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The completed deployment would take the total number of Starlink satellites in low-Earth orbit to almost 20,000.
By: Harry Baldock, Total Telecom
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved the launch and operation of 7,500 next-generation (Gen2) Starlink satellites by SpaceX.
The decision doubles the number of Gen2 satellites previously approved, bringing the total to 15,000.
SpaceX currently has around 9,400 satellites in orbit, roughly 6,200 of which are Gen2. These new satellites, equipped with upgraded communications technology, should deliver greater coverage and service quality for customers.
“This FCC authorization is a game-changer for enabling next-generation services,” said FCC chairman Brendan Carr. “By authorizing 15,000 new and advanced satellites, the FCC has given SpaceX the green light to deliver unprecedented satellite broadband capabilities, strengthen competition, and help ensure that no community is left behind.”
The approval, published Friday 9, was in fact only partial, with SpaceX having initially applied to deploy 22,000 Gen2 satellites in total.
“We defer authorization of the remaining 14,988 proposed Gen2 Starlink satellites, including satellites proposed for operations above 600 km,” explained Carr in the FCC’s ruling.
In addition to approving new satellite launches, the FCC also agreed to allow most of the new satellites to operate in slightly lower obits than their predecessors, between 340km and 485km above the planet’s surface. This, SpaceX claims, should allow for improved coverage and lower latency compared to existing Starlink devices, which orbit at around 500km.
SpaceX aims to reduce orbital congestion
Perhaps more importantly, it will also reduce orbital congestion. The 500–600km range is one of the busier regions of orbital space, occupied by a multitude of active satellites (with many more planned) and debris from previous projects. Orbital collisions at this height could theoretically cause a chain reaction, leaving a wasteland of debris that takes years fall back to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere.
The possibility of this so-called ‘Kessler Syndrome’ was thrown into sharp relief late last year, when one of Starlink’s satellites suffered a ‘kinetic accident’, seemingly caused by an internal error, which caused its partial breakup and pushed it 4km out of its planned orbit. Starlink says this defunct satellite will harmlessly burn up in the atmosphere by the end of the month.
To mitigate further riks, Starlink says it will also reduce the orbits of around half of its existing devices (around 4,400 satellites), in additon to the newly launched satellites. This will both to lower the possibility of collisions and to reduce the time orbital debris takes to clear from years to weeks.
SpaceX has also received approval to operate its devices in the Ku-, Ka-, V-, E-, and W-band frequencies, supporting both Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) and Mobile Satellite Service (MSS), and an Equivalent Power Flux Density (EPFD) waiver, which allows signals to be delivered at higher intensity. Combined, this should allow Starlink to deliver gigabit-speed services more consistently. These measures will also serve as a key enabler for Starlink’s next wave of direct-to-device (D2D) capabilities, including voice and data services.
As part of the approval process, SpaceX has pledged to launch and make operational 50% of the total Gen2 satellites by December 1, 2028, with the remainder launched by December 2031.
