California-based satellite operator Viasat has been suffering from alleged electronic warfare emanating from Russia. Reports suggest that hackers have deliberately disrupted satellite signals to and from Ukraine and in particular using the (formerly Eutelsat-owned) KA-Sat. Reuters, for example, is reporting that the cyber attacks have affected about 10,000 terminals. The attacks started as long ago […]
A Ukrainian senior official reached out to Elon Musk on February 26th asking for a supply of Starlink broadband terminals to supplement local internet services. Musk responded a few hours later saying that his Starlink system was now operational over Ukraine and that more terminals were on their way to the country. “While you try […]
Pakistan is echoing India in its decision to ban Elon Musk’s Starlink from soliciting pre-orders to its broadband-by-satellite system. Pakistan’s Telecommunication Authority (PTA) announced on January 19th that Starlink had neither applied for, nor obtained, any licence from the PTA to provide Internet services to the country. “The directions came in the wake of reports […]
Up until now all of Elon Musk’s efforts related to SpaceX’s huge Starship rocket have been focussed on its headquarters base in South Texas at the Gulf coastal Boca Chica village, near Brownsville. But Musk’s team have now started pouring concrete at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre part of the Cape Canaveral […]
India’s Department of Telecom (DoT) has said that Elon Musk’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite service is not licensed by India and the public should not subscribe to services. Local media says that Starlink Internet Services are already being advertised in the country. The DoT has also asked Starlink to comply with India’s regulatory framework for offering satellite-based […]
SpaceX executed another flawless launch – and 1st stage landing – on November 13th, albeit delayed by 24 hours because of poor weather at Cape Canaveral. The Falcon 9 rocket (its first stage has now been used nine times) carried 53 extra Starlink satellites into space. The 1st stage landing on SpaceX’s ‘Just Read the […]
Chilean telecoms Secretary of State for Telecommunications regulator Subtel has granted permission for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite system to operate in the country. Local reports say that Starlink has been testing services and connectivity for “some months”. Subtel is allowing five satellite ground stations to be established in Caldera, Coquimbo, San Clemente, Puerto Saavedra, and Puerto […]
Elon Musk, in one of his regular Tweets, says that the Starlink initial beta broadband-by-satellite test stage will end in October. This early adopter test-stage has more than 100,000 users spread over 17 countries. SpaceX has launched almost 1,800 Starlink satellites into orbit and well over 1600 are fully working. Musk’s Tweet suggests that a […]
It seems SpaceX’s Starlink service is gearing up to meet its outstanding demand and widen distribution of its broadband by satellite service. At last week’s Satellite 2021 show in Washington, SpaceX’s CFO Bret Johnsen told delegates that the company is currently losing money on each and every Starlink system it supplies and in particular on […]
Elon Musk has said his Starlink broadband by satellite service will operate its data-transfer of customer’s material at “the speed of light”. Musk’s comments refer to the use of laser transmitters on board the ‘next generation’ of satellites. Early satellites already in space, about 1700 of them, will depend on non-laser ground-based gateway links to […]