I Can’t Tell What’s A Star Anymore; Feb 25 Lights Over Twin Falls
Shortly after arriving at work Tuesday (Feb 25), a discussion began between a few co-workers and me about a row of lights seen in the sky traveling southeast just before 6:00 a.m. today. A lady I work withstood and watched the lights with her husband from her property for nearly 10 minutes.
For months now, reports of lights moving in unison across the sky has sparked social media debates between UFO enthusiasts, and those who have been following SpaceX's Starlink plan to put 12,000 satellites in space across the globe to deliver Internet to all.
I've personally seen what I believed to be the movement of a SpaceX satellite one time in late 2019. The bright object appeared to fall from the atmosphere and then remained stationary in the sky for several minutes before going dark.
My co-worker spotted the series of lights from her home on Locust Street North, in Twin Falls, between 5:50 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., the morning of February 25, 2020. They were seen in the same general area of the sky as the Big Dipper.
Idaho has been no stranger to reports of unidentified aerial phenomena in the past 16 months. There were close to 100 such sightings to the NUFORC in 2019.
I think the idea of providing Internet to the planet is a noble one, but ultimately with SpaceX's 12,000 satellite goal likely achievable in the next decade, it's going to make it difficult to tell the difference between stars and satellites pretty soon. Viewing satellite traffic jams through a telescope with my 4-year-old son doesn't sound all that great.
I'm not all too convinced a Sentinelese tribesman who spends his days spearfishing and making sandals from leaves needs 24/7 access to Instagram.