Starlink

FCC grants permission for polar launch of Starlink satellites
The Federal Communications Commission will allow SpaceX to launch 10 Starlink satellites into polar orbit on an upcoming mission, but deferred a decision on a much broader modification of SpaceX’s license.

Viasat asks FCC to perform environmental review of Starlink
Viasat has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to perform an environmental review of SpaceX’s Starlink broadband constellation, arguing that the satellite system poses environmental hazards in space and on Earth.

News Analysis | For SpaceX, Starlink’s big broadband subsidy more symbolic than material
SpaceX’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase 1 award is big, but the impact on its overall Starlink broadband business will be modest.

SpaceX wins big share of $9.2B RDOF broadband subsidy
SpaceX won $885.5 million of the $9.2 billion in broadband subsidies the FCC awarded Dec. 7 under its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase 1 auction.

SpaceX sets new Falcon 9 reuse milestone on Starlink launch
SpaceX set a new milestone in Falcon 9 reuse with the latest Starlink satellite launch Nov. 24 as the company seeks permission to deploy Starlink satellites into a new orbit.

News Analysis | SpaceX has a lot riding on Starlink’s $499 “UFO on a stick”
SpaceX needs Starlink to improve and expand across three major areas at once: customer hardware, business models, and the satellite network. It’s a challenge no one in the satellite industry has attempted. What’s more, Musk’s Martian dream of multi-planet humanity may depend upon it.

Telesat remains optimistic about prospects for LEO constellation
As SpaceX prepares to extend its Starlink beta test program to Canada, Telesat remains optimistic its broadband low Earth orbit constellation will find enough business to be successful.

FCC approves OneWeb sale as Starlink begins public beta
The Federal Communications Commission approved the sale of OneWeb to the British government and Bharti Global Oct. 27, as rival SpaceX started a public beta test of its Starlink system.

SpaceX reaches 100 successful launches with Starlink mission
SpaceX launched another set of Starlink satellites Oct. 24, marking the 100th time the company has placed payloads into orbit.

SpaceX, SES to provide broadband for Microsoft’s Azure Space mobile data centers
Microsoft will offer mobile cloud computing data centers that can be deployed anywhere in the world and connect to SpaceX’s Starlink and SES’ O3B internet satellites.

Falcon 9 investigation ongoing as SpaceX continues Starlink launches
A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched another set of Starlink satellites Oct. 18 as the investigation into another Falcon 9 launch abort more than two weeks ago continues.

Op-ed | Can SpaceX profit on certain Starlink launches?
It is no longer a surprise to industry observers that partial reusability, economies of scale and vertical integration have enabled SpaceX to achieve extremely low Falcon 9 launch costs. It may however remain a surprise to some that SpaceX will further reduce the Starlink launch capex by manifesting paying customers as rideshare payloads on some Starlink launches.

SpaceX launches Starlink satellites as it deorbits original ones
As SpaceX launches a new batch of Starlink satellites, the company is quietly deorbiting the original set of satellites less than 18 months after launch.

Raytheon wins contract to connect military aircraft to commercial internet satellites
Raytheon is one of several major defense contractors selected by the U.S. Air Force for the program known as “defense experimentation using commercial space internet."

Falcon 9 launch adds 60 Starlink satellites to orbit as constellation beta testing continues
SpaceX on Sept. 3 launched 60 Starlink internet satellites on a Falcon 9 rocket while disclosing early testing results from the constellation for which it has now launched 713 satellites.