SpaceX Says Starlink would need less than 42000 Satellites for Internet Services

 

Space Exploration Technologies Inc. (known as SpaceX) is an American spacecraft manufacturer, space launch provider, and satellite communications company headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded by Elon Musk in 2002 to reduce the cost of space transportation to enable the colonization of Mars. It manufactures the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rocket engines, several rocket engines, the Cargo Dragon, manned spacecraft, and the Starlink communications satellite.

SpaceX is developing a satellite internet constellation called Starlink to provide commercial internet services. Starlink is the world's first and largest satellite constellation using low earth orbit to provide broadband internet supporting streaming, online gaming, video calling, and more.
Starlink leverages advanced satellite and user hardware combined with extensive experience in spacecraft and on-orbit operations to provide high-speed, low-latency Internet to users worldwide. In January 2020, the Starlink constellation became the largest satellite constellation ever launched. Elon Musk aims to connect regions underserved or underserved by landline and mobile operators via Starlink in low-Earth orbit. Provide your customers with high-speed broadband services.

How Starlink Works

Most satellite Internet services are provided by individual geostationary satellites orbiting the Earth at an altitude of 35,786 km. The result is long round-trip times between users and satellites, making it nearly impossible to support streaming, online gaming, video calling, or other high data rate activities. On the other hand, Starlink is a constellation of thousands of satellites orbiting a planet very close to Earth, about 550 km away, covering the entire Earth. Because the Starlink satellites are in low orbit, the delay is much shorter, around 20ms versus 600+ Milliseconds. 

SpaceX, which has applied for approval to deploy up to 42,000 satellites to provide Starlink satellite internet service, probably won't need that many satellites in orbit, the company's chief operations officer said Monday.

"I don't think we need 40,000+ satellites to provide good service around the world," the company said. As SpaceX prepares to launch into orbit, the next generation of satellites with larger antennas and better capacity means fewer are needed.