From launches to The International Space Station all the way to sending up satellites to help improve the world’s bandwidth, it seems as if SpaceX is turning space into a daily commute. This morning at 1:12 am EDT, Falcon 9 departed once more on a Starlink mission.
This morning SpaceX and Starlink took their next steps to provide high bandwidth to those in sparsely populated areas. At just after the 1-hour mark post liftoff, both BlackSky global satellites were deployed. These two satellites will help with global monitoring. When there is an issue such as the Australia wildfires then BlackSky can provide digital information in real-time. This type of information could greatly help the issues that break out in the world, whether it is a natural occurrence on man-made.
The Launch
Approximately 33 minutes after the BlackSky deployment, the Starlink satellites started. In all, 57 satellites were released from Falcon 9. These satellites are part of Starlink’s plan to blanket the planet to provide internet. While urban areas enjoy high bandwidth connection to the internet, the same can not be said for those in rural areas. Elon Musk wishes to provide this type of connection to everyone regardless of where you live. This is part of an initiative that would see thousands of satellites in LEO (Low Earth Orbit) to provide this type of blanket coverage across the world.
Cost and Details
The cost for this project is sitting around the $10 billion dollar mark. This project began back in 2015. There have been 12,000 satellites approved and up to 30,000 in the total plan. The mission is straight forward. It is to blanket the world with low orbit satellites in order to provide good bandwidth to those that can’t get it from traditional infrastructure. Elon musk is truly a visionary. This could be the thing that leaves an incredible mark on the world.
Source: SpaceX