SpaceX Wants To Add More Powerful Satellites To Gen 1 Starlink Constellation
A hardware upgrade is in the works for the first-generation Starlink satellite constellation that promises to improve its capabilities.
On Wednesday, SpaceX mentioned incorporating new satellite technology into the existing Starlink network in an FCC application, which was noticed(Opens in a new window) by telecommunications lawyer Ryan Thomspon. “This upgraded hardware will allow SpaceX to more efficiently meet the demand for its revolutionary broadband capabilities,” the company wrote in the application(Opens in a new window).
The application arrives two months after SpaceX secured conditional approval to launch a second-generation Starlink system in Earth’s orbit. The FCC gave the company clearance to operate 7,500 second-gen satellites. Now SpaceX wants to add the second-gen technology to the existing first-generation system, which has been authorized to span a total of 4,408 satellites.
“To be clear, while SpaceX intends to populate its Gen1 constellation with upgraded satellites, it does not intend to more rapidly de-orbit its existing satellites,” the company wrote. “Rather, it seeks only to replace those satellites with upgraded hardware when those satellites reach the end of their planned operational period.”
SpaceX’s application doesn’t dive into details about the upgraded satellite equipment. But it mentions the new hardware featuring “even more advanced beam-forming and digital processing technologies,” to provide better internet coverage for US consumers.
“The use of these narrow beams will augment SpaceX’s capability to expand fast, low-latency broadband service throughout the United States and will allow for a high degree of frequency reuse. Thus, with these new capabilities, consumers can expect more
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