationary orbit, almost 36,000 kilometers above Ecuador, where they can remain fixed on the same region of the planet. The four ships have been cataloged generic like Tongxin Jishu Shiyan, “communications technology test satellites.” The TJS-15 took off on March 9 aboard a CZ-3B rocket; His patch represents GuĂngmù, the west guardian. The TJS-16 was released on March 29 with a rocket a CZ-7A; His emblem is Chíguó, the Eastern Guardian. The TJS-17 was released on April 10 with another CZ-3B; His patch corresponds to Duōwén, the northern guardian. Finally, the TJS-19 took off on May 12 (jumping to TJS-18 in the sequence) with a CZ-3C; His patch represents Zēngzhǎng, the South Guardian. Do your names say something? Although NASA considers them “Satellites for probable military purposes”, their names give rise to all kinds of additional conjectures. A god “who hears everything” with an umbrella can be a metaphor for a large drop -down antenna to capture weak signals, which would fit with a spying system or early missile alert. It is also possible that the Chinese authorities have approved these patches without major background or to divert attention to the real purposes of the satellites. What we do know is that these satellites did not travel alone. Terrestrial trackers have detected objects that seem to have separated from TJS-15 and TJS-17 in geosynchronous orbit. They could be sub-satellites or simply rocket stages. Militarization of space. The United States’s space force does not take an eye on these satellites. According to Comspocone of the satellites inspectors of the space force of the GSSAP program, known as USA-324, performed approximation maneuvers to TJS-16 and TJS-17 at the end of April. The American satellite approached about 17 km from the TJS-16 and about 12 km from TJS-17, “taking a look” to its new neighbors about the Western Pacific. This cat and mouse game is just one more sample of the revitalized militarization of space, where the Trump administration wants Build an unprecedented antimisile shield called “Golden Dome”. One of the proposals is partially based on Spacex Starlink satellites for missile detection and cost $ 175,000 million. In Xataka | China has taken the lead in military capabilities in space. The US has made a European tour to alert the danger

Starlink has been growing without competition for six years. Now an ambitious competitor has started throwing satellites: Amazon

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In the early hours First 27 operational satellites of the Kuiper constellation of Amazon. Starlink is at last company. An ambitious competitor. Project Kuiper was born in 2018, a year before Spacex launched the first 60 satellites of its Starlink constellation, which offers broadband satellite Internet. However, waiting for the vulcan rockets of ULA and New Glenn de Blue Origin to be available, Amazon only He had launched two test satellites… until now. The technological giant has finally began to deploy its initial constellation of 3,232 satellites in the low terrestrial orbit (between 590 and 630 km of altitude) to offer low latency connections in places where terrestrial networks do not arrive or are insufficient. When available, The service will have plans of 100 Mbps, 400 Mbps and up to 1 GBPS speed. Curves come. Although this launch marks Kuiper’s operational start, Amazon is still exposed to several challenges. The main is the time: the project has been delayed about its calendar and its FCC license for approximately one year have half of the constellation (1,618 satellites) In orbit for July 2026, a date that seems difficult to meet without an extension, since the company does not manufacture its own rockets like Spacex. Kuiper’s rockets. While Blue Origin is a company by Jeff Bezos and there is, say, certain synergies between both companies (in addition to a well -known enmity with Elon Musk), His New Glenn orbital rocket has only flown onceand has not yet managed to demonstrate its ability to land. Reuse has been fundamental in Starlink’s success: the Falcon 9 rocket, which Spacex partially recovers, has launched more than 8,000 Starlink satellites in six years. Amazon’s constellation depends to such a third party that Amazon made the “major Commercial acquisition of launch vehicles of the story “in 2022. Only with ULA has contracts to launch another seven atlas and up to 38 Vulcan. It has also reached agreements with Arianegroup to use the European rocket Ariane 6 and, of course, with Blue Origin to use the New Glenn; the only one with the capacity to land of the four pitchers. China and Europe go to their roll. Despite the difficulties, Kuiper is the first Starlink competitor who has a financial muscle at Spacex, provided that Amazon is willing to play in the long term. In Europe we have an already quite advanced commercial constellation, but that plays in another league. Oneweb of Eutelsat operates a constellation of about 630 Leo satellites, but its approach is mainly B2B and government, and its satellite density is much less than that of Starlink. China also goes to its roll, but it is deploying megaconstellations that could harm Starlink and Amazon. Spacesail already has satellites in orbit and plans to display 648 by 2025, with the aim of growing up to 15,000 satellites by 2030, with which could offer services up to 30% cheaper than Starlink in markets like Brazil. To this price war are added to others Chinese projects like Honguhu 3 either Guowangadding tens of thousands of satellites who will begin to cross the night sky without stopping. Image | ULA, Amazon In Xataka | Spacex has launched 8,000 Starlink satellites in five years, but they are not enough. And we are beginning to understand why

They are not going to fit the 60,000 satellites that plan Spacex and company

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More than 10,000 active satellites Orbit our planet. Two thirds are from the Starlink constellation Spacex, which has A team working 24/7 to prevent collisions against other satellites and large fragments of space garbage, of which there are at least 40,000. It is a known problem, but we did not expect it to get worse for climatic reasons. The effect of climate change on space garbage. Carbon dioxide emissions, responsible for global warming due to their greenhouse effect, cause the opposite effect on the upper atmosphere, cooling and shrinking the highest layers, which makes the atmosphere itself become less dense. This phenomenon favors the accumulation of space garbage. As? The upper atmosphere acts as a natural “cleaner” for space garbage. When the objects orbit near the earth, they touch the atmosphere, however light, slowly slowing down until they fall and burned. But, with a thinner atmosphere, this cleaning effect weakens significantly, which means that space garbage remains in orbit longer. The projections are scary. According to a study published in Nature SustainabilityIf we continue to generate greenhouse gas emissions without control, the atmosphere will become so thin that, by 2050, the ability to house satellites of the low terrestrial orbit orbit would be reduced by 27%. By the end of the century, the reduction would be between 50 and 66%. The study introduces the concept of “instant orbital capacity” to calculate how many satellites can operate simultaneously without generating uncontrolled growth of space garbage, emphasizing the cyclic variability of the sun: during the minimum solar, the atmosphere is further contract. The problem of constellations. The growing technological demand of the land orbit is dominated by Starlink, which will soon follow other Chinese, European and American constellations with their Plans to launch up to 60,000 satellites In the coming years. The low orbit (between 200 and 1,000 km of altitude) where most satellites operate could become unsustainable. In the worst stage, a single collision would cause A destructive waterfall Known as Kessler syndrome: a chain reaction in which each shock generates more fragments, exponentially multiplying the amount of space garbage and returning the practically useless earth orbit. What we are doing to avoid it. Beyond reducing emissions that aggravate this phenomenon with the energy transition, there are companies and space agencies Testing techniques to remove space trashlike the famous satellites capable of capturing old objects. But the most effective solution, which bets on the European space agency in its Strategy 2040is to stop adding trash through launching and design regulations of the strictest satellites. Jared Isaacman, nominated for NASA administrator, stressed in his X account the seriousness of the problem: “Even an aluminum fragment of millimeter size, traveling at orbital speed, can cause considerable damage,” wrote. For Isaacman, the solution is to immediately stop the creation of new space garbage and Avoid military conflicts in orbitthat could trigger the dreaded Kessler syndrome. Image | Max Alexander/Steve Kelly (ESA) In Xataka | Space garbage is such a real problem that Starlink satellites make thousands of evasion maneuvers every month

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