Documents / Report
The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office issued this information paper in December 2024 on how sunlight reflecting off Starlink and other Low Earth Orbit satellites can be mistaken for UAP. It explains the difference between diffuse and specular reflection, Starlink trains, and flares, and it gives a step-by-step method for predicting flare windows. The method is shown with AARO photographs taken near Sidney, Nebraska, and applied to a 2022 airline pilot report near Gallup, New Mexico. AARO concluded that the lights in that report were very likely satellite flares.
“Low Earth orbit”3 pages
All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) 17 Summary Both diffuse and specular reflection of sunlight from satellites can explain some of the UAP reports received by AARO. Specular reflection from the mirrored panels and antennas on the satellite bus result in bright, short-lived flashes of light called “satellite flares.” Diffuse reflection from dozens of satellites launched in close spatial and temporal proximity by space-based communications companies, and particularly SpaceX, lead to “satellite trains.” These nighttime phenomena are the result of technological advances taken to proliferate global internet by placing thousands of satellites in LEO. This paper described these effects and provided references and processes, backed by examples, that can be used to predict or identify satellite flares. AARO anticipates that by equipping the reader with knowledge of this phenomena and the required information needed to deconflict satellite flares from UAP events, the quality of reports with supporting data and measurements will improve.
Report, from the aaro collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 19 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.