SpaceX is seeking approval for changes to Starlink that the company says will enable gigabit-per-second broadband service. In a filing with the US Federal Communications Commission on October 11, SpaceX claimed that the requested “modification and accompanying fix will enable the Gen2 system to deliver gigabit speed, truly low-latency broadband and ubiquitous mobile connectivity to all Americans and billions of people worldwide who still do not have access to adequate broadband.”
SpaceX said it is seeking “several small but significant updates to the orbital configuration and operational parameters for its Gen2 space station permit to improve space resiliency, better respond to changing demand, and more efficiently share spectrum with others spectrum users.’
SpaceX wants to lower the altitude of the satellites “from 525 km, 530 km and 535 km to 480 km, 485 km and 475 km high respectively”. The reconfiguration will increase the “potential maximum number of orbiting aircraft and satellites per aircraft” while keeping the planned total number of second-generation satellites at 29,988 or fewer. So far, the FCC has approved 7,500 Gen2 satellites.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote Monday that “the next generation of Starlink satellites, which are so large that only Starship can launch them, will allow for a 10-fold increase in bandwidth and, with reduced altitude, faster deceleration.” .
SpaceX promised gigabit speeds in 2016, when the satellite system was only in the planning stages and didn’t even have a name yet. “Once fully optimized through final deployment, the system will be able to provide high-bandwidth (up to 1 Gbps per user), low-latency broadband services to consumers and businesses in the US and globally,” SpaceX told the FCC in November 2016 Mr. .
As for actual speeds in 2024, Starlink’s website says that “users typically experience download speeds between 25 and 220 Mbps, with most users experiencing speeds above 100 Mbps. Upload speeds are usually between 5 and 20 Mbps. Latency varies between 25 and 60 ms on land and 100+ ms in certain remote locations.”
Changing the elevation angles of the satellite
Another request would change the elevation angles of the satellites to improve network performance, SpaceX said. “SpaceX seeks to reduce its minimum elevation angle from 25 degrees to 20 degrees for satellites operating at altitudes between 400 and 500 kilometers,” SpaceX told the FCC. “Reducing the minimum elevation angle in this way will improve customer connectivity by allowing satellites to connect directly to more ground stations and maintain ground station connections for a longer period of time while flying overhead.”
Meanwhile, upgrades to Starlink’s Gen2 satellites “will include improved hardware that can use greater gain and more advanced beamforming and digital processing technologies and will provide more targeted and stable coverage for US users,” SpaceX said.
SpaceX is also seeking more flexible use of spectrum licenses to support its planned mobile service and ongoing home internet service. The company requested permission “to use the Ka-, V-, and E-band frequencies for mobile or fixed-satellite applications where the US or international frequency allocation table permits such dual use and where the antenna parameters would be indistinguishable.”
