Starlink satellites can emit unintended radio-frequency signals that interfere with sensitive radio-astronomy observations. A 2025 study detected emissions from 1,806 unique satellites, with a Starlink satellite appearing in about 30% of images in the study’s worst-case datasets. That is a significant concern for radio astronomy—not evidence that every Starlink satellite disrupts every observation, or that a legal violation has been established.
What is the problem with Starlink satellites?
The concern is radio-frequency emissions that are not part of Starlink’s intended broadband transmissions. Radio telescopes detect extremely faint signals from space, so unintended emissions from satellites can add interference to observations. This is different from satellites appearing as bright streaks in optical telescope images: visible brightness and radio-frequency interference are separate problems, and a change that reduces one does not necessarily fix the other.
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The 2025 study by Dylan Grigg, Steven Tingay and Marcin Sokolowski reports both broadband and narrowband emissions. It also reports reflections of terrestrial FM radio signals off Starlink satellites at 99.70 MHz. The study identifies emissions in frequency ranges protected for radio astronomy, but that finding alone does not show that the emissions were intentional, that a rule was broken, or that every observation in those bands is unusable.
What did the 2025 study measure?
The researchers used the Engineering Development Array 2 (EDA2), a prototype station at the SKA-Low site, to survey emissions across the SKA-Low frequency range. The study, submitted to arXiv on June 3, 2025, reports approximately 29 observing days and analysis of about 76 million all-sky images.
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| Reported finding | What it means |
|---|---|
| 112,534 individual detections involving 1,806 unique Starlink satellites | These are detections recorded in the survey; they do not mean that every satellite was detected equally often or continuously. |
| A satellite was detectable in about 30% of images in the worst-case datasets | This figure describes the worst-case datasets, not the share of all images in the survey or a typical rate for every telescope. |
| 13 satellites identified from 73.00–74.60 MHz; 703 from 150.05–153.00 MHz | These counts refer to detections in the specified frequency ranges. |
| Reflected terrestrial FM radio detected at 99.70 MHz | The signal was an FM radio reflection off satellites, not a Starlink broadband transmission. |
These results are a measurement baseline from one prototype station and observing campaign. They establish that the emissions were measurable in that setting; they do not quantify interference for every radio telescope, observing program or location.
Does this mean Starlink is ruining astronomy?
No. The results point to a real interference risk for sensitive radio astronomy, but the study does not establish that all observations are ruined. Its “about 30%” figure applies to images in the worst-case datasets, not to the entire survey or to all radio-astronomy observations. The impact depends on the emissions detected and the observation being made.
Coauthor Steven Tingay told New Scientist, in an interview relayed by Futurism, that the signal strength from unintended emissions can be comparable to that of the brightest natural radio sources in the sky. That observation helps explain why astronomers are concerned; it is not a claim that every emission is equally strong or that every observation is affected in the same way.
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Are the emissions intentional or illegal?
The authors distinguish intended communications signals from unintended emissions. The cause of the unintended signals remains under investigation; satellite electronics have been suggested as a possible source, but that is not an established explanation for every detected signal.
The measurements include detections in frequency ranges protected for radio astronomy by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Detection in a protected range does not by itself prove intent or establish a legal violation. Futurism reported Tingay saying in June 2025 that these emissions were not regulated and that no rules were being broken. That is a dated interview statement, not a current legal opinion or a formal ITU determination.
What could reduce the interference?
Grigg told Futurism that the way to stop the unintended emissions is for satellites to reduce or eliminate them. That points toward changes at the satellite or operator level. The study provides measurements that can help researchers track changes over time, but the sources cited here do not demonstrate an effective radio-emission fix.
Measures aimed at reducing how bright satellites look in optical observations address a different problem. They should not be treated as evidence that radio-frequency emissions have been reduced.
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How large is the Starlink constellation?
Futurism reported that more than 7,600 Starlink satellites were in orbit as of May 2025. That is a dated figure, not a current count. The available sources do not establish a later total or show that a post-study radio-emission mitigation has been proven.
Quick Recap
Sources
- Dylan Grigg, Steven Tingay and Marcin Sokolowski, “The Growing Impact of Unintended Starlink Broadband Emission on Radio Astronomy in the SKA-Low Frequency Range”, submitted June 3, 2025; journal reference Astronomy & Astrophysics 699, A307 (2025).
- Victor Tangermann, Futurism, “There’s a Giant Problem With SpaceX’s Starlink Satellites”, June 12, 2025. The quoted statements from Tingay and Grigg in this article come from interviews reported there.
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