Secret Chinese Air Base Accidentally Captured by Passing Starlink Satellite

A passing Starlink Satellite unexpectedly appeared in a high-resolution Maxar image of a secret Chinese air base, producing a rare and vivid orbital photobomb. The photo,  taken on August 21, 2025 by a Maxar WorldView Legion satellite, shows the Dingxin Airbase in the Gobi Desert with fighter jets on the ramp and a faint, multicolored trail identified as Starlink spacecraft 33828. The image is a striking example of how commercial constellations and Earth-observation systems now share low Earth orbit.