30-05-2021, 05:38 AM
I think once they're up and in position they're fairly reliable, it's the launch and deployment that's the riskiest bit. However things do just go wrong, there's a few things that can knacker a satellite:
https://www.captechu.edu/blog/hazards-of...n-go-wrong
The Starlink satellites seem to have a high failure rate, although possibly it's not actually that many considering the number there were to start with, but the sheer quantities involved could potentially produce a lot of space junk especially when if it's rivals also put several thousand up there too
https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-s...sk-2020-10
Incidentally last week's Skeptoid podcast was on the subject of space junk and it all sounded very bleak. Worth a read/listen
https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4781
https://www.captechu.edu/blog/hazards-of...n-go-wrong
The Starlink satellites seem to have a high failure rate, although possibly it's not actually that many considering the number there were to start with, but the sheer quantities involved could potentially produce a lot of space junk especially when if it's rivals also put several thousand up there too
https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-s...sk-2020-10
Incidentally last week's Skeptoid podcast was on the subject of space junk and it all sounded very bleak. Worth a read/listen
https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4781