TMC is an independent, primarily volunteer organization that relies on ad revenue to cover its operating costs. Please consider whitelisting TMC on your ad blocker and becoming a Supporting Member. For more info: Support TMC
  1. TMC is currently READ ONLY.
    Click here for more info.

Valid locations for Starlink Beta (44th to 52nd parallels north) on Google Earth

Discussion in 'SpaceX' started by spsheridan, Jul 24, 2020.

  1. spsheridan

    spsheridan Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2019
    Messages:
    330
    Location:
    Los Angeles
    • Informative x 1
    • Like x 1
  2. bxr140

    bxr140 Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2014
    Messages:
    2,607
    Location:
    Bay Area
    It will be interesting to see how much pushback The Canadian Man puts on Starlink service. Telesat is still threatening to move forward and, should it ever come to be, will sort of be a national treasure that they wouldn't want undercut by those pesky Americans. The overwhelming majority of Canadia lives below the 52nd parallel...
     
  3. Bipo

    Bipo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 17, 2012
    Messages:
    277
    Location:
    Spain
    Take a look at the other side of the Atlantic, it seems a bit more populated ;)
     
  4. bxr140

    bxr140 Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2014
    Messages:
    2,607
    Location:
    Bay Area
    Starlink is going Beta in Europe?

    And, Canada is in Europe now?
     
  5. Vines

    Vines Active Member

    Joined:
    Jul 20, 2018
    Messages:
    1,778
    Location:
    Silicon Valley, CA
    I am dying to get into Starlink. Despite living in the Bay Area, where I live there only 1 high speed choice. Its currently a 6 jump microwave relay lol.

    I'm almost willing to deal with the spotty service Starlink would have today just to have an alternative to the relay system which drops regularly as well.
     
  6. ItsNotAboutTheMoney

    ItsNotAboutTheMoney Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 12, 2012
    Messages:
    10,212
    Location:
    Maine
    I guess I should fill out my details. :p
     
  7. Vines

    Vines Active Member

    Joined:
    Jul 20, 2018
    Messages:
    1,778
    Location:
    Silicon Valley, CA
    Lucky! I guess you did have to brave Maine winters, so you deserve something nice ;)
     
  8. bxr140

    bxr140 Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2014
    Messages:
    2,607
    Location:
    Bay Area
    Yours will be the most interesting corner case for Starlink to explore user base: Basically on the skirt of a population center but without any hardwired solution. From the bean counter perspective that's where the money's at because that's where there's a potentially significant amount of users. From the engineering perspective, the intersection of minimum service level(s) and PFD makes it the worst case.

    FWIW, I think you end up on the winning end, assuming you have sufficient clear sky access, but I could imagine some effort on the Starlink side deciding who's in and who's out. (Versus true rural areas where user density is never going to be a primary concern so pretty much anyone who wants to sign up gets to sign up)

    Has anyone heard anything about number of beams (or even antenna elements) per satellite?
     
  9. Vines

    Vines Active Member

    Joined:
    Jul 20, 2018
    Messages:
    1,778
    Location:
    Silicon Valley, CA
    I hadn't really considered the issue of population density being a downside until now, I am also curious about these limitations.

    If Starlink was available now there are 20 accounts instantly on my road alone, however just 1 mile down the road is cable hardwire, so density isn't crazy.

    I imagine it will be very popular all around the Santa Cruz Mountains wherever there's not high speed wired service. I hope they will simply keep adding satellites as users increase and add capacity that way. Our current service is approx $200 per month due to the pay per gb pricing.
     
  10. jrielley

    jrielley Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2018
    Messages:
    32
    Location:
    Mt Holly, NC
    I wonder about my case as well. My neighbors have cable access, the cable is on the road by my house, but they want $8K to connect me (it's actually $11K, but they say they'll eat the first $3K). That's down from $14K on the previous quote, maybe they're starting to feel the pressure. It's a rural area, but I don't think it qualifies for those gubmint subsidies since "I have high speed internet in the area."

    I'm outside Charlotte with all their banking centers, so I assume they have first priority.
     
  11. bxr140

    bxr140 Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2014
    Messages:
    2,607
    Location:
    Bay Area
    The big problem is that, at least to my knowledge, nobody really has a good idea where the threshold is for users/area for Starlink. The good news is that SpaceX will maximize the limits [that are set and, to a degree, regulated by the FCC and ITU] in such a way that it’s all but guaranteed that they’re going to be able to serve a higher density of users than legacy FSS.

    The real ‘limit’ here is primarily power flux density (PFD), which is basically a measurement of microwave intensity on the ground. There’s a bit to it but from a service perspective what ultimately ends up happening is that PFD caps data rate within an area on the ground, which in practical terms means there’s a maximum number of users that can be in that area.

    It’s kinda like the hotspot on your mobile—it works fine if it’s just you and maybe one or two other people, but life would suck for everyone if you had 20 people buckled in. For Starlink maximizing that ‘20’ is high priority since, unlike the mobile analogy, they’re all individually paying customers.

    Ill be VERY surprised if there no data cap on Starlink, though it will certainly be way up there. Way beyond, say, most people’s mobile (or legacy FSS) service caps. It won’t be infinite like hardwire services [basically] are because that would mean SpaceX did a crappyy it job at designing the satellite network, but it’s probably going to high enough that it’s immaterial to most people and only discretely advertised as a cap.
     
    • Informative x 1

Share This Page

  • About Us

    Formed in 2006, Tesla Motors Club (TMC) was the first independent online Tesla community. Today it remains the largest and most dynamic community of Tesla enthusiasts. Learn more.
  • Do you value your experience at TMC? Consider becoming a Supporting Member of Tesla Motors Club. As a thank you for your contribution, you'll get nearly no ads in the Community and Groups sections. Additional perks are available depending on the level of contribution. Please visit the Account Upgrades page for more details.


    SUPPORT TMC