SpaceX StarLink satellite internet [UPDATES]

[DocM]

FCC Starlink approvals just keep coming. It's almost as if govt. agencies need it for something...

 

Space News...

 

SpaceX gets OK to re-space Starlink orbits

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Federal Communications Commission approved SpaceX's request to increase the number of lanes its Starlink satellites can orbit, a modification the company said would accelerate service rollout across the United States. 

The FCC said SpaceX can field satellites in 72 rings around the Earth at 550 kilometers -  three times as many as the commission approved in April. 
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In August, SpaceX told the FCC that by tripling the number of lanes for those first Starlink satellites, it could build out enough coverage to offer internet access in southern states by the 2020 hurricane season. 
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SpaceX is building out Starlink from the poles, with coverage expanding towards the equator as more satellites get launched. 
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SpaceX said the Starlink orbit modifications could cut the number of Starlink launches necessary by up to 50%. Under the revised plans, each of the 72 orbital rings will have 22 satellites instead of 66, meaning a single Falcon 9 launch can now populate approximately three rings. The company has been launching 60 satellites at a time on its Falcon 9 rockets. The next Starlink mission, and SpaceXs last launch of the year, is planned for late December. 
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[DocM]

20 in the 550km group, 40 in the lower group, and the deployment rods are on the way down.  Looks like their Hall thrusters work.

 

 

[Dysphoria]

In case you missed it, first launch for the year. This guy amazes me!

 

 

[DocM]

Eric Berger @SciGuySpace (Ars Technica)

https://t.co/dOAMMCDjWQ

 

 

 

[DocM]

4 more launches to a basic  upper US & Canadian Starlink service.

 

 

 

[IsItPluggedIn]

Do we know what their current bottleneck is? 

 

Is it satellite production, second stage production, launch options, money, system testing, etc.

 

Also will they be able to launch starlink from both Vandy and Kennedy?

[DocM]

21 minutes ago, IsItPluggedIn said:

Do we know what their current bottleneck is? 

 

Is it satellite production, second stage production, launch options, money, system testing, etc.

 

They have $billions banked, and can get more just by asking. About every major venture capital or sovereign fund on Earth would buy into SpaceX given the chance.  Their last 2 rounds they had more offers than funding  needs.

 

SpaceX is running a satellite mass production line fast enough to support launching 120+ birds/month, and can modify those sat busses for other tasks. Watch that in the future.

 

Because reuse has worked so well they've also been able to switch much first stage production capacity into upper stage production.

 

Bottleneck: user terminal mass production.

 

Basically; an enclosed 30cm ± multi-beam phased array antenna with a 2-axis self-aligning base which can be fastened to a structure, plugged in and turned on for $300-500.

 

They'll need about 1 million, for starts. The patent is public, production is the issue.

 

Quote

 

Also will they be able to launch starlink from both Vandy and Kennedy?

 

The vast majority of Starlink will go up from the Cape due to it now having a polar launch corridor for vehicles with Autonomous Flight Safety Systems; F9, FH, Starship, New Glenn.

 

ULA won't fly an AFSS until Vulcan-Centaur arrives. Rocket Lab's Electron will fly AFSS from Wallops. 

 

Vandenberg SLC-4E will mostly do military, SpaceX SmallSat Rideshare Program and a few other polar launches. 

[DocM]

US Air Force and US Space Force could be major Starlink profit centers, and a bit of regulatory grease.

 

Gen. John Raymond is Chief of Space Operations,  US Space Force

 

(CNBC)

 

 

Edited February 22, 2020 by DocM

[DocM]

 

https://business.financialpost.com/pmn/business-pmn/fcc-clears-way-for-spacex-to-vie-for-rural-broadband-subsidies#click=https://t.co/qYhZuBC2Wo

 

[DocM]

[DocM]

StarLink's laser interlinks are coming sooner than expected...

 

https://boards.greenhouse.io/spacex/jobs/4719869002?gh_jid=4719869002

 

Quote

STARLINK LASER COMMUNICATION MANUFACTURING ENGINEER

 

Redmond, WA, United States

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

STARLINK MANUFACTURING ENGINEER (STARLINK SPACE LASER COMMUNICATIONS)

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Perform hands-on engineering and liaison role between the design teams and production organization as SpaceX works to iterate on the design and ramp into the manufacturing phase

Responsible for the manufacturability and introduction into high-rate manufacturing environment

Contribute to design reviews acting as an expert in design for manufacturability, design for testability, yield improvements, supplier capabilities assessments, quality control, etc.

Primary point of contact for production, non-conforming product, troubleshooting, root cause, failure investigations and corrective actions

Lead the initial manufacturing development for electro-mechanical assembly components

Tooling design and validation

Prepare engineering documentation necessary for the transition from development to production including assembly procedures, test procedures, standard operating procedures, schematic diagrams, bills of materials, suitable alternate parts lists and mechanical drawings

Update designs when necessary in response to manufacturing issues, parts obsolescence, and system requirement changes

Lead continuous improvement efforts of established product

Perform structured root cause analysis of in-process failures

Perform training of production personnel and leadership

QUALIFICATIONS:
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Laser interlink analysis

 

Edited August 31, 2020 by DocM

[DocM]

This is the highly complex setup needed for Washington's state militia to connect to StarLink during the wildfire recovery. They connected in "5-10 minutes" vs. up to several hours for geostationary gear.

