SpaceX’s Starlink mega-constellation regularly reports its anti-collision efforts for its satellites in orbit. In the six months to the end of May it says it made 144,404 collision-avoidance manoeuvres.

SpaceX, in a report to the FCC, says 59,414 movements were carried out by its 1st Generation satellites, and 84,990 by its 2nd Generation craft. In the previous 6-month period Starlink made 50,666 anti-collision movements.

“Not only must SpaceX invest in satellites that are more capable and perform more manoeuvres that carry considerable cost to SpaceX, but unlike other operators with less emphasis on sustainability, SpaceX is willing to deorbit satellites based on long-term reliability forecasts, rather than waiting for failure of critical subsystems,” the company said in its FCC filing.

“Practically speaking, this approach means that SpaceX may deorbit a considerable number of satellites that would never experience a failure, to mitigate a small number of non-manoeuvrable satellites in orbit. There is no other operator who takes a similarly conservative approach,” SpaceX added.

However, SpaceX complained that other satellite operators are not making their anti-collision data available.

“SpaceX […] requests, as it has before, for other operators – including those that have chosen to license their satellites outside the US and claim not to be bound by US rules yet want to offer services in the country – to provide similar public disclosures about the performance of their satellites,” the company said.

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