Starlink could one day benefit from help from SpaceX’s recovery barges. In any case, this is the new idea from Elon Musk’s firm.
The satellite internet service has an offer called Starlink Maritime, which allows boats to connect to the network, even in the middle of the ocean. A great success, which the aeronautics giant SpaceX wants to improve further. And for this, it is considering simply using its recovery barges, these ships which usually welcome SpaceX launchers returning to earth!
Authorization requested for 12 antennas
SpaceX last year requested authorization from the US Federal Communications Commission to operate 12 antennas on recovery barges. These, the only clarification then provided, were intended to communicate with the satellites of the aeronautical giant.
This week, a SpaceX lawyer provided some details in an email sent to the FCC. He explains that “ The objective of this test is to evaluate the ability of land stations to serve as gateways in a maritime environment using test traffic. »
Limited scope?
In short, SpaceX wants to know if its recovery barges, when sent to sea, could help improve Starlink’s coverage in the maritime environment. The objective here would be to be able to assess the level of barge contribution to the entire network.
“ During the trial period, the earth station will only receive and transmit test traffic in order to evaluate the ability of such earth stations to carry and switch fixed-satellite service traffic in non-geostationary orbit (FSS). ), and to ensure liaison with local networks in a maritime environment “, with this idea, clarified the same lawyer.
But even if the test were conclusive, the scope of this innovation would still remain limited. Because as a reminder, SpaceX currently only has three recovery barges, which operate from Florida.
Source : PCMag
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