Manufacturer | SpaceX |
---|---|
Country of origin | United States |
Operator | SpaceX |
Applications | Internet service |
Website | starlink |
Specifications | |
Spacecraft type | Small satellite |
Launch mass | v 0.9: 227 kg (500 lb) v 1.0: 260 kg (570 lb) v 1.5: ~295 kg (650 lb) [1] |
Equipment |
|
Regime | Low Earth orbit Sun-synchronous orbit |
Production | |
Status | Active |
Launched | |
Operational | 1,516 [2] |
Maiden launch | 22 February 2018 |
Last launch | 3 February 2022 |
Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by SpaceX[4][5] providing satellite Internet access to most of the Earth.[6][7]
The deployment of the first 1,440 satellites will be into 72 orbital planes of 20 satellites each,[8] with a requested lower minimum elevation angle of beams to improve reception: 25° rather than the 40° of the other two orbital shells.[9]: 17 SpaceX launched the first 60 satellites of the constellation in May 2019 into a 450 km (280 mi) orbit and expected up to six launches in 2019 at that time, with 720 satellites (12 × 60) for continuous coverage in 2020.[10][11]
In August 2019, SpaceX expected four more launches in 2019[12] and at least nine launches in 2020,[13] but since January 2020 expectations had increased to 24 total launches in 2020.[14]
In March 2020, SpaceX reported producing six satellites per day.[15]
Starlink satellites are also planned to launch on Starship, an under-development rocket of SpaceX that will launch 400 satellites at a time.[16]
In February 2021, Musk stated that the satellites are traveling on 25 orbital planes clustered between 53° north and south of the equator.[17]
No. | Mission | Sat. Ver. | COSPAR ID | Date and time, UTC |
Launch vehicle[a] | Launch site | Orbit | Satellites | Outcome | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Altitude | Orbital Inclination | Deployed [2] | Working [2] | ||||||||
– | Tintin[18] | v0.1 | 2018-020 | 22 February 2018, 14:17[19][20] | F9 FT ♺ B1038.2 [21] | VAFB, SLC-4E | 514 km (319 mi) | 97.5° [22] | 2 | 0 | Success |
Two test satellites known as Tintin A and B[23] (MicroSat-2a and 2b) that were deployed as co-payloads to the Paz satellite. As of 1 September 2020[update], the orbits have decayed and both satellites have reentered the atmosphere.[24][25][26] | |||||||||||
1 | v0.9[27] | v0.9 | 2019-029 | 24 May 2019, 02:30[28] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.3[21] | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 440–550 km (270–340 mi) [29] | 53.0° | 60 | 0 | Success[30] |
First launch of 60 Starlink test satellites.[31] Said to be "production design", these are used to test various aspects of the network, including deorbiting.[32] They do not yet have the planned satellite interlink capabilities and they only communicate with antennas on Earth. A day after launch an amateur astronomer in the Netherlands was one of the first to publish a video showing the satellites flying across the sky as a "train" of bright lights.[33] By five weeks post launch, 57 of the 60 satellites were "healthy" while 3 had become non-operational and were derelict, but will deorbit due to atmospheric drag.[34] As of 16 November 2021[update], only 5 failed satellites are still in orbit. All working satellites have been deorbited deliberately.[35] | |||||||||||
2 | L1[36] | v1.0 | 2019-074 | 11 November 2019, 14:56[37] | F9 B5 ♺ B1048.4 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 50 | Success |
First launch of Starlink "operational" satellites (v1.0),[37] with an increased mass of 260 kg each and included Ka-band antennas.[38] Satellites were released in a circular orbit at around 290 km altitude, from which the satellites raised their altitude by themselves. | |||||||||||
3 | L2 | v1.0 | 2020-001 | 7 January 2020, 02:19:21[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.4 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 47 | Success |
One of the satellites, dubbed DarkSat,[40] has an experimental coating to make it less reflective, and to reduce the impact on ground-based astronomical observations.[41] | |||||||||||
4 | L3 | v1.0 | 2020-006 | 29 January 2020, 14:06[42] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.3 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 49 | Success |
5 | L4 | v1.0 | 2020-012 | 17 February 2020, 15:05[43] | F9 B5 ♺ B1056.4 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 53 | Success |
