Both - they have a very limited life span, die in their droves during solar storms, and because of being so low and having no way to be recovered, their deorbiting into the upper atmosphere is going to cause massive damage to the ozone layer over the next 30 years.
Starlink satellites orbit at only 500 km, and can actively conduct collision avoidance maneuvers, so the chance that they generate dangerous debris is quite low. Most problematic orbital debris are from unpassivated upper stages and government ASAT tests.
Ah, the term “orbital debris” refers to “defunct human-made objects in orbit which no longer serve a useful function”. Operational satellites do not fall into this category.
As for aluminum oxide pollution in the stratosphere, that is a serious issue which SpaceX needs to address. However, I’m not sure that stratospheric pollution would fall under the jurisdiction of NASA’s new orbital debris division.
Is the spaceX satellite constellation orbital debris or just radiolight orbital pollution?
Both - they have a very limited life span, die in their droves during solar storms, and because of being so low and having no way to be recovered, their deorbiting into the upper atmosphere is going to cause massive damage to the ozone layer over the next 30 years.
Here’s a decent article - https://www.sciencealert.com/satellites-like-starlink-could-pose-new-threat-to-our-healing-ozone-layer
And the study it’s based on - https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2024GL109280
Starlink satellites orbit at only 500 km, and can actively conduct collision avoidance maneuvers, so the chance that they generate dangerous debris is quite low. Most problematic orbital debris are from unpassivated upper stages and government ASAT tests.
Your comment vs the other response I got to this seem to clash.
And I am calling them as a whole orbital debris. Not what they may break up into.
Ah, the term “orbital debris” refers to “defunct human-made objects in orbit which no longer serve a useful function”. Operational satellites do not fall into this category.
As for aluminum oxide pollution in the stratosphere, that is a serious issue which SpaceX needs to address. However, I’m not sure that stratospheric pollution would fall under the jurisdiction of NASA’s new orbital debris division.