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Thatingles t1_j93c7np wrote

Reply to comment by mostancient in "Starlink is far crazier than most people realize. Feels almost inevitable when I look at this" by maxtility

Not by starlink, or at least not for long. They are in very low orbits and debris from a collision would burn up fast.

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SmithMano t1_j96c700 wrote

Except if there is a collision and then pieces will fly in every direction and into higher orbits 👍

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Carbidereaper t1_j9e6i98 wrote

That’s not how orbital dynamics works. If an object in orbit suffers a head on collision it will rob the object of its orbital momentum and all of the corresponding debris will fall into a lower orbit were it will burn up. To shift and object to a higher orbit you have to add energy to the object. collisions always tend to rob energy from moving objects

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SmithMano t1_j9g9kyw wrote

I mean I hope you’re right but I’m talking about tiny little fragments exploding everywhere, not the majority of the thing

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