SpaceX's Starlink satellite broadband appears to be successfully balancing capacity and demand, with median download performance in Q3 of 64.54 Mbps, a marginal decline quarter on quarter, Ookla said Monday. Starlink's U.S. performance continues to eclipse geostationary orbit satellite internet providers, it said. Starlink's performance also shows significant urban low earth orbit broadband demand, with close to 60% of Speedtest samples of Starlink performance recorded in urban locations in the U.S., it said. While Starlink's "Roam" services, which let users take Starlink with them, may skew the number of urban samples, "it’s clear that LEO satellite internet is seen as a viable option in many urban U.S. locations," Ookla said.
Skylo Technologies, which is partnering with Viasat on direct-to-device satellite service (see 2311160006) and German telco O2 Telefonica for provision of hybrid satellite/terrestrial IoT coverage (see 2309270017), signed a supplemental coverage from space agreement with Deutsche Telekom, the satellite operator said Wednesday. Skylo said Deutsche Telekom's early adopter program will give access to a limited number of users, with the companies through mid 2024 studying use cases that bundle Skylo satellite service with the telco's terrestrial network.
The Environmental Defense Fund anticipates a March launch of its MethaneSAT earth observation satellite, which will identify and quantify global methane emissions, the nonprofit group said in an FCC Space Bureau application Tuesday. MethaneSAT will focus on the oil, gas and agricultural industries, with philanthropic donations funding the non-geostationary orbit satellite. Its data will be made available for free to the public, EDF said. It's set for launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare mission.
Expedited satellite and earth station application processing rules the FCC approved in September (see 2309210055) go into effect Jan. 5, according to a notice for Wednesday's Federal Register. The rules include time frames for putting applications on public notice and the FCC Space Bureau's transparency initiative providing greater license application guidance.
Spire will build and launch six satellites for satellite IoT provider Lacuna Space, with Lacuna operating the satellites under an agreement between the companies announced Tuesday. Spire said each satellite will carry a Lacuna payload and antenna and allow Lacuna to scale its IoT network. Spire said the agreement starts with six satellites but could expand to dozens.
The FCC Space Bureau approved a SpaceX modification of its second-generation constellation authorization that would allow with strict limits supplemental coverage from space (SCS) over personal communication service G-block spectrum (see 2302080001). Under the authorization, the company can operate in the 1910-1915 MHz and 1990-1995 MHz bands "for limited on-orbit check out of the antennas immediately following deployment of each satellite for a period of 10 days or less." Last week the company told the commission it hopes to launch and operate 840 satellites with direct-to-cellphone device capability over the next six months, with the numbers growing beyond that as it looks to offer commercial SCS service next year.
SpaceX's "aura of invincibility" in satellite-delivered residential broadband does not extend to the aviation connectivity marketplace, William Blair's Louie DiPalma wrote investors Monday, pointing to American Airlines' announcement that it signed an in-flight Wi-Fi contract with Intelsat. The American Airlines deal follows Intelsat agreements struck with Air Canada and Alaska Airlines earlier this year as well as Delta's pact with EchoStar, he said. SpaceX landed contracts with Qatar and FlexJet but seems to have won fewer than 3% of commercial and business aviation deals that were awarded since it entered the market two years ago, he said.
Geometric Energy received an FCC experimental license for its DOGE-1 mission, the first space endeavor "to demonstrate Blockchain Technology beyond [low earth orbit]," according to the company's application. The mission will launch a cubesat into lunar orbit using a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with electric propulsion getting the payload to lunar orbit. Geometric Energy said the mission will be paid for via Dogecoin cryptocurrency. In addition, it said the DOGE-1 payload will include "Distributed Public Ledger Technology Development & related imaging, authorization and authentication services." Authorization from the Office of Engineering and Technology was granted last week.
SpaceX's development approach for its Starship heavy launch rocket "looks nothing like other rockets," with the company rapidly turning out copies now rather than starting with a prototype and then scaling production, Quilty Space wrote in a note to subscribers Friday. That could let it avoid the production strain that often slows development, "easily doubling the normative cadence of new rockets, if not more," it said. That could make founder Elon Musk's vision of daily launches more feasible, though the risk is that a serial technical flaw would affect multiple rockets, it said.
The FCC Space Bureau signed off on DirecTV's request to extend the authorized mission life of its T10 satellite to February 2027 (see 2208150001), according to a bureau grant this week.