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SpaceX is trying to connect its satellite internet service, Starlink, to moving vehicles, ships and aircraft, according to a new document with the Federal Communications Commission.
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The aerospace company’s application, filed on Friday, seeks a “general license that authorizes the operation” of Starlink’s user terminals, known as Earth Stations in Motion (ESIM). The new application is much broader than the authorization previously requested by the FCC’s SpaceX. Last year, the company sought to conduct experimental tests for up to two years on five user terminals mounted on a private Gulfstream jet and 10 terminals on up to 10 vessels, including two autonomous spaceport drone ships used to land rockets. at sea.
SpaceX’s ESIMs are “electrically identical to their previously authorized consumer user terminals”, but have mounts that allow them to be installed on vehicles, boats and aircraft. The new terminals will communicate with SpaceX satellites that are visible on the horizon above a minimum elevation angle of 25 degrees. Unlike the current Starlink user terminals, which are installed by the customer, ESIMs will be configured by “qualified installers”.
The order adds that the order “would serve the public interest by authorizing a new class of land-based components for SpaceX’s satellite system that will expand the range of broadband features available for vehicles moving in the United States and ships and aircraft in around the world, “SpaceX’s director of satellite policy, David Goldman, wrote:
The days of having to “give up connectivity while moving, whether driving a truck around the country, moving a cargo ship from Europe to a US port, or during a domestic or international flight,” may be coming to an end, Goldman added. .
In addition to constant connectivity, Goldman noted that this new plan could “increase the security of mobile platforms” and “allow operators and passengers to access services that enable greater productivity”.
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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk clarified in a tweet on Monday that small passenger vehicles will not be included as part of the license.
“Do not connect Tesla cars to Starlink because our terminal is too big,” said Musk. “This is for aircraft, ships, large trucks and RVs.”
Despite minimizing the fact of connecting Starlink to Tesla vehicles, Musk said during a earnings call in January 2020 that “it is certainly something that could happen in the years to come”.
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Starlink has launched more than 1,000 satellites in orbit and has more than 10,000 users in the United States and abroad since its “Better Than Nothing” beta was launched nationally and internationally in October.
Photo courtesy of Starlink
Orders for Starlink’s service became available in February for $ 99. The company’s website emphasizes that orders are “fully refundable”, but notes that “making a deposit does not guarantee the service”. Orders will be fulfilled on a first-come, first-served basis. For some locations on the site, SpaceX says that coverage will not be available until “mid-2021”, while other areas will not have service available until 2022.
The complete Starlink kit costs $ 499 and includes a mountable satellite dish, Wi-Fi router and power supply. The service will be offered first in the USA, Canada and the United Kingdom. Musk teased last month that Starlink’s Internet speed will double to about 300 megabits per second later this year, while latency – the time it takes to send data from one point to the next – will drop to about 20 milliseconds.
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Musk said in February that Starlink could launch an initial public offering as soon as SpaceX could “predict the cash flow reasonably well”.
“SpaceX needs to go through a deep abyss of negative cash flow next year or later to make Starlink financially viable. Every new satellite constellation in history has gone bankrupt. We hope to be the first one that will not,” said Musk. “Starlink is an incredibly difficult technical and economic endeavor. However, if we don’t fail, the cost to end users will increase every year.”
SpaceX recently completed a $ 850 million financing round at about $ 419.99 per share, sending the aerospace company’s valuation skyrocketing about 60% to about $ 74 billion, according to reports. The company previously raised $ 1.9 billion in a $ 46 billion valuation in August, its biggest round of financing so far.
SpaceX will launch its latest batch of 60 Starlink satellites on Tuesday night from the Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. A live broadcast will begin 15 minutes before takeoff, which is currently scheduled for 9:58 pm ET.