How to catch a rare and brief glimpse of Starlink satellites over Central Valley this week
If you were outside Wednesday evening and noticed what looked like a string of bright stars in the sky, you aren’t alone.
Talk of the unusual sight in a private Facebook group, Stanislaus News, suggested Modestans might be looking at a Starlink satellite from Elon Musk’s spacecraft company, SpaceX. An online tracking system confirms these thoughts could be true.
Starlink is the “world’s first and largest satellite constellation,” which uses a low Earth orbit to deliver broadband internet all over the world, according to its website. The system is more than 300 miles from Earth.
Starlink isn’t always visible. Even if the satellites pass over you, “many things need to go right” for them to reflect enough sunlight to be seen, according to the tracking website.
If you missed Starlink over the Valley on Wednesday, you have a couple more chances in the coming days when it’ll be bright enough to view.
When Starlink will be visible in the Central Valley next
The independently operated Starlink tracking system is available online and in a downloadable iPhone or Android app.
The operator warns the times are not 100% accurate becaus the orbit of the satellites changes often. Actual view times may vary by 10 minutes, according to the tracking system.
SpaceX launched Starlink Group 6-27 with its Falcon 9 rocket Tuesday night. Falcon 9 took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida around 8 p.m., and around 5:50 p.m. Wednesday, the satellites were visible in Modesto for about four minutes.
Here’s when you can see this group of Starlink satellites again in the Central Valley, with good visibility. Sightings last around four to five minutes:
Modesto, Manteca, Oakdale
Thursday- 5:55 p.m., looking from west to northeast
Friday- 5:57 p.m., looking from west to northeast
Turlock and Merced
Thursday- 5:55 p.m., looking from west to northeast
Fresno
Thursday- 5:55 p.m., looking from west to north
Other Central Valley residents can see when Starlink will be visible to them by entering their location on the tracking system website.
This story was originally published November 9, 2023 at 11:08 AM with the headline "How to catch a rare and brief glimpse of Starlink satellites over Central Valley this week."
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