2026-10-09 19:00:00 UTC
KESSLER SYNDROME WEEKLY
🌐 Total 11,130 tracked Starlink satellites 🟣 The latest Starlink launch
- COSPAR ID: 2026-225
- 26 new satellites
Remote
Where are we now?
@wawn@mastodon.social
mastodon 4.8.0-nightly.2026-10-06This bot posts daily updates on Earth's distances from its awkward neighbors, along with other bizarre weekly bulletins from the solar system.
Data sources:
- JPL Horizons (ephemerides)
- Launch Library 2 (launches, space stations)
- NOAA (space weather)
- NASA Image and Video Library
- CelesTrak (satcat)
- NASA MMGIS (Perseverance)
- NASA GSFC PSG (Mars weather simulation)
- CNEOS (fireballs)
- JPL Sentry (asteroid impacts)
For alien abduction services, contact @Russssty@mastodon.social
278 Followers
0 Following
50 Posts
Joined July 14, 2025
2026-08-04 01:00:00 UTC (Delta: 24 hours)
WHERE IS 2025-010D?
- Discarded SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage on lunar intercept
- Geocentric speed: 1.27 km/s (-0.04 km/s)
- Lunar impact in: 1 day
⚪ Relative to Moon
- Distance: 76,155.26 km (-49,403.17 km)
- Lunar distance: 0.20 LD (-0.13 LD)
- Light travel time: 0.25 s (-0.16 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance: 324,500.75 km (+19,285.19 km)
- Light travel time: 1.08 s (+0.06 s)
2026-08-08 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-07)
☄️10P/TEMPEL 2
- Barycentric speed: 31.01 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth - occurred
- Brightness (Mag): 12.78 (+0.00)
- Visibility: Southern hemisphere | Small telescope | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 62,232,480.94 km (+93,266.01 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.42 (+0.00)
- Light travel time: 3 min 27.59 s (+0.31 s)
2026-08-09 00:00:00 UTC
HOW IS SPACE WEATHER NOW?
CURRENT CONDITIONS:
🟢 Solar Wind: 360.1 km/s (1 h avg)
FORECAST FOR TODAY:
🟢 Radio Blackout: R0
- No effects
🟢 Solar Radiation Storm: S0
- No effects
🟢 Geomagnetic Storm: G0
- No effects
2026-08-08 13:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-01)
WHERE IS LUCY?
- Barycentric speed: 9.87 km/s (-0.09 km/s)
- Eurybates flyby in: 368 days
🪨 Relative to Eurybates
- Distance (km): 177,264,819.78 km (-3,237,638.91 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.18 (-0.02)
- Light travel time: 9 min 51.31 s (-10.80 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 762,650,925.55 km (+19,842,150.25 km)
- Distance (AU): 5.10 (+0.13)
- Light travel time: 42 min 24.01 s (+66.19 s)
2026-08-08 12:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-01)
NEPTUNE
- Distance (km): 4,367,325,181.00 km (-13,746,764.85 km)
- Distance (AU): 29.19 (-0.09)
- Light travel time: 4 h 2 min 47.83 s (-45.85 s)
- Orbital speed: 5.47 km/s (+0.00 km/s)
Image: Neptune
Credit: NASA/JPL
2026-08-08 00:00:00 UTC
HOW IS SPACE WEATHER NOW?
CURRENT CONDITIONS:
🟢 Solar Wind: 263.6 km/s (1 h avg)
FORECAST FOR TODAY:
🟢 Radio Blackout: R0
- No effects
🟢 Solar Radiation Storm: S0
- No effects
🟢 Geomagnetic Storm: G0
- No effects
Replying to
The brain of the spacecraft is a redundant Attitude and Orbit Control Subsystem (AOCS) set up in a hot-standby configuration. If the primary computer takes a fatal radiation hit or suffers a hardware failure, the backup instantly takes over. The AOCS runs on an aerospace Real-Time Operating System (RTOS). This guarantees that critical tasks execute at the exact millisecond required, no matter how busy the CPU is with background math.
Replying to
At the core of the AOCS is a radiation-hardened HR5000 64-bit RISC CPU. It clocks up to 200 MHz while sipping just 4 to 6 Watts of power. The AOCS guides the spacecraft using data from navigation sensors (the Optical Navigation Camera and Star Tracker) connected via a SpaceWire interface.
