Mastodawn

Vandenberg SFB Launch Alert

The U.S. Space Force has approved the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Starlink 17-28 mission to low-Earth orbit, Sunday morning, June 21, 2026, between 7:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. PT from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4).

#VandenbergSFB #spacejunk #space #launch #sonicboom #SantaBarbaraCounty

Dr. Jürgen Knödlseder 3d ago

Bravo pour ce lancement réussi de l’Ariane 6. Ainsi l’Europe fait sa part dans la pollution du ciel nocturne. #SpaceJunk #IlNeFaitPasDejaAssezChaudCommeCaHein

https://www.franceinfo.fr/sciences/espace/direct-regardez-le-premier-vol-d-ariane-6-dans-sa-version-a-4-propulseurs_7800755.html

Ariane 6 : succès intégral pour la première mission de la fusée européenne en version quatre propulseurs, qui a mis sur orbite 32 satellites

"C'est un jalon extrêmement important pour nous. Ariane 6 est prêt à assurer toutes les missions, même les missions les plus complexes", s'est félicité jeudi soir David Cavaillolès, président exécutif d'Arianespace.

franceinfo

RTN 4d ago

#arstechnica:
"
A Chinese rocket breaks apart dangerously close to the Starlink constellation

The rocket’s breakup likely generated 100 to 150 new pieces of space junk.
"
".. breakup occurred .. perhaps around the time the upper stage was expected to perform a disposal burn."

https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/06/a-chinese-rocket-breaks-apart-dangerously-close-to-the-starlink-constellation

15.6.2026

#China #Debris #LandSpace #Rakete #Raumfahrt #rocketry #SpaceFlight #SpaceJunk #Weltraummüll #Weltraumschrott #Zhuque2E #ZQ2E

A Chinese rocket breaks apart dangerously close to the Starlink constellation

The rocket's breakup likely generated 100 to 150 new pieces of space junk.

Ars Technica

Where are we now?5d ago

A WEEK IN ORBITAL HOARDING
25/2026

🌐️ CATALOGED OBJECTS IN ORBIT: 34,121 (+66)
🛰 Active spacecraft: 16,165 (+66)
💤 Nonoperational spacecraft: 3,009 (+3)
🚀 Rocket bodies: 2,405 (+2)
❓ Unknown objects: 49
🗑️ Debris >10 cm: 12,493 (-5)

26 cataloged objects were officially confirmed as reentered since the last update.

#Orbit #Satcat #CelesTrak #Satellite #SpaceDebris #SpaceJunk #OrbitalHoarding

Where are we now?Jun 9

A WEEK IN ORBITAL HOARDING
24/2026

🌐️ CATALOGED OBJECTS IN ORBIT: 34,055 (+110)
🛰 Active spacecraft: 16,099 (+121)
💤 Nonoperational spacecraft: 3,006
🚀 Rocket bodies: 2,403 (-4)
❓ Unknown objects: 49 (-2)
🗑️ Debris >10 cm: 12,498 (-5)

26 cataloged objects were officially confirmed as reentered since the last update.

#Orbit #Satcat #CelesTrak #Satellite #SpaceDebris #SpaceJunk #OrbitalHoarding

Where are we now?Jun 2

A WEEK IN ORBITAL HOARDING
23/2026

🌐️ CATALOGED OBJECTS IN ORBIT: 33,945 (+62)
🛰 Active spacecraft: 15,978 (+67)
💤 Nonoperational spacecraft: 3,006 (-4)
🚀 Rocket bodies: 2,407 (+4)
❓ Unknown objects: 51
🗑️ Debris >10 cm: 12,503 (-5)

24 cataloged objects were officially confirmed as reentered since the last update.

#Orbit #Satcat #CelesTrak #Satellite #SpaceDebris #SpaceJunk #OrbitalHoarding

Alaska Headline Living May 29

🛰️ These lines aren’t stars. They are satellites moving through telescope images during observation, leaving behind streaks that scientists now have to account for in their data.
With low Earth orbit getting more crowded, what solutions are actually in place to manage it?
https://shorturl.at/y2rQC
#Space #Astronomy #ScienceNews #NASA #Satellites #NightSky #SPHEREx #SpaceJunk

DoomsdaysCW May 27

Analyst on #China’s spent rocket stages: “Things only continue to get worse”

Spent upper stages are the most dangerous kind of #SpaceDebris.

Eric Berger – May 26, 2026

"Further growth is anticipated from both the company’s state-owned enterprises as well as a rapidly expanding number of private launch companies. There is nothing wrong with this, as China’s rapid growth in launch has been mirrored by the United States and, in particular, SpaceX.

"However there is an issue with these launches, as China appears to be ignoring long-established norms about disposing of the upper stages of rockets. These are the parts of the vehicle that separate from the first stage of a rocket and push a satellite or spacecraft into orbit."

[...]

" 'China… continues to abandon many rocket bodies in high low-Earth orbit,' Shell wrote on LinkedIn early Monday. 'The total mass of orbital debris is a key variable influencing the long-term sustainment of space. There is broad agreement that abandoning rocket body upper stages in long-lived orbits is not a best practice. In fact, all the major space-faring nations have acknowledged this.' ”

#SpaceJunk #KesslerSyndrome #KesslerEffect #Megaconstellations #DarkSkies #SpacePollution #SpaceX #LowEarthOrbit

Analyst on China's spent rocket stages: "Things only continue to get worse"

Spent upper stages are the most dangerous kind of space debris.

Ars Technica

Where are we now?May 26

A WEEK IN ORBITAL HOARDING
22/2026

🌐️ CATALOGED OBJECTS IN ORBIT: 33,883 (+20)
🛰 Active spacecraft: 15,911 (+24)
💤 Nonoperational spacecraft: 3,010 (+1)
🚀 Rocket bodies: 2,403 (+3)
❓ Unknown objects: 51
🗑️ Debris >10 cm: 12,508 (-8)

29 cataloged objects were officially confirmed as reentered since the last update.

#Orbit #Satcat #CelesTrak #Satellite #SpaceDebris #SpaceJunk #OrbitalHoarding

RTN May 24

space.com:
"
Space debris is forcing satellites to dodge more often — costing us vital science. 'Things will get worse before they get better'
"
""Each time a satellite has to maneuver to avoid a potential collision, it uses fuel which is a finite and precious resource.""

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/satellites/space-debris-is-forcing-satellites-to-dodge-more-often-costing-us-vital-science-things-will-get-worse-before-they-get-better

21.5.2026

#Aqua #Debris #EO #EOS #LEO #Satelliten #Raumfahrt #science #SpaceJunk #SpaceFlight #Weltraummüll #Weltraumschrott #Wissenschaft

Space debris is forcing satellites to dodge more often — costing us vital science. 'Things will get worse before they get better'

"Each time a satellite has to maneuver to avoid a potential collision, it uses fuel which is a finite and precious resource."

Space