SpaceX calls for better coordination in orbit after near-misses with Starlink

A SpaceX executive argued at the International Astronautical Congress that growing megaconstellations demand much better sharing of satellite location and maneuver plans to avoid collisions. With more than 11,000 Starlink satellites in low-Earth orbit and plans for an even larger Starmind network, the company warns that uncoordinated maneuvers by other operators have produced near-misses measured in tens to hundreds of meters. There are no binding international rules requiring ephemeris disclosure or coordinated maneuvers, so operators often rely on radar tracking or onboard avoidance; Nicolls emphasized that secrecy or failure to publish trajectories makes safe prediction and avoidance far harder and increases debris risk.

SpaceX describes its own mitigation steps - lowering most Starlinks below 500 km (with new V3s at ~350 km), publishing ephemeris, and using onboard cameras (Stargaze) to detect threats - and gives concrete statistics: about 1,000 collision-avoidance maneuvers per day and roughly 650 avoided close approaches with active satellites recently, only half involving operators that share ephemerides. Nicolls singled out many Chinese and Russian operators as unwilling to share data, though some bilateral cooperation exists. Amazon’s Leo program says it does coordinate with others. The core prescription is a minimum standard: operators must know and publish where their satellites are and where they plan to go to preserve sustainable, safe use of LEO.