Hayabusa2♯ relies on the deterministic SpaceWire-D protocol.
Photo: JAXA
2026-04-03 08:00:00 UTC (Delta: 3 hours)
WHERE IS ARTEMIS II?
- Mission Elapsed Time: 01:09:24:48
- Geocentric speed: 2.45 km/s (-0.52 km/s)
⚪ Relative to Moon
- Distance: 304,811.31 km (-20,663.82 km)
- Light travel time: 1.02 s (-0.07 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance: 97,128.28 km (+27,555.84 km)
- Light travel time: 0.32 s (+0.09 s)
🏆️ Record tracker
- Apollo 13: 400,171 km
- ██░░░░░░░░ 24.27%
- Left to beat: 303,043 km
2026-08-09 05:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
☄️161P/HARTLEY-IRAS
- Barycentric speed: 28.37 km/s (+0.08 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 110 days
- Closest approach to Earth in: 53 days
- Brightness (Mag): 16.53 (-0.07)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Large telescope | Dark sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 235,084,045.97 km (-3,733,462.71 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.57 (-0.02)
- Light travel time: 13 min 4.18 s (-12.45 s)
2026-08-09 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
☄️169P/NEAT
- Barycentric speed: 38.20 km/s (+0.30 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 43 days
- Closest approach to Earth in: 2 days
- Brightness (Mag): 13.42 (-0.05)
- Visibility: Northern hemisphere | Small telescope | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 25,398,520.76 km (-340,587.38 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.17 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 1 min 24.72 s (-1.14 s)
2026-08-09 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
☄️10P/TEMPEL 2
- Barycentric speed: 31.00 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth - occurred
- Brightness (Mag): 12.79 (+0.00)
- Visibility: Southern hemisphere | Small telescope | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 62,350,216.39 km (+117,735.45 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.42 (+0.00)
- Light travel time: 3 min 27.98 s (+0.39 s)
2026-08-09 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
☄️88P/HOWELL
- Barycentric speed: 24.52 km/s (-0.06 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth in: 61 days
- Brightness (Mag): 15.77 (+0.01)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Medium telescope | Dark sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 260,075,732.67 km (-733,925.85 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.74 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 14 min 27.55 s (-2.45 s)
2026-08-09 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
INTERSTELLAR VISITOR: 3I/ATLAS
- Barycentric speed: 59.49 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Crossing the Uranus's orbit in: 260 days
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 1,630,308,372.17 km (+3,789,997.79 km)
- Distance (AU): 10.90 (+0.03)
- Light travel time: 1 h 30 min 38.29 s (+12.64 s)
2026-08-09 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-08)
SUN
- Distance: 151,676,130.29 km (-22,198.66 km)
- Light travel time: 8 min 25.94 s (-0.07 s)
MOON
- Distance: 364,667.29 km (-2,322.79 km)
- Light travel time: 1.22 s (-0.01 s)
- Geocentric speed: 1.08 km/s (+0.01 km/s)
MARS
- Distance: 293,732,818.61 km (-658,722.03 km)
- The 'Red Planet' distress signal finally lands in 16 min 19.79 s (-2.20 s)
- Heliocentric speed: 24.67 km/s (-0.02 km/s)
2026-08-08 15:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-01)
WHERE IS HAYABUSA2♯?
- Barycentric speed: 31.66 km/s (-0.70 km/s)
- Earth flyby: December 2027
🪨 Relative to 1998 KY26
- Distance (km): 352,993,402.36 km (+4,469,759.25 km)
- Distance (AU): 2.36 (+0.03)
- Light travel time: 19 min 37.50 s (+14.91 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 70,025,750.24 km (-3,502,913.77 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.47 (-0.02)
- Light travel time: 3 min 53.59 s (-11.68 s)
2026-08-08 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-07)
☄️169P/NEAT
- Barycentric speed: 37.89 km/s (+0.30 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 44 days
- Closest approach to Earth in: 3 days
- Brightness (Mag): 13.48 (-0.06)
- Visibility: Northern hemisphere | Small telescope | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 25,739,108.14 km (-439,544.47 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.17 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 1 min 25.86 s (-1.47 s)
2026-08-08 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-07)
☄️88P/HOWELL
- Barycentric speed: 24.58 km/s (-0.06 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth in: 62 days
- Brightness (Mag): 15.76 (+0.01)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Medium telescope | Dark sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 260,809,658.52 km (-728,130.69 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.74 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 14 min 29.99 s (-2.43 s)
2026-08-08 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-08-07)
INTERSTELLAR VISITOR: 3I/ATLAS
- Barycentric speed: 59.50 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Crossing the Uranus's orbit in: 261 days
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 1,626,518,374.38 km (+3,827,616.77 km)
- Distance (AU): 10.87 (+0.03)
- Light travel time: 1 h 30 min 25.65 s (+12.77 s)
Replying to
With just one week until the flyby, let's take a look at the spacecraft's avionics.
