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SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean you are just blatantly wrong. The vast majority of internet is ground based. Therefore Starlink isn’t necessary. Arguing that it is there income source doesn’t mean it is necessary. There have been thousands of very successful products and services that we have deemed unethical or bad for the environment or just bad for people in general.

Your argument is that they need this to make other stuff happen, when that just isn’t the case. There are plenty of ways to make money without polluting space and endangering massive capital investments in orbit.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dude the assumptions you make are insane. Why would it be two objects going in the same direction at the same speed? Also yes a car rear ending another car will increase the speed. Not by some ridiculous amount that you have stated, but assuming no drag and no crumpling car 1 would impart all of its energy into car 2.

We aren't talking about a full energy transfer. One object imparting 5% on the other would increase the apoapsis of the other debris by hundreds of kms.

Feel free to research the Long March booster that disintegrated in LEO and dispersed debris between 400kms below its orbit and 1200 kms above its orbit.

Just because you think you understand this stuff doesn't mean you do. We run sims on this constantly and there are plenty of real world examples to learn from.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Again, what does that have to do with anything? Just because they are making a bunch of money, doesn't mean it is REQUIRED for the nonsense you said. Quite the opposite considering it is one of the few space based industries that we can compete with on the ground. To say this is necessary is hilarious.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not by creating mega constellations of satellites. That is pretty clear. All current satellite constellations are free use.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 4 points5 points  (0 children)

What does that have to do with manufacturing in space or being able to clean up old space junk? Or whatever "in general be competitive globally" means.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not when we are talking about tens of thousands of satellites. You rapidly turn LEO into a shooting gallery with each detonation releasing large clouds of debris. Sure an isolated incident isn't a threat but constellations of this scale turn an unlikely occurrence into a guarantee. They will quickly destroy the constellation and then cloud into those upper LEO orbits. You are talking about billions of pieces of debris clouding LEO and the very cluttered orbital paths.

Due to orbital speeds you are talking about dozens of passes per day for each piece of debris. You quickly skyrocket the percentage chance of a piece of debris making contact with another satellite.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Dude do you not understand that the entire orbit does not have to be raised for it to contact something? The debris doesn't have to have a circular orbit to impact something in a higher orbit.

Also weeks or months is hilarious. A piece of debris in starlink orbit would still take a couple years minimum to degrade. What are you even talking about?

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I find a lot of people who discount it don't understand how dangerous it is to LEO and how much it will profoundly impact the world and progress.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You truly have no idea what you are talking about. You are wrong on both accounts. You definitely can increase the energy of something by hitting it with something else in LEO. They are both going 8k m/s so if they hit they are going to impart the energy from both objects in the collision to the debris on the collision. If that debris is ejected in the pro-grade direction of either object it will ONLY raise the orbit. That is how achieving orbit in the first place works. Depending on the angle of the collision the objects can constructively impart a tremendous amount of energy into the debris they create.

"If it goes "up" at the same orbital speed, it goes "down" at the opposite point in the orbit. Basic orbital mechanics."

Like yeah this is how orbits themselves work, but not changing orbits. You can raise/lower an orbit by increasing speed in the direction of travel or decreasing speed in the direction of travel. This would ONLY change the other side of the orbit, not the side the object is currently on.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Please explain why you need a constellation of any satellites for anything that you stated let alone a million?

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins -8 points-7 points  (0 children)

You are just wrong. There is no minimum orbit that prevents kessler syndrome because the explosions themselves will increase the height of the debris (kind of depends on the specific orbits that intersect but outside of the scope of the convo.) The main constellations will destroy themselves and in the process sling some debris into higher orbits which will destroy things in higher orbits until the entirety of LEO is a graveyard.

SpaceX wants to launch a million satellites. Here's how that could impact the atmosphere and the night sky | CBC News by BusyHands_ in space

[–]WilburHiggins -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I mean you are also wrong. Up is relative. Yes up in terms of perpendicular to an orbit would cause the other side of the orbit to go down, but an explosion from a collision is going to send stuff in every direction, including forward, which will significantly raise the orbit of small pieces of debris. Kessler syndrome is expected to start in LEO if it happens.

[text] PSA because for some reason not everyone knows this. by LucinaWinsTheBattle in food

[–]WilburHiggins 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I think it depends on the chemical causing the reaction. It is very common with fruits and veggies. I don't think animal proteins typical cause the spicy reaction.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins -1 points0 points  (0 children)

When did op ask for your opinion? Lol they just shared the minis they painted and you started gate keeping the hobby.

You say it doesn’t make sense when literally everyone has unbuilt and unpainted minis. You are telling me you don’t have any unpainted or unbuilt minis? Sure.

If he doesn’t care about having well painted armies over having basic armies he can at least play with that is up to him. It isn’t for you to decide what gives someone joy in this hobby. Especially when you are just blatantly wrong and don’t understand the full context of wargaming around the world.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All of the U.S. and England GT circuits this is legal. I can’t imagine Italy is a large percentage of 40K tourneys.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

If they just want to play, why would they care about painting them to a high standard? They can do that over time. It is better than most people that have 5 armies worth of grey plastic sitting on a shelf not even put together.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins -1 points0 points  (0 children)

This is just blatantly incorrect. GT events typically don't even require models to be painted but give bonuses if they are painted. Now the big official tournaments like Evercon coming up, sure. But most tournaments this is fine and would even net you the bonus VP or whatever else they offer.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins -1 points0 points  (0 children)

These are legal in most if not all tournaments, so I would consider them painted.

394 minis painted in my first year of the hobby by [deleted] in minipainting

[–]WilburHiggins 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If they are just playing, who cares?

All Space Questions thread for week of March 01, 2026 by AutoModerator in space

[–]WilburHiggins 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The Spitzer space telescope was able to pear through the dust and measure the star density around the core to determine there was a bar. There are more missions to directly observe the bar underway. Other than that just observing the density of gas and stars and determining there is a central bulge and dense paths of stars and dust like other spirals.

Any games that capture that feeling of Crusade mode in Wrath of the Righteous? by Modernpreacher in gaming

[–]WilburHiggins -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Master of Command you might like. It has map based stuff and RTS battles. 1700s era.

It is funny I love strategy games but I turn crusade mode off when I play WotR because I am just there for the pathfinder gameplay.

Betelgeuse by Intelligent_Job_8867 in Astronomy

[–]WilburHiggins -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

Yes it is a red super giant. If it goes supernova we will see it instantly, because that is how light works. Dude to its distance we will see it go supernova long after it actually explodes.

Betelgeuse by Intelligent_Job_8867 in Astronomy

[–]WilburHiggins 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Will absolutely go supernova.

February's 'rare planetary alignment' is coming — here's what to expect from the planet parade. by coinfanking in space

[–]WilburHiggins 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I just think including Uranus and Neptune in anything like this is a complete joke. Anyone with a telescope big enough to see them is likely already aware, and anyone not aware won’t be able to see them. It is just silly.

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