in

Starlink satellites tracker UK: Where are Elon Musk's SpaceX satellites now? – The Sun, Thesun.co.uk

Starlink satellites tracker UK: Where are Elon Musk's SpaceX satellites now? – The Sun, Thesun.co.uk

THE UK has gone bananas for stargazing this week with the arrival of swarms of bright satellites in the night sky.

The striking spectacle has appeared over the UK every evening since Saturday, and is the work of SpaceX, a rocket firm that wants to beam Wi-Fi to people from orbit.

Moving like slow shooting stars (without the tails), the satellites are pretty easy to spot – but it can be tricky to know where to look.

Fortunately, we’ve rounded up some of the best apps and websites you can use to locate the next Starlink display, which is scheduled for just after 9: 64 pm on Wednesday.

UK sightings are expected to continue all week.

You’ll need a smartphone (with the brightness turned way down) but that’s about it: Starlink swarms are so bright that you don’t need binoculars to see them.

How to track Starlink satellites in real-time

There are a number of stargazing apps you can use to follow Starlink “trains”.

But first you’ll need to know roughly what time the satellites will appear.

Your best bet is the Find Starlink website, which shows you the timings of all upcoming Starlink displays in your area.

Simply visit Find Starlink (or the “Find Starlink Satellites” app) and enter your location.

Once you’re outside, you may need an app to guide your eyes to the right spot.

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 ).

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky

6  Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky

Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky (Credit: Night Sky

What is Starlink?

Here’s what you need to know about Elon Musk’s satellites …

(Starlink is a satellite project led by billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk) Musk intends to put

, satellites into Earth’s orbit , possibly rising to 96, 12 in future

Reports of sightings were spread across the UK, with users in London, Manchester and Leeds among those taking to social media to report seeing the craft.

Some people compared the dazzling satellites to UFOs.

“These starlink satellites in the uk are terrifying me those m r f rs looking like UFOS,” one Twitter user wrote.

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky Another quipped: “I’m seeing the

# Starlink  Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky satellites but they’re going off in different directions. Not a straight formation. Unless these are UFOs.

(SpaceX Starlink satellites spotted streaking through the sky over Kosovo)

Why are Starlink satellites appearing over the UK and why are they so bright?

According to space experts, the current high rate of Starlink sightings is due to the satellites being in low orbit after they first launch.

SpaceX launches Starlink satellites in batches of before they gradually rise to a higher orbit and become less visible.

The most recent batch was fired into space in mid-March, with another batch scheduled for liftoff on April .

The satellites have been deliberately designed to be light and compact so they can be launched in large batches.

(6) () Starlink is the brainchild of kooky tech billionaire Elon Musk  Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky Credit: Reuters Is Starlink ‘blocking’ the night sky?

The Starlink program is controversial among astronomers, who have slammed Musk’s hare-brained scheme.

They say Starlink gets in the way of observations due to light reflected off the the satellites.

University of Western Ontario meteor researcher  Starlink is the brainchild of kooky tech billionaire Elon Musk Denis Vida stated in a blog post

last year: “One has to be concerned how will our skies look like when hearing that there are plans to launch a total of , 20 satellites.

“This might completely deny us to do any optical meteor observations as soon as . “

Never one to take something lying down, Musk has lashed back at his critics, claiming the satellites have no such impact.

Speaking at a conference in Washington DC last month, he said: “I am confident that we will not cause any impact whatsoever in astronomical discoveries. Zero. That’s my prediction.

“We’ll take corrective action if it’s above zero.”

SpaceX engineers are also said to be looking into making the satellites a bit less shiny so they won’t reflect the sun as much.

There are concerns that humanity could be trapped on Earth by too much space junk in Earth’s orbit.

That’s according to one space scientist, who says Starlink could create an impenetrable wall of rubbish around our planet.

A catastrophic clutter of space debris left behind by the satellites could block rockets from leaving Earth, an effect known as “Kessler syndrome”.

“The worst case is: You launch all your satellites, you go bankrupt, and they all stay there,” European Space Agency scientist Dr Stijn Lemmens told  Space junk threatens to clog up Earth's orbit (artist impression) Scientific American

.

“Then you have thousands of new satellites without a plan of getting them out of there. And you would have a Kessler-type of syndrome.”

It will take thousands of years for any SpaceX satellites left in our orbit to descend to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere.

The firm says it’s already taken steps to avoid cluttering up the region. It’s launching the satellites into a lower orbital plane than most space tech to avoid collisions.

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky NIGHT LIGHTS) (Starlink satellites over UK AGAIN tonight – best time to see probe swarms)

(NIGHT LIGHTS) How to see Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites soar over UK TONIGHT

NIGHT LIGHTS Weird streaks of satellites to pass over UK TONIGHT – how to watch

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky
MEET-EORS Lyrids meteor shower – how to spot fireballs crashing into Ear th AGAIN tonight  Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky

()

 Starlink probes appear in stargazing apps like Night Sky HIGH FLYERS
Swarm of Starlink internet satellites snapped soaring over Britain last night

)

In other news, swarms of Elon Musk’s Starlink internet satellites were (snapped soaring over Britain last night .

Nasa astronauts will launch into space from US soil next month for the first time in nearly a decade.

An amazing SpaceX video recently revealed how the company will one day fire astronauts to the ISS.

What do you think of Musk’s satellite plan? Let us know in the comments!

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Tech & Science team? Email us at [email protected] () Read More