Hayabusa2 is a compact box measuring 1 m wide, 1.6 m long, and 1.25 m tall, though its span reaches 6 m with the solar arrays deployed.
Altogether, this space fridge weighs 609 kg.
2026-04-11 15:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-04)
WHERE IS HAYABUSA2♯?
- Barycentric speed: 33.12 km/s (+0.71 km/s)
- Torifune flyby in: 84 days
🪨 Relative to Torifune
- Distance (km): 69,122,975.30 km (-7,785,196.59 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.46 (-0.05)
- Light travel time: 3 min 50.58 s (-25.97 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 184,122,991.72 km (-4,749,697.58 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.23 (-0.03)
- Light travel time: 10 min 14.19 s (-15.84 s)
2026-04-07 17:00:00 UTC (Delta: 3 hours)
WHERE IS ARTEMIS II?
- Mission Elapsed Time: 05:18:24:48
- Geocentric speed: 0.58 km/s (+0.03 km/s)
⚪ Relative to Moon
- Distance: 63,078.15 km (+9,848.86 km)
- Light travel time: 0.21 s (+0.03 s)
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance: 376,985.62 km (-5,938.19 km)
- Light travel time: 1.26 s (-0.02 s)
🏆️ Record tracker
- Apollo 13: 400,171 km
- ██████████ 101.64%
- New record set: 406,740 km
2026-04-04 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-03)
☄️C/2026 A1 (MAPS)
- Barycentric speed: 175.19 km/s (+60.30 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 10 hours
- Closest approach to Earth in: 1 day
- Brightness (Mag): -3.02 (-5.33)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Naked eye | Urban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 155,095,850.93 km (-3,818,682.96 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.04 (-0.03)
- Light travel time: 8 min 37.36 s (-12.74 s)
2026-04-12 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-11)
☄️C/2025 R3 PANSTARRS
- Barycentric speed: 57.71 km/s (+0.47 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 7 days
- Closest approach to Earth in: 14 days
- Brightness (Mag): 8.47 (-0.17)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Binoculars | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 126,981,243.96 km (-5,564,904.81 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.85 (-0.04)
- Light travel time: 7 min 3.58 s (-18.56 s)
2026-04-11 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-10)
☄️C/2025 R3 PANSTARRS
- Barycentric speed: 57.24 km/s (+0.51 km/s)
- Perihelion in: 8 days
- Closest approach to Earth in: 15 days
- Brightness (Mag): 8.64 (-0.18)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Binoculars | Suburban sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 132,546,148.77 km (-5,567,744.87 km)
- Distance (AU): 0.89 (-0.04)
- Light travel time: 7 min 22.14 s (-18.57 s)
2026-04-11 00:00:00 UTC
HOW IS SPACE WEATHER NOW?
CURRENT CONDITIONS:
🔴 Solar Wind: 570.6 km/s (1 h avg)
FORECAST FOR TODAY:
🟢 Radio Blackout: R0
- No effects
🟢 Solar Radiation Storm: S0
- No effects
🟡 Geomagnetic Storm: G1
- Weak power grid fluctuations
- Aurora is visible at high latitudes
Replying to
We all shine on . . . like the moon and the stars and the sun.
— John Lennon
#LucyPlaque
THE WEEKLY SPIN
32/2026
2026-04-11 12:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-04)
NEPTUNE
- Distance (km): 4,611,753,646.92 km (-4,568,503.96 km)
- Distance (AU): 30.83 (-0.03)
- Light travel time: 4 h 16 min 23.15 s (-15.24 s)
- Orbital speed: 5.47 km/s (-0.00 km/s)
Image: Crescents of Neptune and Triton
Credit: NASA/JPL
2026-04-11 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-10)
INTERSTELLAR VISITOR: 3I/ATLAS
- Barycentric speed: 60.51 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Crossing the Saturn's orbit in: 90 days
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 905,718,206.85 km (+7,740,187.23 km)
- Distance (AU): 6.05 (+0.05)
- Light travel time: 50 min 21.24 s (+25.82 s)
WHERE ARE WE GOING NOW?
