SpaceX confirms deployment of fourth orbital shell to launch 348 Starlink satellites from July

SpaceX confirmed on Wednesday that it could begin deploying the fourth of five “orbital shells” in the initial stages of the Starlink satellite network as early as July.

According to the plan,The initial phase of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network will launch 4,408 satellites, deployed on five orbital shells, to provide low-latency, high-speed Internet on a global scale.

These orbital shells are distinguished by orbital inclination (the angle between a given orbit and the Earth’s equator) and orbital height (orbit-to-ground distance). Each orbital shell is like a “husk” around the Earth, consisting of a constellation of satellites evenly distributed around the entire Earth’s sphere.

Of the 4,408 Starlink satellites, 3,168 (72%) will be deployed in two orbital shells. Since SpaceX began satellite launches in November 2019, “Case 1” and “Case 4” have been the focus of the company’s deployment.

“Shell 1” currently has 1,450 satellites in orbit. This orbital shell was once filled with satellites, but of the 1,665 first-generation satellites launched between November 2019 and May 2021, about 205 were lost to various anomalies. The vast majority underwent controlled deorbiting and failed re-entry, but 28 failed and took months to years to re-enter the atmosphere.

SpaceX began deploying satellites to Shell 4 in November 2021. Since then, the company has maintained an unprecedented pace, launching 913 satellites in the past six months, of which 866 are operational. If SpaceX continues to launch at this rate, by the end of 2022, all 1,584 satellites (along with some spares) needed for Shell 4 could be in orbit.

Strangely enough, SpaceX launched 51 Starlink satellites to “Shell 2” in September 2021, a move that may be aimed at conceptualizing the first V1.5 satellites with laser link capabilities prove.

Now, SpaceX plans to deploy satellites to the fourth orbital shell (Case 3). In fact, as early as May 20 this year, technology reporter Alejandro Alcantarilla broke the news on Twitter that SpaceX was preparing to start the fourth orbit as early as July 2022. Shell to deploy satellites.

On Wednesday, local time in the United States, SpaceX confirmed that it has applied for a communications license, known as a “Special Temporary Authorization” license (STA), for a satellite launch no earlier than the end of June. -1) Launch. This will mark the start of SpaceX’s launch of so-called polar Starlink satellites. The satellites are also equipped with laser links that will help connect Starlink Internet users on both ends of the planet.

SpaceX is orbiting an optically-based space-based network that could make the company’s routing capabilities even more useful, making it easier for planes or ships far from any nearby ground stations to stay connected to networks almost anywhere on Earth. SpaceX only plans to deploy 348 satellites in Shell 3, which the company can deploy with just seven or eight Falcon 9 rocket launches.

According to reporter Alcantarilla, SpaceX’s first two “Shell 3” missions are scheduled to lift off from the Vandenberg, California launch site as early as July, with a possible first launch on July 5. Meanwhile, SpaceX appears to have no intention of slowing down its Shell 4 launch cadence and will continue to maximize its use of its East Coast launch pad, aiming to achieve its goal of averaging at least one launch per week in 2022.