If every Starlink satellite shattered into the most dangerously-sized pieces simultaneously, it would only affect our access to space for 5 to 10 years. It would perhaps be bad enough to put manned missions on the back burner during that time period, and would certainly cause major issues for terrestrial astronomy, but it wouldn’t cause much harm to the space program overall. If they were in a higher orbit, it would definitely be a concern.
If every Starlink satellite shattered into the most dangerously-sized pieces simultaneously, it would only affect our access to space for 5 to 10 years. It would perhaps be bad enough to put manned missions on the back burner during that time period, and would certainly cause major issues for terrestrial astronomy, but it wouldn’t cause much harm to the space program overall. If they were in a higher orbit, it would definitely be a concern.