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SpaceX wants to connect its satellite internet service, Starlink, to moving vehicles, ships and aircraft, according to new documentation from the Federal Communications Commission.
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The airline’s application, filed Friday, is seeking a ‘blanket license authorizing operation’ of Starlink user terminals known as Earth Stations in Motion (ESIM). The new application is much wider than the FCC’s prior authorization of SpaceX. Last year, the company attempted to conduct experimental tests for a period of up to two years on five terminals mounted on a private Gulfstream jet, and ten terminals on up to ten vessels, including two autonomous spacecraft drone ships. used to land rocket launchers at sea.
SpaceX’s ESXs are ‘electrically identical to the previously authorized consumer terminals’, but have a confirmation that they can be installed on vehicles, vessels and aircraft. The new terminal will communicate with SpaceX satellites visible on the horizon above a minimum elevation angle of 25 degrees. Unlike Starlink’s current user terminals, which are installed by the customer, the ESIMs will be set up by ‘qualified installers’.
The submission adds that the application “will serve the public interest by authorizing a new class of ground components for SpaceX’s satellite system that will expand the range of broadband capabilities available to moving vehicles across the United States and moving vessels and aircraft worldwide. “SpaceX Director of Satellite Policy David Goldman wrote,
The days of ‘having to make connections on the road, whether you’re driving a truck across the country, transporting a cargo ship from Europe to a US port, or having a domestic or international flight’, would Goldman comes to an end.
In addition to constant connectivity, Goldman noted that this new plan “could improve the security of mobile platforms” and “provide operators and passengers with access to services that enable increased productivity.”
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Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, explained in a tweet on Monday that small passenger vehicles will not be included as part of the license.
“Not to connect Tesla cars to Starlink because our terminal is way too big,” Musk said. “It’s for planes, ships, big trucks and RVs.”
Despite linking Starlink to Tesla vehicles, Musk said during a merit call in January 2020: “This is definitely something that could happen in the coming years.”
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Starlink has launched more than 1,000 satellites into orbit and has attracted more than 10,000 users in the United States and abroad since the “Better Than Nothing” beta was launched locally and internationally in October.
Photo courtesy of Starlink
Pre-orders for Starlink’s service are available in February for $ 99. The company’s website emphasizes that the pre-orders are ‘fully refundable’, but notes that a deposit does not guarantee service. ‘The pre-orders are fulfilled on a first-come-first-served basis. For some sites listed on the site, SpaceX says the coverage will only be available “mid to late 2021”, while other areas will only have service available in 2022.
The full Starlink kit costs $ 499 and includes a mountable dish antenna, Wi-Fi router and power supply. The service is being offered for the first time in the US, Canada and the UK. Musk teased last month that Starlink’s internet speed would double to about 300 megabits per second later this year, while the delay – the time it takes to get data from one point to the next – would drop to about 20 milliseconds.
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Musk said in February that Starlink could potentially launch an initial public offering once SpaceX ‘can predict cash flow fairly well’.
“SpaceX must go through a deep chasm of negative cash flow over the next year or so to make Starlink financially viable. Every new satellite constellation in history has gone bankrupt. We hope to be the first not to do so,” Musk said. said. “Starlink is an incredibly difficult technical and economic endeavor. However, if we do not fail, the cost to end users will improve every year.”
SpaceX recently completed a $ 850 million financing round at about $ 419.99 per share, which reportedly raises the airline’s valuation by about 60% to about $ 74 billion. The company previously raised $ 1.9 billion at a valuation of $ 46 billion in August, the largest round of financing to date.
SpaceX will launch its latest group of 60 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Tuesday night. A live stream will start 15 minutes before kick-off, which is currently running at 21:58 Eastern time.