Abu Dhabi-based Yahsat used the Satellite 2021 show in Washington DC to announce that they have selected SpaceX to launch its upcoming mobile connectivity and broadband Thuraya 4-NGS satellite. The satellite will be launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in the second half of 2023. The craft is being built by Airbus. Yahsat says […]
Bret Johnsen, SpaceX’s CFO & President of Strategic Acquisitions, told delegates to Satellite 2021 in Washington DC that they could still be looking at acquisition possibilities. SpaceX is in the process of buying Swarm Technologies, which makes small ‘cube’ and other similar-sized satellites specialising in Internet of Things services. SpaceX started the process back in […]
Elon Musk says his team are busy “figuring out the regulatory approval process” for launching the Starlink broadband service over India. Musk was asked the question on Twitter as to when his service might start in India, and responded a few hours later. India could well be extra important in Starlink’s ambitions given that Bharti-backed […]
Amazon, in a formal letter to the FCC on August 25th, objected to SpaceX’s enhanced plan for almost 30,000 new Starlink satellites and their adjusted orbits. SpaceX, in a letter to the FCC, said – in essence – that Amazon’s complaint is simply a delaying tactic. The company wrote: “The FCC should recognise this delay […]
Elon Musk has reportedly given up on catching his SpaceX rocket fairings with vessels and giant nets and instead is launching two new boats to the fleet specifically to recover fairings by fishing them out of the ocean. The two new ships are named as ‘Bob’ and ‘Doug’ after the first Demo 2 astronauts Bob […]
Amazon, in a formal letter to the FCC last week, has objected to SpaceX enhanced plan for almost 30,000 new Starlink satellites and their adjusted orbits. SpaceX, in two submissions, said it could offer a better service by adjusting the existing planned orbits. Amazon, which is developing its own low Earth orbiting system, Project Kuiper/Kuiper […]
A report from Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics, states that 1740 of SpaceX’s broadband satellites have been launched. However, 98 have already re-entered the atmosphere and he says another 50 “are on their way down”. This still means there are some 1600 working satellites in orbit. McDowell talks specifically about […]
SpaceX has delivered more than 100,000 of its Starlink broadband-by-satellite terminals to users. It still has a way to go to satisfy consumer demand insofar as it has a waiting list of more than 500,000 would-be consumers for its Starlink system which comprises its ‘Dishy McFlatface’ antenna, modem and WiFi router, power cables and a […]
Space is an increasingly crowded place and in the first 6 months of the year (to May 31st) SpaceX says it has had to carry out 2219 collision avoidance manoeuvres for its orbiting Starlink fleet. This aerial ballet of ever-moving satellites comes from data supplied by the US Space Force’s 18th Space Control Squadron. As […]
SpaceX has submitted orbital modifications to its ‘next generation’ Starlink satellites to the FCC. If approved, the new Generation 2 Starlink craft will be able to offer higher-density services to rural areas. SpaceX has proposed two variants to the FCC and will await the Commission’s verdict/approval before proceeding with a modification to its existing satellite […]