StarLink
How many of you have known about the Elon Musk`s Star Link services.
It is part of the SpaceX to provide high speed broadband internet over
satellite with low latency. Today I am going to share details about Star Link.
ENGINEERED BY SPACEX
Currently there 1735 satellites launched by Star Link.
SpaceX is leveraging its experience in building rockets and spacecraft to
deploy the world’s most advanced broadband internet system. As the world’s
leading provider of launch services – and the only provider with an orbital
class reusable rocket – SpaceX has deep experience with both spacecraft and
on-orbit operations
Currently, about half of the satellites are on-station and
the other half are orbit raising or in the parking orbit. Satellites spend a
small fraction of their lives orbit raising or parking and spend the vast
majority of their lives on-station. It's important to note that at any given
time, only about several hundred satellites will be orbit raising or parking.
The rest of the satellites will be in the operational orbit on-station.
The Starlink satellite design was driven by the fact that
they fly at a very low altitude compared to other communications satellites. We
do this to prioritize space traffic safety and to minimize the latency of the
signal between the satellite and the users who are getting internet service
from it. Because of the low altitude, drag is a major factor in the design.
During orbit raise, the satellites must minimize their cross-sectional area
relative to the "wind," otherwise drag will cause them to fall out of
orbit. High drag is a double-edged sword—it means that flying the satellites is
tricky, but it also means that any satellites that are experiencing problems
will de-orbit quickly and safely burn up in the atmosphere. This reduces the
amount of orbital debris or "space junk" in orbit.
This low-drag and thrusting flight configuration resembles
an open book, where the solar array is laid out flat in front of the vehicle.
When Starlink satellites are orbit raising, they roll to a limited extent about
the velocity vector for power generation, always keeping the cross sectional
area minimized while keeping the antennas facing Earth enough to stay in contact
with the ground stations.
When the satellites reach their operational orbit of 550 km,
drag is still a factor—so any inoperable satellite will quickly decay—but the
altitude control system is able to overcome this drag with the solar array
raised above the satellite in a vertical orientation that we call
"shark-fin." This is the orientation in which the satellite spends
the majority of its operational life.
HIGH-SPEED, LOW LATENCY BROADBAND INTERNET.
Starlink is now delivering initial beta service both domestically
and internationally, and will continue expansion to the world in 2021.
During beta, users can expect to see data speeds vary from
50Mb/s to 150Mb/s and latency from 20ms to 40ms in most locations. As they
launch more satellites, install more ground stations and improve our networking
software, data speed, latency and uptime will improve dramatically.
LOW LATENCY = VIDEO CALLS & ONLINE GAMING
Latency is the time it takes to send data from one point to
the next. When satellites are far from Earth, latency is high, resulting in
poor performance for activities like video calls and online gaming.
Starlink satellites are over 60 times closer to Earth than
traditional satellites, resulting in lower latency and the ability to support
services typically not possible with traditional satellite internet. Normal
satellites has the geo stationary orbit of 36000 KM from the earth equator.
PRESERVING THE NIGHT SKY
The Starlink teams have worked closely with leading
astronomers around the world to better understand the specifics of their
observations and engineering changes we can make to reduce satellite
brightness.
IDEAL FOR RURAL + REMOTE COMMUNITIES
Starlink is ideally suited for areas of the globe where
connectivity has typically been a challenge. Unbounded by traditional ground
infrastructure, Starlink can deliver high-speed broadband internet to locations
where access has been unreliable or completely unavailable.
Star link service will be available in japan`s remote areas
starting in 2021. SpaceX is partnering with KDDI for the services. With this
service, being an enthusiastic toastmaster, even if you are at the deep in the
ocean or high in the mountain or in the middle of the Amazon forest or into the
artic, you can attend our online zoom meeting.
