SpaceX Set to Launch First Test Satellites to Bring Internet to the World
SpaceX is slated to launch the first two of supposed 12,000 satellites that will beam internet connectivity to the entire globe.
The two test spacecrafts — called Microsat-2a and Microsat-2b — will hitchhike on a Falcon 9 launch, which is to send up an Earth-observation satellite called Paz for Spain later this week.
The said prototype probes will be SpaceX's first move into creating a giant constellation of satellites, called Starlink, that will orbit Earth in a synchronized routine, so that every spot on Earth would have internet connection any time of the day.
According to documents filed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), SpaceX plans to launch an initial low orbit constellation of 4,425 Ka/Ku band (a term indicating range on the electromagnetic spectrum) that will sit 700 miles above the planet by 2019. The two initial satellites will be situated in this frequency, with system operations set to begin once at least 800 satellites are up in the outer space.
This initial group will later be followed by another 7,518 satellites, which will be located about 200 miles up and will operate on a different radio frequency.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said Starlink will be 5G-like service — speeds comparable to fiber optic networks — to millions of people around the world, even those living in locations currently unable to secure their own internet connections. Musk earlier said Starlink will be a "real enabler for people in poorer regions of the world."
Launching the almost 12,000 internet satellites would not come cheap, but SpaceX is also expecting a lot of profit in return. According to financial projections obtained by The Wall Street Journal, Starlink is expected to have 40 million global subscribers by 2025, which means at least $30 billion of revenue for that year alone.
The Falcon 9 taking the Paz satellite and the two internet satellite prototypes was initially scheduled to launch on Saturday, but was delayed to ensure that rocket systems are properly working. It will launch instead on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at around sunrise from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
