SpaceX launches satellite Internet, testing the global Internet broadcasting project

Details of this project remain hidden, but we know that this weekend, the first satellite in the Internet broadcast network will be launched.

Elon Musk has a project to provide the Internet to people around the globe, and he is taking the first steps to do it: expected next Saturday, February 17, they will launch a test satellite. The first in the satellite network will be used to provide the Internet.

SpaceX headquarters.

The report said that in this launch, the prototype ship, Microsat 2a and 2b, will be accompanied by Falcon 9 missiles on orbit, but this is only a sub-package to test Internet playback. The main item of the next Saturday rocket launch is a 1.3-ton radar observation satellite from Spain, called the PAZ .

Last Monday, SpaceX successfully tested the Falcon 9 rocket before launching - this is a test of the missile's fire that is often seen before every launch. This is SpaceX's Twitter post about this success.

Notice SpaceX's rocket launcher on Twitter.

"Falcon 9's static missile test is done - aiming to launch the PAZ satellite on February 17 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California".

It is expected that Paz satellite will fly 513km high orbit, but later, SpaceX's Internet satellite network will be even higher, to test Ku-band radio communication system, connect to a network ground station too. The development of satellite networks was entrusted by SpaceX to a technical team based in Redmond, Washington.

According to documents submitted to the government, the signal network's ground stations will be located at SpaceX's facilities in Redmond and Brewster in Washington, in McGregor and Brownsville in Texas, as well as SpaceX's headquarters in Hawthorne. , California. Another station will be located at Tesla's headquarters in Fremont, California.

SpaceX said it will also test this system to see if it is compatible with the device received in mobile trucks.

The project will be a source of cheap Internet for all people on the planet.

Overall, this project will launch into orbit thousands of communication satellites, with immediate service being limited to some people, with a milestone of 2020. This temporary project called Starlink will gradually be the source. providing cheap Internet for all people on this planet.

The details of the project are still kept secret by SpaceX and Elon Musk, interested people can only get small items from time to time (like this newsletter) and from the Reddit forum.

SpaceX is not alone in this race: OneWeb 's main rival with a contract, also aims to bring Internet satellites to orbit. In addition, runners still have, SES O3b or ViaSat, Telesat, LeoSat.

Expected later this year, OneWeb will launch test satellites to orbit. The company will likely provide a way to launch satellites as Blue Origin of billionaire Jeff Bezos, Virgin Orbit by British billionaire Richard Branson, Arianespace of Europe.

SpaceX will have to quickly implement its project, before their competitors succeed.

Falcon missiles 9.

This is what Musk said about this project in 2015:

"Over time, building a perfect version of this system, will be extremely expensive and I'm talking about 20 to 15 billion dollars, maybe more, about user devices. It may be about $ 100 to $ 300 billion more, depending on the type of device they want to use, this project is designed to generate a large amount of income and help build a city on Mars. When looking at the long term, and about what we need to build a city on Mars, we know for sure one thing: it takes a lot of money, so I need a project that can make a lot of money. " .