Satellites
April 2026
- Country diaryCountry diary: The skies here are busy with satellites and fieldfares
Amazon to buy satellite firm Globalstar for $11.57bn in challenge to Musk’s Starlink
Satellite mirror plans could disrupt sleep and ecosystems worldwide, scientists say
- Down to Earth newsletterAs satellites fill Earth’s orbit, the space race risks becoming an environmental crisis
March 2026
- Crowded space‘This feels fragile’: how a satellite-smashing chain reaction could spiral out of control
- Crowded space‘This was the real thing’: Meet the woman who alerts the world when an asteroid could hit
February 2026
Skiers stranded by California avalanche used iPhone SOS feature to seek help
Apple’s feature, which connects phone to satellite, helped first responders find survivors as they waited under tarpScottish rocket startup nears collapse despite £26m in taxpayer loans
Orbex’s collapse would put 150 jobs at risk and dash hopes of it launching first homegrown rocket from ScotlandRussian military scrambles to find Starlink alternative after access blocked
Elon Musk’s SpaceX curbs illicit use of satellite internet network, which Ukraine says is already affecting operations
November 2025
GWR train fitted with F1 tech for two-month superfast wifi trial
Tryout of system, which switches between signals from 5G masts to low Earth-orbit satellites, could lead to wider rollout
October 2025
Virgin Media O2 teams with Musk’s Starlink to offer improved UK rural mobile coverage
Service scheduled to launch in 2026 will be first in Britain to use Starlink’s satellites to connect to handsetsUS Congress committee investigating Musk-owned Starlink over Myanmar scam centres
Provision of internet access to scam centres being investigated as Starlink swiftly becomes Myanmar’s biggest internet service providerRussia persistently targeting British satellites, UK Space Command chief says
Maj Gen Paul Tedman says Moscow trying to disrupt UK’s military activities on ‘weekly’ basis and closely monitoring space assets
September 2025
Don’t look up: how Trump’s deregulation drive could obscure the stars and threaten our access to space
Astronomers are warning that the proliferation of satellite constellations like SpaceX’s Starlink, are making their work harder than it’s ever been
May 2025
Golden Dome missile defense program won’t be operational by end of Trump’s term
Exclusive: Pentagon officials expect a space-based weapon to be ready only for a demonstration by 2028Trump administration to stop US research on space pollution, in boon to Elon Musk
SpaceX and Starlink owner may benefit from Trump cuts to projects that could have led to regulations and costs- WeatherwatchDying satellites can drive climate change and ozone depletion, study findsAluminium emissions from satellites as they fall to Earth and burn up is becoming more significant as their numbers soar
April 2025
Leigh PhillipsBreakthroughHow space exploration can improve life on EarthThere is a cynical, ‘anti-space’ ideology emerging, especially on some parts of the left. But this is misguidedAmazon’s satellite launch designed to compete with Musk’s Starlink cancelled
‘Liftoff not possible’ for rocket carrying Project Kuiper satellites, due to clouds that could trigger lightning strikesBritish space company to design fleet of satellites that may help map early universe
Blue Skies Space – commissioned by Italian Space Agency – hopes faint signals from dawn of universe could be detected from far side of moon