SpaceX Requests Starlink Gen2 Modification, Previews Gigabit-Speeds

Longtime Slashdot reader schwit1 shares a report from Via Satellite: SpaceX submitted a request to the FCC to modify the second generation, Gen2, of its Starlink satellite system with changes that SpaceX said will allow the constellation to deliver gigabit-speed broadband. SpaceX submitted the filing to the FCC on Oct. 11, and it was made public on Tuesday. The operator wants to make changes to the orbital configuration and operational parameters, and requests modifications for its Gen2 frequency authorization. These modifications "will enable the Gen2 system to deliver gigabit-speed, truly low-latency broadband and ubiquitous mobile connectivity to all Americans and the billions of people globally who still lack access to adequate broadband," Jameson Dempsey, SpaceX director of Satellite Policy said in the filing. For comparison, Starlink's current statement on service speeds is that users typically experience download speeds between 25 and 220 Mbps, and a majority of users experience speeds over 100 Mbps. In 2022, the FCC partially approved SpaceX to deploy a Gen2 Starlink constellation of up to 7,500 satellites for fixed satellite services (FSS) in the Ku- and Ka-bands, then later authorized Gen2 operations using additional frequencies in the E- and V-bands. SpaceX reported that since then, it has deployed more than 3,000 satellites in the Gen2 system and the full Starlink constellation serves more than four million people.

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