SpaceX last week launched 49 shiny new Starlink broadband-beaming satellites, which is good. But but 40 of them have already, or will shortly, meet their demise thanks to a geomagnetic storm that struck a few days after their ascent. Which is bad.

all 49 satellites reached their planned 210km perigee deployment orbit, but the storm increased drag to levels up to 50 per cent higher than experienced on previous launches, according to a [1]SpaceX update .

The Starlink team attempted to minimize the drag by putting the sats into safe mode, which would position them to fly edge-on. That plan didn't work because drag caused by the storm still buffeted the sats and meant they could not leave safe mode to raise their orbits. Gravity did its inexorable thing, causing the craft to meet an inglorious end in Earth's atmosphere.

[2]

SpaceX wrote that it uses lower orbits so that if the satellites don't initially pass system checks, deorbit and reentry will occur without producing space junk.

[3]

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But at those lower orbits, geomagnetic storms can be more damaging – causing warmer atmospheric conditions and higher densities that increase drag. The storms can also obscure the path of radio signals, create errors in positioning information, and disrupt navigation systems.

The [5]Space Weather Prediction Center put a storm watch in place for the day of the launch as well as the day prior thanks to a flare emitted by a full halo coronal mass ejection – a release of plasma and accompanying magnetic fields from the Sun.

[6]

Had the Musk machines been successful, they would've joined Starlink's colossal satellite constellation selling internet service to Earth-dwellers.

[7]UK science stuck in 'holding pattern' on EU funding by Brexit, says minister

[8]To err is human. To really tmux things up requires an engineer

[9]UK.gov threatens to make adults give credit card details for access to Facebook or TikTok

[10]NASA taps Lockheed Martin to build Mars parcel pickup rocket

[11]Microsoft to block downloaded VBA macros in Office – you may be able to run 'em anyway

In other space news, South Korea's ICT and Science Ministry [12]announced Tuesday it will spend ₩12 billion ($10M) between now and 2023 to develop a high-performance liquid-fuel engine as part of a 2020 ₩49.6 billion ($41.5M) program to secure future technologies and a foothold in the space race.

In addition to developing the manufacturing technology and core components for the engine, South Korea is looking to build a next-gen rocket that builds on its first indigenously developed Korean orbital launch vehicle, Nuri.

After a decade of development, Nuri's [13]payload deployment debut last October was less than perfect. While the launch was successful, it failed to deploy a payload properly when its third-stage engine burned out prematurely.

South Korea has been playing catch up on its space program since 2020, when it was freed of a 1979 Cold war-era agreement with the US that limited its ability to develop and test ballistic missiles. A thriving competitive space program would benefit the country in more ways than one, as it seeks to [14]keep North Korea in line and looks towards 6G technology.

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The country plans to launch its first [16]lunar orbiter this year and hopes to send a spaceship to the Moon by 2030. ®

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[1] https://www.spacex.com/updates/

[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YgNKeMDhDY3gXRg7Zog6lgAAAFA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0

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[5] https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/geomagnetic-storm-conditions-likely-2-3-february-2022

[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YgNKeMDhDY3gXRg7Zog6lgAAAFA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0

[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/07/minister_confirms_uk_science_in/

[8] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/07/who_me/

[9] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/08/age_verification_for_social_media_ukgov_plans/

[10] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/08/mars_ascent_vehicle_contract_awarded/

[11] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/08/microsoft_office_default_macro_block/

[12] https://www.msit.go.kr/bbs/view.do?sCode=user&mPid=112&mId=113&bbsSeqNo=94&nttSeqNo=3181372

[13] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/21/south_korea_nuri_mission/

[14] https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/12/north_korea_hypersonic_missile/

[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YgNKeMDhDY3gXRg7Zog6lgAAAFA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0

[16] https://www.theregister.com/2021/08/31/south_korea_says_2022_moonshot/

[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/