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.
All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) 4 dozens of small satellites during a single launch event. Immediately following a launch, and for several days afterward, these satellites form a distinctive line of bright objects before fading as they ascend to their final orbital positions. Figure 5 below provides examples of each flare scenario. Figure 4: Rendering of Starlink satellite noting the satellite’s bus and solar panel components. Adapted from [5]. Starlink satellites transition through three orbital phases on their way to their final orbit, with each phase creating a different visual phenomenology to ground observers. During the launch phase, dozens of satellites, with their solar panels folded, are loaded in large groups on the rocket delivery vehicle. Once the delivery vehicle arrives to an initial position in LEO, the satellites separate and unfold their solar panels. Figure 5: (a) photo of a string of Starlink satellites called “Starlink trains” not long after launch on 29 August 2022 [6]; and (b) photo taken by AARO personnel of a satellite flare at peak intensity for a Starlink satellite, which illustrates how much brighter Starlink flares can be than surrounding stars. Photo taken before sunrise on March 11, 2024 near Sidney, Nebraska. Camera settings: [7]
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.