SpaceX is sending hundreds of Starlink satellites to provide high-speed Internet service, and is paving the way for an increasing number of areas.
On March 11, the company launched a Falcon 9 rocket with another 60 satellites on board. The booster took off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, landing successfully after launching on the droneship Just read the instructions, the sixth launch and landing for this specific booster.
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What is SpaceX Starlink?
Starlink is a satellite internet service, developed by SpaceX, designed to offer faster speeds and response times than other satellite internet services. Users in supported areas will be able to point an antenna at the sky to connect, regardless of the local Internet infrastructure.
The “Better Than Nothing” beta service, currently available in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, offers download speeds of around 150 megabits per second. A 2016 lawsuit stated that the company intended to reach speeds of one gigabit per second. A presentation slide from January 2021 suggested that the company wants to achieve up to 10 gigabits per second.
The service was also designed to offer faster response times than other satellite services. A 2013 analysis found that competing services would offer latencies – or speed delays caused by the complexities of satellite communication – of about 638 milliseconds, 20 times slower than ground-based connections. The SpaceX 2016 process stated that the target was between 25 and 35 milliseconds.
It achieves these faster response times compared to competitors orbiting a larger number of satellites closer to Earth, about 550 kilometers (340 miles) above sea level. The company requested permission from the International Telecommunication Union in October 2019 to launch 30,000 satellites into space, in addition to the 12,000 approved by the United States Federal Communications Commission.
This means that it can reach a size of 42,000 satellites in total. For comparison, there were only about 5,000 satellites in the sky in total at the beginning of 2019.
The project may be one of SpaceX’s most profitable projects. The previous analysis shows that the entire space launch industry generates only about $ 5 billion in revenue. But the Internet access market is worth about $ 1 trillion, which means that if Starlink manages to capture between three and five percent of the market, it can vastly eclipse its existing sectors.
One thing that Starlink will not want to eclipse is the work of astronomers – even with the limited constellation in the sky, some experts have said that the planned mega constellation is already blocking your view.
SpaceX Starlink: How do I sign up?
SpaceX offers a simple way to sign up for the service. Visit the website, with the link here, and enter the desired service address. Choose your address from the list of suggested addresses – the form will not work unless you choose a suggested address – and press the “Order Now” button to confirm.
If you don’t live in a traditional address, you can insert a “Plus Code” to point your location on a map:
- Open the Google Maps website or app.
- Navigate to the correct location. Then, touch and hold the screen if using a touchscreen device, or click and hold if using a mouse.
- Press the “dropped in” label near the bottom.
- The Plus Code will appear in the information list next to a “+” symbol. For example, the Plus Code for Buckingham Palace is “GV25 + G6 London”.
- Copy the information and paste it into the Starlink form.
SpaceX Starlink: What is the price of the service?
SpaceX currently charges a one-time fee of $ 499 for the Starlink Kit, which includes everything you need to connect your devices to the internet. Users will also pay an ongoing fee of $ 99 per month.
Tesla North reported in November 2020 that beta testers in Canada are paying CA $ 649 (US $ 510) for the Starlink kit. The service costs CA $ 129 (US $ 101) per month. Teslarati reported in January 2021 that users in the UK pay £ 439 ($ 596) for the Starlink Kit, while the service costs £ 89 ($ 121) per month.
Customers in other countries should expect similar prices. In February 2021, Musk posted on Twitter that Starlink “has the same price in all countries”. He added that “Starlink is an incredibly difficult technical and economic endeavor. However, if we do not fail, the cost to end users will increase each year. “
Users may also have to pay shipping and handling fees for the kit, as well as sales taxes.
SpaceX Starlink: when will it be available in my area?
Starlink is available to a growing group of people. Musk claimed to have tweeted the service in October 2019.
The Starlink website states that “it is now delivering the initial beta service both nationally and internationally, and will continue to expand to almost global coverage of the populous world in 2021.”
Beta testers in the contiguous northern United States began receiving their kits in October 2020. CBC reported about Canadians receiving their beta test kits in December 2020. The first beta test kits reached users in southern England just before the end of 2020.
SpaceX has gradually expanded its coverage areas over time. Data collected by Reddit’s Starlink community suggests that the company is serving customers between 37 degrees and 54.7 degrees latitudes. On March 10, users in the UK received an email announcing that the service “is now available in parts of Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England”.
For visitors in the U.S. and Canada not currently served by the Starlink beta, the site typically suggests that it will start offering coverage from mid to late 2021. The main exceptions are Alaska and Hawaii, which appear as targeted coverage for 2022.
Musk posted on Twitter in February 2021, Starlink’s goal is to cover “most of the Earth by the end of the year, until next year, so it’s about densifying the coverage”.
A key issue for other countries will be regulatory approval. This can influence where you operate.
CNBC reported in public records in January 2021 that show where the company is registered. The company is registered in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa and Spain. Bloomberg reported in the same month that Germany, Greece and Australia have already approved the service.
Problems with national governments have caused headaches for satellite operators in the past. Reuters reported in October 2018 that Russia expressed opposition to OneWeb’s plans to offer Internet access in remote parts of the country, citing security issues. The company filed, but withdrew the order to operate in the country in August 2019.
Nearly global coverage by 2021? While it may be possible on a technical level, in terms of actual deployment, a number of factors can influence the actual launch date in each jurisdiction.
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