Satellite Impact on Astronomical Observations Based on Elliptical Orbit Model

Abstract

Space-based and ground-based telescopes have extensively documented the impact of satellites on astronomical observations. With the proliferation of satellite mega-constellation programs, their influence on astronomical observations has become undeniable. It is crucial to quantify the impact of satellites on telescopes. To address this need, we have enhanced the circular orbit model for satellites and introduced a methodology based on two-line element (TLE) orbit data. This involves constructing a satellite probability distribution model to evaluate the impact of satellites on telescopes. Using our method, we assessed the satellite impact on global observatories. The results indicate that the regions most severely affected by satellite interference currently are those near the equator, with latitudes around 50 and 80 degrees experiencing the most significant impact from low Earth orbit satellites. Furthermore, we validated the reliability of our method using imaging data obtained from the focal surface acquisition camera of the LAMOST telescope.

9 pages, 7 figures, submitted to A&A, any comments are welcome

References in corpus (11)

• The Low Earth Orbit Satellite Population and Impacts of the SpaceX Starlink Constellation
• The Case for Space Environmentalism
• Unintended electromagnetic radiation from Starlink satellites detected with LOFAR between 110 and 188 MHz
• Impact of the SpaceX Starlink Satellites on the Zwicky Transient Facility Survey Observations
• The proliferation of space objects is a rapidly increasing source of artificial night sky brightness
• Detection of intended and unintended emissions from Starlink satellites in the SKA-Low frequency range, at the SKA-Low site, with an SKA-Low station analog
• Photometric Characterization and Trajectory Accuracy of Starlink Satellites: Implications for Ground-Based Astronomical Surveys
• A call for scientists to halt the spoiling of the night sky with artificial light and satellites
• The Steward Observatory LEO Satellite Photometric Survey
• Analysis of the possible satellite contamination in LAMOST-MRS spectra
• Satellite shadows through stellar occultations