Starlink satellites can emit unintended radio signals that interfere with sensitive radio-astronomy observations. A 2025 survey detected emissions from 1,806 unique satellites, including in radio-astronomy frequency ranges; it did not show that every satellite affects every observation, or that a legal violation occurred.
What is the problem with Starlink satellites?
The concern is radio-frequency interference, not simply the bright streaks satellites can leave in night-sky photographs. Radio telescopes measure faint natural signals, so unintended emissions from satellite electronics can add unwanted signals to the data and make some observations harder to interpret.
This is distinct from Starlink’s intended communications transmissions. The study examined both intended and unintended emissions, and reported unintended signals across broadband and narrowband frequencies. The exact mechanism behind every observed signal remains under investigation.
What did the 2025 study measure?
Dylan Grigg, Steven Tingay, and Marcin Sokolowski analyzed data from the Engineering Development Array 2 (EDA2), a prototype station at the SKA-Low site. Their paper, submitted in June 2025 and published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, reports a survey of emissions across the SKA-Low frequency range. Read the study on arXiv.
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- The team analyzed approximately 76 million all-sky images collected over about 29 observing days.
- It recorded 112,534 detections involving 1,806 unique Starlink satellites.
- In the worst-case datasets, a detectable Starlink satellite appeared in about 30% of images. That is a result for those datasets, not a rate for all images, telescopes, or observations.
The study also reported 13 satellites detected from 73.00–74.60 MHz and 703 from 150.05–153.00 MHz. These counts apply to the specific frequency ranges reported by the authors; they are not counts of all satellites in orbit.
Why do detections in protected frequencies matter?
The study found emissions in primary and secondary frequency ranges protected for radio astronomy by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). It also reported reflections of terrestrial FM radio off Starlink satellites at 99.70 MHz. These findings matter because radio observatories rely on carefully controlled access to quiet frequency bands.
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A detection within a protected range does not, by itself, prove that a signal was intentional, that a rule was broken, or that an entire observation was unusable. The study documents measured signals; it does not establish a legal finding.
Does this mean Starlink is ruining astronomy?
No. The results establish a significant interference concern for sensitive radio astronomy, but they do not show that all Starlink satellites emit identically or that every telescope observation is affected. The roughly 30% figure is explicitly a worst-case dataset result. Effects will depend on the observation, frequency, satellite signal, and the instrument collecting the data.
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Study coauthor Steven Tingay told New Scientist, as quoted by Futurism, that unintended emissions can be comparable in signal strength to the brightest natural radio sources in the sky. That is a reported interview statement, not a quotation from the study abstract. Futurism’s report also quotes Tingay saying that these emissions are not regulated and that no rules were being broken. That June 2025 interview is not a current legal opinion or a formal ITU determination.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What could reduce the interference?
Grigg’s proposed direction, as reported by Futurism, is for satellites to reduce or stop the unintended emissions. The paper provides a measurement baseline and says its public data products can help quantify future changes. The reviewed sources do not demonstrate an effective radio-emission fix.
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Changes intended to reduce visible satellite brightness address a different problem: optical effects in images, rather than radio-frequency emissions received by radio telescopes. They should not be treated as a remedy for the signals measured in this study. The more-than-7,600-satellite figure cited in June 2025 reporting is dated and should not be read as a current constellation count.
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