Collision avoidance maneuver
A trajectory correction a satellite performs to steer clear of a collision risk detected in advance, whose frequency is climbing with megaconstellation density.
A collision avoidance maneuver is a trajectory correction a maneuverable satellite performs when a space surveillance system detects it is on track to pass another object, debris or an active satellite, at a distance judged dangerous. That screening is called conjunction assessment. Each maneuver burns fuel and cuts into the satellite's operational lifespan. The operational burden grows with the number of active satellites, since each new operator mechanically raises the number of conjunctions every other operator must track. In a June 2024 regulatory filing with the Federal Communications Commission, SpaceX stated that its Starlink constellation had performed roughly fifty thousand collision avoidance maneuvers during the first half of that single year. That is nearly ten times the figure reported two years earlier, a direct, quantified consequence of the rapid growth in the number of satellites in low Earth orbit. For insurance, the frequency of these maneuvers is a leading indicator of orbital density and hence of future collision risk. Space underwriters are beginning to fold it into low-Earth-orbit pricing alongside conventional debris models.
In a June 2024 regulatory filing, SpaceX states that its Starlink constellation performed roughly fifty thousand collision avoidance maneuvers in the first half of the year, nearly ten times more than two years earlier.
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