Elon Musk: Starlink Cannot Match Urban Mobile Towers, Meant for Rural Connectivity
Elon Musk: In an interview with Nikhil Kamat, Elon Musk discussed the limitations and strengths of the satellite-based service Starlink. According to him, providing full Starlink internet to densely populated cities is "physically impossible." Let's find out what he said.
In an interview with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamat, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk talked about the weaknesses and strengths of Starlink. Starlink is a satellite-based internet service operated by the aerospace company SpaceX. Elon Musk noted that it would not be possible for any satellite-based internet service, including Starlink, to provide Internet access as quickly or effectively as mobile towers in populated cities.
Musk explained that Starlink satellites orbit in low Earth orbit (LEO) at a maximum altitude of 550 km and can descend to a maximum altitude of 350 km. In contrast, mobile towers in cities are only within 1 km. Therefore, satellite internet cannot match the speed and signal of mobile towers. The greater the distance, the weaker and slower the signal becomes. Musk compared the satellite beam to the light of a large torch, which covers a vast area. However, only a limited number of users can access fast internet within that vast area. This makes Starlink less effective in high-rise buildings and heavily congested cities. He stated that providing Starlink internet to densely populated cities is "physically impossible." However, the technology can provide service to 1-2% of users in small areas where fiber is not available.
Musk stated that Starlink is primarily designed for rural, remote, and underserved areas. Starlink works best in places where laying fiber or building high-bandwidth towers is difficult and expensive.
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Speaking of Starlink's features, its network is available in 150 countries. Thousands of satellites work together to operate it. These satellites travel 25 times faster than the speed of sound. Being in low Earth orbit (LEO), their latency is very low. All satellites are connected to each other via laser links. The "laser mesh network" operates on laser technology, maintaining connections even when fibers are cut. Musk cited the example of Starlink continuing to function uninterrupted even after a fiber cable in the Red Sea broke.
In disasters like floods, fires, and earthquakes, ground-based internet infrastructure is often destroyed. Starlink can be activated immediately, and the company provides free service in such situations. Musk said, "We don't want to put a paywall on anyone in need," forcing customers to pay to access basic services in the event of a disaster.
Musk clearly stated that Starlink's purpose is not to compete with urban telecom companies. It is a complementary service, providing internet access to areas where networks are not accessible.