First time the satellites were released in an elliptical orbit (212 × 386 km). | |||||||||||
6 | L5 | v1.0 | 2020-019 | 18 March 2020, 12:16:39[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1048.5 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 56 | Success |
7 | L6 | v1.0 | 2020-025 | 22 April 2020, 19:30:30[44] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.4 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 56 | Success |
8 | L7 | v1.0 | 2020-035 | 4 June 2020, 01:25:00[45] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.5 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 57 | Success |
One of the satellites, dubbed VisorSat, has a sunshade to reduce the impact on ground-based astronomical observations.[46] | |||||||||||
9 | L8 | v1.0 | 2020-038 | 13 June 2020, 09:21:18[47] | F9 B5 ♺ B1059.3 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 58 | 55 | Success |
First Starlink rideshare launch, carrying only 58 of SpaceX's satellites plus three Planet Labs, SkySats 16-18 Earth-observation satellites.[47] | |||||||||||
10 | L9 | v1.0 | 2020-055 | 7 August 2020, 05:12:05[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.5 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 57 | 55 | Success |
BlackSky Global 7 and 8, the 5th and 6th BlackSky Global satellites, launched as rideshare payloads.[48] All of the Starlink satellites are outfitted with the sunshade visor that was tested on a single satellite on 4 June 2020 launch.[49] | |||||||||||
11 | L10 | v1.0 | 2020-057 | 18 August 2020, 14:31:16 [39][50] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.6[51] | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 58 | 53 | Success |
Rideshare satellites from Planet Labs, SkySats 19-21 Earth-observation satellites. | |||||||||||
12 | L11 | v1.0 | 2020-062 | 3 September 2020, 12:46:14[8] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.2 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 53 | Success |
13 | L12 | v1.0 | 2020-070 | 6 October 2020, 11:29:34[52] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.3 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 55 | Success |
14 | L13 | v1.0 | 2020-073 | 18 October 2020, 12:25:57[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.6 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 51 | Success |
15 | L14 | v1.0 | 2020-074 | 24 October 2020, 15:31:34[53] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.3 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 50 | Success |
16 | L15 | v1.0 | 2020-088 | 25 November 2020, 02:13:12[54] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.7 | CCAFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 49 | Success |
17 | L16 | v1.0 | 2021-005 | 20 January 2021, 13:02:00 [39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.8 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 59 | Success |
– | Tr-1 | v1.0 | 2021-006 | 24 January 2021, 15:00:00 [55] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.5 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 560 km (350 mi) | 97.5° [55] | 10 | 0 | Success |
Part of Transporter-1 (SmallSat Rideshare Mission 1).[56] First launch of production Starlink satellites to polar orbits. | |||||||||||
18 | L18 | v1.0 | 2021-009 | 4 February 2021, 06:19:00[57] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.5 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 59 | Success |
19 | L19 | v1.0 | 2021-012 | 16 February 2021, 03:59:37[58] | F9 B5 ♺ B1059.6 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 59 | Success |
SpaceX lost the Falcon 9 booster in the Atlantic Ocean.[58] | |||||||||||
20 | L17 | v1.0 | 2021-017 | 4 March 2021, 08:24:54[59] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.8 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
Second stage failed to deorbit actively, reentered March 26 over Oregon and Washington in the United States.[60] | |||||||||||
21 | L20 | v1.0 | 2021-018 | 11 March 2021, 08:13:29[61] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.6 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
22 | L21 | v1.0 | 2021-021 | 14 March 2021, 10:01:26[62] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.9 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 59 | Success |
23 | L22 | v1.0 | 2021-024 | 24 March 2021, 08:28:24[63] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.6 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 48 | Success |
