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.”

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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 connectivity from the same radiofrequency resources,” the company added. 

The upgraded satellites will also occupy the same orbits, altitudes and inclinations under the first-generation license and be able to function with existing Starlink terminals for consumers. However, the new hardware will “affect some of the licensed parameters specifically provided in SpaceX’s prior authorizations,” the company said in requesting FCC authorization. 

The move to upgrade the first-generation Starlink network might help the company address the congestion woes facing the satellite internet network. Last year, the speeds and broadband quality for Starlink dropped for many users in the US. The reason: SpaceX likely oversold access to the satellite internet system, which is stretching the system’s capacity. 

In response, SpaceX has lowered the advertised speeds for Starlink and is preparing to institute a high-speed data cap for subscribers later this year. But over the long-term, the company plans on improving the broadband quality by launching thousands of more Starlink satellites into Earth’s orbit. Currently, SpaceX is only operating(Opens in a new window) about 3,600 satellites for Starlink, most of which belong to the first-generation constellation.