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PreprintCC BY 4.0arXiv

BlueBird 6 is Fainter than Block 1 Satellites

  • Anthony Mallama
  • Richard E. Cole
Open at sourcePDFDOICite

Abstract

The mean apparent magnitude for BlueBird 6, the first Block 2 satellite of the BlueBird constellation, is 3.85 +/- 0.10 while that for Block 1 spacecraft is 3.30 +/- 0.07. So, BlueBird 6 is 0.55 magnitudes fainter. Likewise, the means of apparent magnitudes adjusted to a uniform distance of 1,000 km are 4.32 +/- 0.08 and 3.77 +/- 0.06, respectively. This difference is also 0.55 magnitude. The dimming is unexpected because the Block 2 satellites are ~3.5 times as large as Block 1. BlueBird 6 is only 17% as bright as Block 1 spacecraft per unit surface area. Possible explanations are discussed. All BlueBird satellites exceed the brightness limits recommended by the International Astronomical Union. However, they will be fewer in number than other satellite constellations.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@misc{mallama2026bluebird,
  title = {{BlueBird 6 is Fainter than Block 1 Satellites}},
  author = {Anthony Mallama and Richard E. Cole},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = aug,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2608.23668},
  eprint = {2608.23668},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.23668},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - UNPB
TI  - BlueBird 6 is Fainter than Block 1 Satellites
AU  - Anthony Mallama
AU  - Richard E. Cole
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/30
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2608.23668
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.23668
AB  - The mean apparent magnitude for BlueBird 6, the first Block 2 satellite of the BlueBird constellation, is 3.85 +/- 0.10 while that for Block 1 spacecraft is 3.30 +/- 0.07. So, BlueBird 6 is 0.55 magnitudes fainter. Likewise, the means of apparent magnitudes adjusted to a uniform distance of 1,000 km are 4.32 +/- 0.08 and 3.77 +/- 0.06, respectively. This difference is also 0.55 magnitude. The dimming is unexpected because the Block 2 satellites are ~3.5 times as large as Block 1. BlueBird 6 is only 17% as bright as Block 1 spacecraft per unit surface area. Possible explanations are discussed. All BlueBird satellites exceed the brightness limits recommended by the International Astronomical Union. However, they will be fewer in number than other satellite constellations.
ER  -