 

 

More on the First Responders use from CNBC. This from a partially completed network (700+ satellites up, thousands more to go).

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/29/washington-emergency-responders-use-spacex-starlink-satellite-internet.html

 

Quote

Washington emergency responders first to use SpaceX’s Starlink internet in the field: ‘It’s amazing’

KEY POINTS

• Washington’s state military, which includes its emergency response division, began using Starlink user terminals in early August to bring internet service to areas devastated by wildfires.

• “I have spent the better part of four or five hours with some satellite equipment trying to get a good [connection]. So, to me, it’s amazing,” Washington state’s emergency telecommunications leader Richard Hall told CNBC.

• Washington has used Starlink to get regions “zero day communications,” Hall said.
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Hall, whose division has used other satellite broadband services, said “there’s really no comparison” between Starlink and traditional networks, where the satellites are farther away from the Earth in Geosynchronous or medium earth orbits.

“Starlink easily doubles the bandwidth” in comparison, Hall said, noting that he’s seen more than 150% decreases in latency. “I’ve seen lower than 30 millisecond latency consistently,” he said.
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The base of the terminal was originally a solid round weight but changed to a tripod, which Hall said allowed for a more flexible set up experience. While SpaceX told Hall that the terminal “required a clear North-facing shot,” some places he set them up were “slightly obscured but it still worked like a charm, with great speeds.”
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Hall added that he’s aware of interest in Starlink from other organizations, such as from Washington’s Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency.
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[DocM]

StarLink's internet speed is ramping with every launch. Recent tests,

 

😎

[adrynalyne]

6 hours ago, DocM said:

StarLink's internet speed is ramping with every launch. Recent tests,

 

😎

That’s not what I consider impressive speed. 

[Kelxin]

7 minutes ago, adrynalyne said:

That’s not what I consider impressive speed. 

Try any other satellite companies internet and you'll be in disbelief of how bad it is.

[adrynalyne]

12 minutes ago, Kelxin said:

Try any other satellite companies internet and you'll be in disbelief of how bad it is.

Well it helps when you give it context too.

[DocM]

6 hours ago, adrynalyne said:

That’s not what I consider impressive speed. 

It is for a constellation that isn't fully deployed (700 of 12,000) and is using ground stations before transitioning to laser satellite-2-satellite routing about years end. They're testing the satellite routing now.

 

Also; the goal is serving unserved or underserved areas (no broadband or few options), fast setup in disaster areas, first responders, the military, planes, ships at sea, etc. at much lower prices and at higher performance than geostationary services than ViaSat, Hughes Net or the existing military data satellites.

Edited October 3, 2020 by DocM

[DocM]

The Hoh Tribe in the state of Washington gets StarLink for their reservation. Now they can do online learning, get telemedicine, etc.

 

 

[Kelxin]

On 02/10/2020 at 22:57, adrynalyne said:

Well it helps when you give it context too.

Well, considering where I'm staying right now, this is the best internet that's available, I definitely wouldn't complain going to starlink.

[adrynalyne]

3 minutes ago, Kelxin said:

Well, considering where I'm staying right now, this is the best internet that's available, I definitely wouldn't complain going to starlink.

I sympathize.

 

[DocM]

1 hour ago, adrynalyne said:

I sympathize.

 

Much of the US is rural, as is Canada. Where I grew up there was a farm every half mile plus. Lots of people, but very spread out so the cost per customer to run fiber is so high the companies won't make the investment. As a result, many rural and exurban folks are stuck with DSL. Many have nothing. Casper.

 

Enter: StarLink, which analysts estimate will bring SpaceX multiples of NASA's budget per year. Now add DoD, disaster management, farmers who need satellite data to manage crops, air & sea connectivity, transnational financial companies, etc. A license to print money.

[DocM]

The FCC has announced qualified bidders for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction (RDOF). The fund will spend up to $16 billion to get broadband service into underserved areas of the US. Satellite service selectees,

 

Hughes Network Systems (HughesNet)

 

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX Starlink)

 

ViaSat

[DocM]

49 minutes ago, DocM said:

The FCC has announced qualified bidders for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction (RDOF). The fund will spend up to $16 billion to get broadband service into underserved areas of the US. Satellite service selectees,

 

Hughes Network Systems (HughesNet)

 

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX Starlink)

 

ViaSat

 

Looks like it's $20.4 billion

 

https://spacenews.com/fcc-rural-broadband-qualified-bidders-2020/

[DocM]

Morgan Stanley is watching Boca Chica with StarLink on their minds...

 

 

[spaceelf]

On 09/10/2020 at 15:28, DocM said:

Much of the US is rural, as is Canada. Where I grew up there was a farm every half mile plus. Lots of people, but very spread out so the cost per customer to run fiber is so high the companies won't make the investment. As a result, many rural and exurban folks are stuck with DSL. Many have nothing. Casper.

My ISP did run fiber out here in the ass end of nowhere and I love them for it.  I’d love to stay with them, but they refuse to enable ipv6 which irritates me.  I can’t guarantee anything about Starlink but I suspect they’ll support modern routing protocols better and have better latency over longer distances than land networks so depending on initial setup costs I’d love to move over.

 

I’m not saying I actually need it, just that tech companies that refuse to keep up with the times are another reason to switch.