SpaceX will launch two O3b mPOWER satellites for SES on November 12th, the rocket company has confirmed, although subject to weather conditions being favourable. The two satellites are the 5th and 6th are in the expanded O3b/mPower constellation which will eventually comprise 13 craft. However, two are known to have potential problems. The first four […]
A combination of commercial launches with its Falcon 9 rocket plus the growing subscription income from its Starlink broadband-by-satellite service will propel SpaceX to sales in 2024 of around $15 billion (€14.07bn) according to a report from Bloomberg. SpaceX’s rocket and broadband business is forecasted achieve sales this year of some $9 billion. The report […]
Telesat of Canada – six years since the company was granted FCC permission to access the US market on the basis that 50 per cent of its 117-satellite constellation would be in orbit – is asking for a further delay of four and a half years. The FCC issued its initial Order permitting Telesat to […]
SpaceX’s unofficial broadband satellite service to Iran using Starlink must cease, the ITU along with US and Norwegian regulators have ruled. The ITU (and in particular its Radio Regulations Board, RRB) took a decision on October 27th to state that the US and Norway – as the official notifying administrations for Starlink’s frequencies – must […]
Australian telco Telstra signed a mobile service agreement with SpaceX’s Starlink back in July 20233. A report from analysts at Northern Sky Research (NSR) says the partnership aims to offer voice-only and voice plus Starlink enabled broadband packages to rural customers in hard-to-reach Australian locations. NSR says that Starlink already has 120,000 customers “signed” for […]
SpaceX has signed a deal with the European Space Agency (ESA) over potential satellite launches, according to the WSJ. Normally – in fact almost always – ESA uses Arianespace rockets to launch its scientific and governmental missions. However, there are no Arianespace launches available until 2025. The first test flight of Arianespace’s new Ariane 6 […]
Israel is reportedly talking to executives from Elon Musk’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite system about permitting Musk’s technology to be used for what Bloomberg describes as “wartime back-up”. Israel’s Minister of Communications confirmed it is in talks with SpaceX on setting up Starlink internet services to bolster its wartime communications, ahead of its expected ground invasion in […]
Denmark’s giant Maersk shipping line’s container ships have selected SpaceX’s Starlink system for broadband connectivity. Qatar Airways has announced that it has also signed up for Starlink. Maersk’s more than 330 own-operated container vessels will have Starlink installed, enabling high-speed internet with speeds of over 200 Mb/s. Maersk says the service is a leap forward […]
SpaceX’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite service has established ‘direct.starlink.com’ for its Direct-to-Cell service promising “seamless access to text, voice, and data for LTE phones across the globe”. The new service will be available from 2024/2025 (depending on its service partners). Those initial reciprocal cellular partners are named as: T-Mobile, Canada’s Rogers; Australia’s Optus; New Zealand’s One NZ, […]
As expected, SpaceX has formally applied to the ITU to place an additional 29,988 new satellites into orbit. SpaceX is using the Pacific island state of Tonga as its regulatory source and using TongSat which is looking to profit from the satellite industry. The satellites will operate in the W-band, which is the microwave portion […]