SpaceX has announced that they will have to de-orbit (scrap) around a hundred of their older "early-version 1" Starlink ultrafast low-latency broadband satell
So I was under the impression that high orbit internet satellites weren’t desirable because of latency- satellite net isn’t a new thing, but low latency, high throughput is new and it’s because of low orbit mesh. Am I mistaken here?
Yes and No.
Yes you’re right in the desire for Starlink orbits (an its real satellite compeditors) all want LEO or Low Earth Orbit altitudes, which is essentially anything below 1200 miles-ish up vs GEO which is 20,000 or so miles up.
However there’s lots of different spaces in that “up to 1200 miles up” space. Musk DID want Starlink higher than they are, at about 750 miles up if I remember correctly. It would still mean really low latency compared to GEO but mean quite a bit fewer satellites needed. Fewer needed because each satellite can “see” more of the Earth from higher up. Except OneWeb got that slot first.
Yes and No.
Yes you’re right in the desire for Starlink orbits (an its real satellite compeditors) all want LEO or Low Earth Orbit altitudes, which is essentially anything below 1200 miles-ish up vs GEO which is 20,000 or so miles up.
However there’s lots of different spaces in that “up to 1200 miles up” space. Musk DID want Starlink higher than they are, at about 750 miles up if I remember correctly. It would still mean really low latency compared to GEO but mean quite a bit fewer satellites needed. Fewer needed because each satellite can “see” more of the Earth from higher up. Except OneWeb got that slot first.