Technology
Elon Musk reveals Starlink space internet will be 10 TIMES faster than broadband this year – and it’s live in UK and US
ELON Musk has revealed his Starlink satellite internet service will be 10 times faster than broadband by the end of the year.
The billionaire CEO revealed the news in a tweeted response to a Starlink customer.
The customer tweeted a picture of their Starlink dish setup.
Musk responded: “Speed will double to ~300Mb/s & latency will drop to ~20ms later this year.”
This is a much faster internet speed than most people are used to.
Cheap broadband services can give you 30 Mbps speeds, which are still quick enough to download a song or a file in a few seconds.
However, that’s not a great speed for streaming or downloading lots of content.
The average broadband speed in the UK last year was 64 Mbps.
Average speeds in the US can be much lower.
Prospective customers receive this email when Starlink is avaliable for them[/caption]
Musk has also revealed he wants to provide internet to most of the Earth by the end of 2021.
Although he did admit that “satellites are best for low to medium population density areas.”
That means not everyone will be rushing to sign up.
Lots of UK and US customers can now test Starlink.
People who have signed up for information about the service eventually receive emails that state: “Starlink is now available for order to a limited number of users in your coverage area.
“Placing your order now will hold your place in line for future service. Orders will be fulfilled on a first-come, first-served basis.”
To check availability for your location, visit Starlink.com.
What is SpaceX?
Here’s what you need to know…
SpaceX was founded by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk who still has part ownership of the company with 54 per cent equity and 78 per cent voting control.
SpaceX is a private American aerospace manufacturer that is based in California.
It was founded in 2002 with the goal to build affordable rockets and enable the colonisation of Mars.
The manufacturer also aimed to reduce space transportation costs.
Since its creation, the firm has gained fame primarily as a pioneering rocket firm.
In 2008 it launched the first privately-funded liquid-propellant rocket to reach orbit and later became the first private company to launch an object into orbit around the sun.
The company has grown dramatically over its lifespan, from 160 employees in November 2005 to around 7,000 as of November 2019.
As of March 2018, SpaceX had over 100 launches on its manifest representing about $12billion (£9.24billion) in contract revenue.
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In other space news, Elon Musk has warned that humanity may “self-extinguish” before we can colonise Mars.
And, dead alien civilisations could be littered all over our galaxy, according to a new study.
Will you be signing up for Starlink? Let us know in the comments…
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