You can see Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites whizzing overhead TONIGHT – as billionaire launches 60 more into space
SPACEX is aiming to launch 60 more Starlink satellites in the early hours of August 7 but you may also be able to spot a few tonight. Avid stargazers will be able to watch the launch live via a SpaceX YouTube link that’s currently counting down. The Starlink satellites will launch onboard a Falcon 9 rocket from […]
SPACEX is aiming to launch 60 more Starlink satellites in the early hours of August 7 but you may also be able to spot a few tonight.
Avid stargazers will be able to watch the launch live via a SpaceX YouTube link that’s currently counting down.
The Starlink satellites will launch onboard a Falcon 9 rocket from the Nasa Kennedy Space Center site in Cape Canaveral in Florida, US.
The launch is scheduled to take place today at 1:07am ET.
For SpaceX fans in the UK that will be 05:07 GMT.
You’ll probably need to stay tuned for more announcements though as launches like this can be postponed at any time due to weather amongst other factors.
The Space Center website states: “SpaceX is scheduled to launch Starlink satellites from a Falcon 9.
“This will be the 10th mission in support of the constellation of networked satellites known as Starlink.
“The goal of Starlink is to create a network that will help provide internet services to those who are not yet connected, and to provide reliable and affordable internet across the globe.”
If you want to see Starlink satellites in the sky with your own eyes then try visiting the Find Starlink website (or the “Find Starlink Satellites” app) and enter your location.
This will provide you with good times to see them in your area.
There should be some in the skies over the UK and the US this evening.
London is expected to have a Starlink pass with good visibility at 10:48 pm and New York at 10:22 pm.
The Find Starlink website now has a message that states: “Hi there, based on user reports, the following Starlink trains are now difficult to see: Starlink-6, Starlink-7, and Starlink-8.
“This is because Starlink’s company has reduced their brightness (to avoid disturbing astronomers).
“But almost every day, some people are still able to see it, so it is visible sometimes.
“You can still try at your location, and with luck it’ll be bright enough to be visible! 
I’m working on predicting this better.”
Starlink satellites are more visible just after a launch.
How to track Starlink satellites in real-time
Not sure where to look? Your phone’s got you covered.
There are a number of stargazing apps you can use to follow the path of Starlink probes.
On the Apple App Store, we’d recommend Night Sky, which is free and helps you find all kinds of celestial wonders.
For Android fans, Satellite Tracker should do the trick (it’s also available on iPhone).
What is Starlink?
Starlink is a controversial scheme that aims to beam Wi-Fi to people from space using a “mega constellation” of thousands of satellites.
“With performance that far surpasses that of traditional satellite internet … Starlink will deliver high speed broadband internet to locations where access has been unreliable, expensive, or completely unavailable,” the official website explains.
The project is the brainchild of tech billionaire Elon Musk, whose California-based rocket firm SpaceX builds and operates the satellites.
More than 420 have been launched so far, with the network eventually set to reach 12,000, rising to as many as 42,000 in the future.
SpaceX sends its satellites up in batches of 60 at a time. Each group is launched atop an unmanned Falcon 9 rocket built by SpaceX.
The solar-powered tech typically orbits around 340 miles above Earth.
How the probes will affect the night sky is causing concern as they sit in a low orbit, so appear brighter than stars and planets.
What is SpaceX?
Here's what you need to know...
SpaceX was founded by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk who still has part ownership of the company with 54 per cent equity and 78 per cent voting control.
SpaceX is a private American aerospace manufacturer that is based in California.
It was founded in 2002 with the goal to build affordable rockets and enable the colonisation of Mars.
The manufacturer also aimed to reduce space transportation costs.
Since its creation, the firm has gained fame primarily as a pioneering rocket firm.
In 2008 it launched the first privately-funded liquid-propellant rocket to reach orbit and later became the first private company to launch an object into orbit around the sun.
The company has grown dramatically over its lifespan, from 160 employees in November 2005 to around 7,000 as of November 2019.
As of March 2018, SpaceX had over 100 launches on its manifest representing about $12billion (£9.24billion) in contract revenue.
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In other space news, a SpaceX rocket that will one day take astronauts to Mars has completed a 500ft test flight from a launchpad in Texas.
Musk announced last month that SpaceX’s mission to get man on Mars is now the company’s “top priority”.
And, Nasa has revealed the design of a moon lander that could be taking astronauts back to the lunar surface by 2024.
Have you ever seen a Starlink satellite? Let us know in the comments…
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