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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
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Saffron Otter

You'll be able to see the trail of Starlink satellites flying over the UK again tonight

People across the UK were stunned on Sunday night after witnessing a dazzling trail of mysterious lights in the sky.

And for those who missed them, and for sky-gazers who can't wait to see them again, you'll be able to see the light again over the next few days.

Although some people on social media were concerned the cluster of bright lights were UFOs, they are in fact a satellite formation known as Starlink.

They are the latest bunch of satellites launched by entrepreneur Elon Musk's company - SpaceX - and are being used to provide remote locations across the world with low-cast internet.

A Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket with a payload of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX's Starlink broadband network lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida (PA/John Raoux)

The thousands of tiny satellites look like moving stars that are flying across the sky in a straight line - like a train.

Seeing as the company has been granted to fly 12,000 satellites as part of the project - which could eventually be increased to 30,000 - it's likely that they could become a relatively common sight in the skies above Britain in the future.

When will I be able to see the Starlink satellites?

According to findastarlink.com, the Starlink satellites will be flying over the UK during the next few days.

Here are the estimated times the satellites should appear flying over and in brackets if they will be of good or dim visibiliy.

April 20

9.58pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from southwest to east (bright).

11.34pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to west (dim).

April 21

3.30am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for two minutes travelling from southeast to east (bright).

5.02am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to east (bright).

8.58pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for five minutes travelling from southwest to east (dim).

10.34pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to east (bright).

What are the Starlink satellites? Everything you need to know

April 22

12.10am: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to west (dim).

4.04am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for four minutes travelling from southwest to east (bright).

9.34pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to east (bright).

11.10pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to west (bright).

April 23

3.06am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for two minutes travelling from southeast to east (bright).

4.39am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for five minutes travelling from west to east (bright).

5.01am: Starlink 2 will be visible over the UK for three minutes travelling from south to east (dim).

10.10pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to east (bright).

11.45pm: Starlink-5,6 will be visible over the UK for five minutes travelling from west to west (dim).

April 24

3.41am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for three minutes travelling from southwest to east (bright).

5.14am: Starlink 3 will be visible over the UK for six minutes travelling from west to east (dim).

5.35 am: Starlink 2 will be visible over the UK for five minutes travelling from southwest to east (dim).

The above timings are for the north west of England, and timings at other parts of the UK may vary by a few minutes. You can enter your location here to find the days and times they'll be most visible in your area.

You can also track the satellites using the Starlink Starlink app, which automatically calculates when the SpaceX satellites are expected to be visible above your current location.

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