New detector prevents thousands of Starlink satellites from blocking the telescope's view

New technology was developed by the Russian company from St. Petersburg Stealth Transit: it is suitable for both

professional and amateur telescopes that cover no more than one square degree of sky.

If the view is wider, then several satellites may fall into the field of view at once, in which case the new solution will be impractical.

The company recently started testing itsdetector of bright satellites in one of the most advanced astronomical observatories in Russia - the Caucasian mountain observatory in the south-west of the country. The detector was mounted on an ASA 600 telescope and connected to a Stealth Transit active shutter.

The Stealth Transit detector recognizes trajectoriessatellites in low Earth orbit and accurately predicts the time of their passage through the telescope's field of view. The shutter then interrupts the exposure to keep the satellite out of the frame. 

Vlad Pashkovsky, CEO of Stealth Transit

The main complaints about satellites that interfere with astronomers' observations are addressed to the company Starlink.

According to Bill Cook, Head of DepartmentMeteroidal service NASA, the huge mass of satellites in orbit will distort the picture obtained by telescopes. Astronomers will have to completely rewrite the software responsible for the automatic survey of meteorites and other small orbital objects.

Starlink plans to launch 42,000 satellites into Earth orbit by 2024

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