Starlink: Satellite Internet for Hard-to-Reach Areas

Although they already exist satellite internet connections, They are still in the process of standardization. Starlink It will be available to users soon, in its beta version. Elon Musk, This is a super ambitious project It aims to put some 12,000 satellites into orbit., for complement the service offering by satellite.

Now, this type of mega projects They are not new to the physicist, inventor and entrepreneur of South African origin, but naturalized American and Canadian Elon Musk. Who has accustomed us to renowned companies such as X.com, PayPal, Tesla Motors, SpaceX and SolarCity just to mention a few.

In this way, the project began to gain recognition in 2015, but with a different scope, somewhat unlike what we know today. Now then, the Satellite connections have always been very limited to a few, which is why Elon Musk wants to change things.. However, there are astronomers and scientists who disagree with the number of satellites, because the brightness they project can cause problems in observing the universe.

According to him, he wants to improve the fiber optic and 5G connection offerings.. But, Its purpose is to provide service in areas that are difficult to access for both fixed and mobile networks.. In a way that offer the service in situations of low data density. On the other hand, it will not be exclusive to remote areas; urban areas will also benefit, even though they are spaces of high data density.

For this reason, the satellite launch began a few months ago. The equipment is being put into orbit using [mechanisms/technologies]. SpaceX's Falcon 9 reusable rocket, about 440 kilometers high. The reason for this very specific altitude is so that, over time, Earth's gravity will attract it and it won't be left wandering in space forever.

With approximately 500 pieces of equipment currently in space, they have been able to begin the testing phase. Consequently, SpaceX, announced the search for users to carry out the necessary tests in a first phase.

Until now, Elon Musk, I indicated that it will be tested in high-altitude areas, such as the city of Seattle, in the United States. So, It would be available in the North American market before the end of the year and for the rest of the world during 2021..

Will Starlink be fast?

In a document sent by SpaceX to the Federal Communications Commission In 2016, they indicated that The service would have a speed of up to one gigabit per second. Although, this Speed can vary depending on the area and population density.

A logical question that arises is the data limit per user, since in some countries users can consume between 10 and 20 GB. Starlink offers no information on this, but experts believe it could be limited to 1 or 2 terabytes per user. Compared to traditional phone company plans, this amount of data would be significantly higher.

Another question is signal latency, in other words, the sum of the time delays that occur across a network. At this point Elon Musk he said that It would be around 20 ms and could later reach about 8 ms.

With this latency, we could play any video game without problems. In the case of Fortnite, one of the most resource-intensive games, it would be a piece of cake. Are you ready to try this satellite internet from Starlink?

Image: Computer Point