![]() ![]() However, SpaceX's stake was eventually sold back to EADS Astrium in 2008 after the company became more focused on navigation and Earth observation. SSTL was at that time working to extend the Internet into space. In June 2004, the newly formed company SpaceX acquired a stake in Surrey Satellite Technology (SSTL) as part of a “shared strategic vision”. However all entities entered bankruptcy by the dot-com bubble burst, due in part to excessive launch costs at the time. The potential for low-latency communication was also recognized and development offshoots in the 1990s led to numerous commercial megaconstellations using around 100 satellites such as Celestri, Teledesic, Iridium, and Globalstar. 7 Increased risk of satellite collisionĬonstellations of low Earth orbit satellites were first conceptualized in the mid-1980s as part of the Strategic Defense Initiative, where weapons were to be staged in orbit to intercept ballistic missiles on short notice.3 Availability and regulatory approval by country.Additionally, the satellites are designed to autonomously avoid collisions based on uplinked tracking data. The satellites are equipped with krypton-fueled Hall thrusters which allow them to de-orbit at the end of their life. SpaceX has attempted to mitigate astronomy concerns by implementing several upgrades to Starlink satellites aimed at reducing their brightness during operation. Īstronomers have raised concerns about the effect the constellation can have on ground-based astronomy and how the satellites will add to an already congested orbital environment. ![]() SpaceX expects more than $30 billion in revenue by 2025 from its satellite constellation, while revenues from its launch business were expected to reach $5 billion in the same year. The cost of the decade-long project to design, build, and deploy the constellation was estimated by SpaceX in May 2018 to be at least US$10 billion. The SpaceX satellite development facility in Redmond, Washington houses the Starlink research, development, manufacturing, and orbit control teams. Starlink provides internet access to over 500,000 subscribers as of June 2022. In total, nearly 12,000 satellites are planned to be deployed, with a possible later extension to 42,000. As of September 2022, Starlink consists of over 3,000 mass-produced small satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), which communicate with designated ground transceivers. SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019. It also aims for global mobile phone service after 2023. Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by SpaceX, providing satellite Internet access coverage to 40 countries.
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