Starlink has more than 145,000 users across 25 countries globally
Starlink, the satellite internet division of billionaire Elon Musk’s rocket company SpaceX, has more than 145,000 broadband users across 25 countries globally. starlink internet service
Until November 2021, SpaceX added roughly 11,000 internet users per month since beginning service in October 2020, reports CNBC. SpaceX has about 1,800 Starlink satellites in orbit.
Last year, Musk said at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) conference said Starlink should have roughly 500,000 users within the next 12 months.
He said Starlink is already running in 12 countries and expanding. “We’re on our way to having a few hundred thousand users, possibly over 500,000 users within 12 months,” Elon Musk added.
Starlink shipped 100,000 terminals to customers recently. The project aims to provide global broadband connectivity via a constellation of satellites.
SpaceX began satellite launches in November 2019 and opened its $99 per month beta programme for select customers around a year later.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Bhargava, India Director for Starlink, recently resigned amid the government pressure to get necessary permission for offering satellite-based Internet services.
Earlier, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) warned Starlink to get permission to offer satellite-based Internet services in India. Starlink stopped receiving orders.
This was the fourth launch for this particular booster. It previously flew on the GPS-III missions four and five, as well as the Inspiration4 all-civilian crewed mission to orbit in September 2021.
The launch marked the first time SpaceX had flown to a 53 degree south inclination from the east coast of the United States. The company decided to opt for more favorable weather for recovering the booster and fairing halves during the winter months.
SpaceX has now launched nearly 2,000 Starlink satellites. NASASpaceflight reports that the company’s current focus is on building out the fourth of Starlink’s five orbital shells. At an inclination of 53.2 degrees and an altitude of 540 kilometers (335 miles), this shell should support customers between the 52 degrees latitudes north and south.
The first shell has 1,556 satellites in orbit. SpaceX is also building out the second shell, with the third and fifth shells lowest priority. The company has applied for permission to launch up to 42,000 satellites overall.
The booster successfully landed on the drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas after the launch. This marked the 101st successful recovery of a first-stage booster. starlink internet service
