Starlink just launched 60 more satellites — what it means for coverage

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Starlink just launched 60 more satellites — what it means for coverage

(Image credit: NurPhoto | Getty Images)

Starlink, Elon Musk's satellite internet company, has sent lx new satellites into orbit bringing the total to 300 this month. SpaceX has now launched 1,443 satellites so far, but is however far off from reaching it's initial target of 12,000.

The latest launch, which occurred on April 7, went successfully. The Falcon ix booster touched down successfully on SpaceX's floating landing dorsum in the Atlantic Ocean.

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For Starlink customers, the latest launch should mean better overall internet connections. Given that at that place are then few satellites in orbit, Starlink customers have noted that speeds can fluctuate throughout the twenty-four hour period. The overall strength remains to be seen, but we'll have a better idea in the upcoming weeks.

While Starlink is still in beta, users in latitudes from Seattle and above are reporting impressive speeds, far faster than what they had previously. Starlink volition get fully operational, at its current step, by quondam in 2030 when the megaconstellation reaches its 12,000 satellite goal.

At the moment, information technology'southward projected that by 2025, Starlink will accept launched 6,000 satellites into orbit, reaching the halfway point. Of course, as SpaceX continues to meliorate in satellite launches, information technology'due south possible for Elon Musk's spacefaring company to accomplish 12,000 sooner than 2030.

Only 12,000 is non the end-all. SpaceX has made a request with the FCC to launch up to thirty,000 satellites over the next few decades, bringing the total to 42,000. It's really so many satellites that some worry it might brand space exploration and research more difficult.

SpaceX posted a video clip on Twitter showing the stack of Starlink satellites going into orbit and separating.

Deployment of 60 Starlink satellites confirmed, completing SpaceX's tenth mission this twelvemonth pic.twitter.com/c15BveB3QEApril 7, 2021

Come across more than

For those interested, a video of the total launch is also linked beneath. It shows the liftoff, the rocket reaching max velocity, phase separation and finally reaching orbit. And if you fast-forward to 27 minutes, you can see the rocket landing on SpaceX'southward floating landing pad in the Atlantic Ocean.

A final fast-forrad to the one:23 mark will let you see the Starlink satellites drifting off into space with an caption past SpaceX's hosts. Using the on-board ion thrusters, the satellites will distance from one another over the adjacent few days and weeks until reaching operational orbit.

• More: Starlink speeds are erratic — here'south how SpaceX is responding

Imad Khan is news editor at Tom's Guide, helping straight the twenty-four hours'due south breaking coverage. Prior to working at the site, Imad was a total-fourth dimension freelancer, with bylines at the New York Times, the Washington Mail service and ESPN. Exterior of piece of work, you can find him sitting blankly in front of a Word document trying badly to write the get-go pages of a new volume.

Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/news/starlink-just-launched-60-more-satellites-what-it-means-for-coverage

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