24 | L23 | v1.0 | 2021-027 | 7 April 2021, 16:34:18[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.7 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
25 | L24 | v1.0 | 2021-036 | 29 April 2021, 03:44:00[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.7 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
26 | L25 | v1.0 | 2021-038 | 4 May 2021, 19:01[39] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.9 | KSC, LC-39A | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
27 | L27 | v1.0 | 2021-040 | 9 May 2021, 06:42[64] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.10 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi) | 53.0° | 60 | 58 | Success |
28 | L26 | v1.0 | 2021-041 | 15 May 2021, 22:56[65] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.8 | KSC, LC-39A | 569–582 km (354–362 mi) | 53.0° | 52 | 50 | Success |
Rideshare satellites: a radar Earth imaging satellite for Capella Space, and an Earth observation satellite, Tyvak 0130, for Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems. | |||||||||||
29 | L28 | v1.0 | 2021-044 | 26 May 2021, 18:59 [66] | F9 B5 ♺ B1063.2 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 550 km (340 mi)[67] | 53.0° | 60 | 60 | Success |
– | Tr-2 | v1.5[3] | 2021-057 | 30 June 2021, 19:31[68] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.8 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 560 km (350 mi) | 97.5° | 3 | 3 | Success |
Part of Transporter-2 (SmallSat Rideshare Mission 2).[69] Second launch of production Starlink and first launch of 3 prototype Starlink v1.5 satellites to polar orbits. | |||||||||||
30 | Group 2-1 | v1.5 | 2021-082 | 14 September 2021, 03:55:50[70] | F9 B5 ♺ B1049.10 | VSFB, SLC-4E | 570 km (350 mi) | 70.0° | 51 | 51 | Success |
First launch of operational Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base, and first launch into a high-inclination, non-SSO orbit. Musk stated that the operational satellites were version 1.5 and featured "laser inter-satellite links, which are needed for high latitudes and mid-ocean coverage".[71] | |||||||||||
31 | Group 4-1 | v1.5 | 2021-104 | 13 November 2021, 11:19:30[72] | F9 B5 ♺ B1058.9 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 53 | 52 | Success |
First launch of Group 4 Starlink satellites. | |||||||||||
32 | Group 4-3 | v1.5 | 2021-115 | 2 December 2021, 23:12:15[73] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.9 | CCSFS, SLC-40 | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 48 | 48 | Success |
Rideshare satellites: BlackSky-16 Gen-2 and BlackSky-17 Gen-2. | |||||||||||
33 | Group 4-4 | v1.5 | 2021-125 | 18 December 2021, 12:41:40[74] | F9 B5 ♺ B1051.11 | VSFB, SLC-4E | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 52 | 51 | Success |
34 | Group 4-5 | v1.5 | 2022-001 | 6 January 2022, 21:49:10[75] | F9 B5 ♺ B1062.4 | KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | 49 | Success |
35 | Group 4-6 | v1.5 | 2022-005 | 19 January 2022, 02:02:40[76] | F9 B5 ♺ B1060.10[77] | KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | 49 | Success |
36 | Group 4-7 | v1.5 | 2022-010 | 3 February 2022, 18:13:20 | F9 B5 ♺ B1061.6[78] |
KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | ~9 | Success |
On 4 February, the satellites deployed on this mission were significantly impacted by a geomagnetic storm. The satellites were commanded into a safe-mode, but increased atmospheric drag prevented the satellites from leaving safe-mode to begin manoeuvers from the low deployment altitude to operational orbit. On 8 February, SpaceX confirmed that up to 40 of the 49 deployed satellites will reenter or have reentered the Earth's atmosphere.[79][80] Up to 40 satellites from this launch are anticipated to be lost due to an increase in atmospheric drag caused by a geomagnetic storm on 4 February.[81] | |||||||||||
37 | Group 4-11 | v1.5 | N/A | 14 February 2022 [82] | F9 B5 ♺ | VSFB, SLC-4E | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 51 | N/A | Planned |
38 | Group 4-8 | v1.5 | N/A | February 2022[83] | F9 B5 ♺ |
CCSFS, SLC-40 or KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | N/A | Planned |
39 | Group 4-9 | v1.5 | N/A | February 2022[84] | F9 B5 ♺ |
CCSFS, SLC-40 or KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | N/A | Planned |
40 | Group 4-10 | v1.5 | N/A | February 2022[85] | F9 B5 ♺ |
CCSFS, SLC-40 or KSC, LC-39A | 540 km (340 mi) | 53.2° | 49 | N/A | Planned |