Starlink satellite fails, polluting orbit with debris and falling toward Earth

As if to underscore the need to avoid the Kessler Syndrome, a scenario in which cascading debris can make some orbits difficult to use, a Starlink satellite vented propellant and released debris following an onboard "anomaly" late last week.

The incident, described by observers as "likely caused by an internal energetic source" rather than a collision, resulted in a loss of communication. According to Starlink, the result was a venting of the propellant tank and "the release of a small number of trackable low relative velocity objects."

The satellite, Starlink 35956, was launched on November 23, 2025, as part of the Starlink Group 11-30-13 mission, according to Jonathan McDowell's satellite list. Its altitude was 418 km when communication was lost and is now tumbling, although still intact. In a post on X, Starlink stated that the satellite "will reenter the Earth’s atmosphere and fully demise within weeks."

"The ...