On Thursday, 23rd May 2019, SpaceX successfully deployed the first batch of 60 internet satellites. Their design enables them to beam cheap broadband internet across the earth.
It was a particularly triumphant feat because bad weather disrupted the two earlier attempts. The satellites, contained in the Falcon 9 rocket, weighed about 18.5 tons. It was lifted from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, USA at about 10:30 pm local time.
The event was live-streamed on the Space X channel on YouTube. This was amid excitements and jubilations at the success of the mission.
The rockets revealed the 60 small satellites awaiting deployment about 3.5 minutes into the lift-off. A minute after this, the first-stage booster made a perfect landing. About an hour after the launch at 11:30 pm, SpaceX was finally able to successfully deploy the 60 Starlink satellites into the orbit.
This will make it the largest number of satellites ever deployed in a single mission. SpaceX software engineer and event commentator Tom Praderio described the event as an incredible moment for the company.
SpaceX satellites to the Internet rescue
The Starlink project looks to deploy 12,000 satellites into low-Earth orbit to create a broadband network. It will provide high-speed yet low-cost internet to the world. The project will cost an estimated $10 million.
The Elon Musk company will then begin by deploying 4,425 Starlink satellites to the low-Earth orbit. It will then follow it with an additional 7,518 satellites at an even lower orbit. The higher satellites will form the basis for the Starlink broadband service.
Starlink’s flat-panel design allows for a dense launch stack to take full advantage of Falcon 9’s launch capabilities pic.twitter.com/ntnJInEfno
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 24, 2019
Meanwhile, they will use the satellites to lower latency and boost capacity in densely populated areas.
Musk subsequently confirmed that there will be six more launches with 60 satellites each to allow minor internet coverage. The company will also need to make an additional 12 launches to allow moderate internet coverage to the planet.
Facebook, OneWeb and Amazon are also tech companies working projects that will enable the use of satellites to build broadband services.