THE WEEKLY SPIN
15/2026
2026-04-11 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-10)
SUN
- Distance: 149,894,756.47 km (+43,477.70 km)
- Light travel time: 8 min 20.00 s (+0.15 s)
MOON
- Distance: 396,948.88 km (-3,768.53 km)
- Light travel time: 1.32 s (-0.01 s)
- Geocentric speed: 0.99 km/s (+0.01 km/s)
MARS
- Distance: 340,963,856.34 km (-240,117.84 km)
- We will learn about the Martian red dust storms in 18 min 57.33 s (-0.80 s)
- Heliocentric speed: 26.47 km/s (-0.00 km/s)
2026-04-12 00:00:00 UTC
HOW IS SPACE WEATHER NOW?
CURRENT CONDITIONS:
🔴 Solar Wind: 572.0 km/s (1 h avg)
FORECAST FOR TODAY:
🟢 Radio Blackout: R0
- No effects
🟢 Solar Radiation Storm: S0
- No effects
🟢 Geomagnetic Storm: G0
- No effects
2026-04-12 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-11)
SUN
- Distance: 149,938,105.28 km (+43,348.81 km)
- Light travel time: 8 min 20.14 s (+0.14 s)
MOON
- Distance: 392,181.92 km (-4,766.96 km)
- Light travel time: 1.31 s (-0.02 s)
- Geocentric speed: 1.00 km/s (+0.01 km/s)
MARS
- Distance: 340,722,725.29 km (-241,131.05 km)
- This is the current lag in the Martian online RPG: 18 min 56.53 s (-0.80 s)
- Heliocentric speed: 26.47 km/s (-0.00 km/s)
Replying to
¡Adelante, adelaaante, Lucy!
Todos del pueblo cantaron
millones de millas recorrimos
celestes Trojans, el ojo de Júpiter, el Sol
2,000,000 de años jinetes solares
forjados de esperanza —
¿Amor?
la tierra estaba dividida hubo
odio hubo enfermedades
la ártica deslizándose
nos reunimos florecimos
la bondad nos sanó
dando tumbos, Lucy nos protegió
por senderos planetesimales
el amor nos salvó
¿Quienes seremos?
Compasión
Humanidad—Luz.
— Juan Felipe Herrera
#LucyPlaque
2026-04-12 00:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-11)
INTERSTELLAR VISITOR: 3I/ATLAS
- Barycentric speed: 60.49 km/s (-0.01 km/s)
- Crossing the Saturn's orbit in: 89 days
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 913,449,559.52 km (+7,731,352.67 km)
- Distance (AU): 6.11 (+0.05)
- Light travel time: 50 min 47.03 s (+25.79 s)
WHERE ARE WE GOING NOW?
Replying to
SCRUB!
For the 130-ton 'Crewed Surface' mission on 2026-04-12 00:00:00 UTC, the trajectory is a planetary impossibility.
The simulation didn't crash, but the reality-check just threw a 404: Mars Not Found.
2026-04-12 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-11)
☄️88P/HOWELL
- Barycentric speed: 31.58 km/s (-0.03 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth in: 180 days
- Brightness (Mag): 14.80 (+0.01)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Small/medium telescope | Dark sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 293,062,321.19 km (-91,265.35 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.96 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 16 min 17.58 s (-0.30 s)
2026-04-11 04:00:00 UTC (Delta: 2026-04-10)
☄️88P/HOWELL
- Barycentric speed: 31.61 km/s (-0.03 km/s)
- Perihelion - occured
- Closest approach to Earth in: 181 days
- Brightness (Mag): 14.80 (+0.00)
- Visibility: Both hemispheres | Small/medium telescope | Dark sky
🌎 Relative to Earth
- Distance (km): 293,153,586.54 km (-97,449.67 km)
- Distance (AU): 1.96 (-0.00)
- Light travel time: 16 min 17.88 s (-0.33 s)
WHERE ARE WE GOING NOW?