What is That Strange Train of Lights in the Sky Over NJ?

Over the past few months, I've noticed more than a few Facebook posts about a mysterious string of lights that have made their way around the world like a speeding train through the sky.

If you haven't seen them, it's a cool sight.  It looks like a string of white Christmas lights traversing through the air.

Some have pointed to the coincidence that they started seeing these lights since the arrival of Aaron Rodgers to our state, but these lights have been sighted all over the world.  Hmmm, come to think of it, has anyone seen Aaron in the past few weeks?

Others have suggested that with all the illegal border crossings we've witnessed, perhaps there's an outer space border we weren't aware of.

As fun as it is to speculate, the reality is probably less exciting.

Back in 2019, the Elon Musk company SpaceX, began deploying  Starlink Satellites in the sky.  The purpose of these satellites is to improve communication in areas of the world where the internet hasn't been readily available.

They travel roughly 340 miles over the Earth (the moon, by comparison, is nearly 250,000 miles away).  Ultimately, these satellites may well be offering cell phone service as well.

So far, there are just over 4500 of these satellites in space.  The plan, however, is to send more to space.  Many more.

Currently, SpaceX has permission to fly up to 12,000 of these satellites, but plans call for as many as 30,000 of them.

Starlink satellites: Facts, tracking and impact on astronomy | Space