SpaceX's Classified Starshield Satellites Emitting Mysterious Signals That May Violate International Standards
By
8ig8
7mo ago· 5 min readenNews
92/100
Golden Brown
Bagelometer↗
Sesame, salt, and substance. A flagship bake.
Score92TypenewsSentimentneutral
Summary
SpaceX's classified Starshield satellite network is emitting mysterious signals on frequencies normally used for uplinking commands from Earth to satellites, which appears to violate International Telecommunication Union standards. An amateur satellite tracker discovered the signals coming from the defense satellites in a hidden part of the radio spectrum, raising questions about the purpose and regulatory compliance of the classified network.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledA constellation of classified defense satellites built by the commercial company SpaceX is emitting a mysterious signal that may violate international standards, NPR has learned.
Satellites associated with the Starshield satellite network appear to be transmitting to the Earth's surface on frequencies normally used for doing the exact opposite: sending commands from Earth to satellites in space.
The use of those frequencies to 'downlink' data runs counter to standards set by the International Telecommunication Union.
An amateur satellite tracker stumbled across the signal, which is coming from Starshield satellites in a 'hidden' part of the radio spectrum.
An amateur satellite tracker stumbled across the signal, which is coming from Starshield satellites in a "hidden" part of the radio spectrum.
