Noise from Above: Determining the Impact of Starlink's Unintended Electromagnetic Radiation on REACH

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• Gabriella Rajpoot / Cavendish Laboratory
• Wednesday 14 May 2025, 13:15-13:40
• The Hoyle Lecture Theatre + Zoom .

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21-cm cosmology experiments have opened new frontiers in our quest to explore the early universe. However, the rapid expansion of satellite constellations in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) poses a significant threat. SpaceX’s Starlink is particularly concerning due to unintended electromagnetic radiation (UEMR) generated by its hardware and onboard electronic subsystems, as reported by observatories such as the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR). These emissions could contaminate observations of the faint 21-cm signal, already buried beneath foreground emissions and radio frequency interference (RFI). The Radio Experiment for the Analysis of Cosmic Hydrogen (REACH) is a low-frequency radio telescope based in the Karoo radio reserve, South Africa, designed to detect the global 21-cm signal from Cosmic Dawn. In this talk, I will present my ongoing work assessing the extent to which Starlink impacts REACH . My approach combines orbital trajectory simulations using Two-Line Element (TLE) catalogues with geometric constraints to identify Starlink flyovers within REACH ’s field of view. These are cross-referenced with power spectral density (PSD) measurements to search for correlations indicating UEMR , including Doppler shift analysis. I conclude by outlining plans to automate this process and how this work contributes to broader efforts to safeguard radio astronomy from satellite interference.

This talk is part of the Institute of Astronomy Seminars series.

This talk is included in these lists:

• Cambridge Astronomy Talks
• Combined External Astrophysics Talks DAMTP
• Cosmology lists
• Cosmology, Astrophysics and General Relativity
• Institute of Astronomy Seminars
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• Kavli Institute for Cosmology Talk Lists
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• The Hoyle Lecture Theatre + Zoom

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