TV tip
Arte shows “The Satellite Battle”
Scene from the documentary “The Satellite Battle”. photo
© Compagnie des Taxi-Brousse/Arte/dpa
The conquest of space has long since begun – this is shown in the documentary “The Satellite Battle”. Very wealthy entrepreneurs like Elon Musk colonize the earth’s orbit with satellites. According to experts, the consequences could be serious.
They can be seen from Earth with the naked eye: 60 satellites rising into space, strung together like a string of pearls. Video recordings show the satellites belonging to Elon Musk’s Starlink project, as a US researcher says in the documentary “The Satellite Battle,” which can be seen on Arte on Tuesday, June 27 at 9:45 p.m.
Musk has already sent 3,000 satellites into orbit, and many more are to follow. And: The billionaire is not the only one who is active in space. Things could get tight in the endless space around the world, as the documentary, which is well worth seeing, makes clear.
The directing duo of Véronique Preault and Damien Vercaemer looked for experts to talk to and used archive material. The two of them trace how the race to conquer space with satellites began, they show how states can become dependent on private entrepreneurs, which rules apply in the universe – or not – and what potential for conflict the technical colonization of Earth’s orbit has brings.
It is an Internet revolution: a dense network of satellites in space is intended to enable Internet access anywhere on earth. Shortly after the Russian attack on Ukraine in 2022, for example, its President Volodymyr Zelenskyj asked tech pioneer Musk for help. His country fearing being digitally cut off from the rest of the world, Musk provided Starlink terminals to replace communications networks bombed by Russia.
According to the filmmakers, this shows how the Internet can be used as a strategic weapon between states, and also how private entrepreneurs can exert geopolitical influence. In addition to Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos also wants to gain a foothold in this market. There are no regulations restricting the commercial use of space. Interested parties would only have to register with the regulatory authority for telecommunications in their country.
Tesla billionaire Musk, with his ever-denser network of satellites in low-Earth orbit, is even forcing China and Europe to also take part in this race. According to estimates, between 100,000 and 200,000 satellites will be orbiting the earth in ten years. At the end of 2022, it was reported to be almost 7,000.
The long-term consequences are difficult to assess, experts say. A geopolitical imbalance and diplomatic crises are just as possible as catastrophic scenarios. According to astronomers, the large number of satellites blocks the free view into space. The US space agency Nasa warns that asteroids on a collision course with Earth could be discovered too late.