The Epitome of Chutzpah

SpaceX, which has been blighting the night sky and interfering with both visual and radio astronomy, is freaking out about the impact of the AST SpaceMobile BlueBird LEO satellites, which are far less numerous and intrusive than Musk's system.

Despite owning more than half of the satellites currently in low Earth orbit, SpaceX is complaining about AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird constellation and how it’ll introduce added risks.

In a letter sent to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), SpaceX raised concerns that AST SpaceMobile poses a threat to the sustainability of low Earth orbit. Elon Musk’s space venture accused the Texas startup of underestimating collision risks in space and whether its satellites pose a threat to people on the ground during reentry. To be fair, these are valid concerns, but the accusations are laughably ironic coming from SpaceX. The company operates more than 7,800 satellites—currently around 60% of all satellites in orbit—and they’ve had more than a few close calls with other objects.

In a case of the pot calling the kettle black, SpaceX calls on the FCC to “carefully scrutinize” AST’s plan of launching its BlueBird satellite constellation to ensure it doesn’t “present untenable risks to space sustainability.” SpaceX claims that AST’s orbital debris mitigation plan “uses inconsistent and unrealistic assumptions to significantly downplay the risk of its satellites.”

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But there’s more to the hypocrisy and the accusations that SpaceX is levying at its rival. Similar to AST, SpaceX’s satellites have also been a visual orbital nuisance. Astronomers have raised concern that Starlinks are interfering with their observations of the universe, appearing as bright streaks in telescopic images. SpaceX was also involved in multiple disputes over the use of spectrum bands that interfere with other networks; the company has been accused of using its position in the industry as a main provider of rocket launches to coerce other companies, like OneWeb, to share their wireless spectrum rights.

Cry me a river, Elon.