Lost in Space
It's standard practice in our forums when posting links to summarize the content behind them so that people don't have to leave the site unless they want complete details. Here, let me show you.
Ars Technica: T-Mobile screwups caused nationwide outage, but FCC isn’t punishing carrier
I wasn't aware of this (not surprising since my family uses Verizon), but there was a nationwide outage of T-Mobile service on June 15 lasting at least 12 hours. The FCC extensively reviewed the issue and released its findings, but decided not to fine the company, instead letting it off with an admonishment to "follow industry best practices".
How to explain briefly... the carrier inadvertently triggered a major flaw in its call management software after a fiber transport link in the Atlanta region failed during a planned network upgrade. A misconfiguration of "link weights", which tell network nodes how to re-establish connections if one of them fails, caused them to constantly attempt to reconnect to the failed node. This caused 4G service to collapse, and the problem was exacerbated when engineers incorrectly diagnosed the problem.
The congestion propagated through the national network due to that same software flaw, causing 4G connectivity to fail. Devices then fell back on 3G and 2G systems, which collapsed under the load due to their own software issues. During the peak of the outage, 41 percent of calls failed, including over 20,000 calls to emergency services like 911.
The FCC under Ajit Pai has now failed to meaningfully punish carriers for multiple errors and violations.
Edited by Fighteer on Oct 27th 2020 at 8:25:12 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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Too funny: in the user manual for the beta Starlink terminals, SpaceX has nicknamed them "Dishy McFlatface". I wonder if this will persist to the final version. (Michael Sheetz on Twitter)
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Ars Technica: SpaceX Starlink users provide first impressions and unboxing pictures
As the Starlink public beta test rolls out, we're getting unboxing videos and a lot of testing of the service in various conditions. Early impressions from these users are quite positive.
One user brought his terminal and portable power supply to a national forest in Idaho, well away from any cellular service, and was able to get 120/12 Mbps service with 37 ms of latency. At home, he got comparable results with lower latency. He observed that, as expected, performance is worse when there are obstructions to a clear view of the sky, such as trees.
Describing the contents of the package, it includes the terminal, tripod, a 100-foot (or longer) powered Ethernet cable from the dish to power supply, and another cable from power supply to router. Total drain as monitored by a portable power supply was 116 W.
As promised, everything is plug-and-play. The terminal takes about a minute to boot and anywhere from one to fifteen minutes to locate and connect to the satellites.
Edited by Fighteer on Nov 2nd 2020 at 4:40:21 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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From various sources including SpaceQ, Canada has now given regulatory approval for Starlink service. Expect public beta invitations to roll out there soon.
https://www.provokemedia.com/latest/article/huawei-communications-vp-joe-kelly-passes-away-at-55
Joe Kelly, VP of Huawei Communications passed away. It's also bringing up conspiracy theories.
And Trudeau hasn't said anything yet on a Huawei ban.
Via AFP:
The Conservatives filed a motion in the House of Commons seeking to force Trudeau's Liberal government to announce its decision in the next 30 days, after years of review.
The Chinese telecoms group has faced bans and heightened scrutiny in recent months over fears that Beijing could use their technology to spy on foreign citizens.
Beijing has furiously protested and says its companies are being unfairly targeted for commercial reasons.
The dispute has taken on an added dimension as Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of company founder Ren Zhengfei, is under house arrest in Canada and awaiting possible extradition to the US on fraud and conspiracy charges.
A few days later, China detained two Canadians on suspicion of espionage.
When asked about the possible 5G ban at a press conference, Trudeau told reporters that he did not want to commit to a specific timetable.
"We will continue to trust our security agencies and experts when it comes to making this important decision on how to protect Canadians and our businesses in an increasingly interconnected world," he said.
"We have worked with our allies, we have consulted broadly, and I can tell you that the decision we will make will be based on the recommendations of our security agencies."
The United States, Australia, Britain, Japan and Sweden have blocked or placed restrictions on the use of Huawei technology in their 5G networks.
"When it comes to China, this government is out of step with our allies," Conservative leader Erin O'Toole told lawmakers.
O'Toole accused Huawei of benefiting from "years of industrial espionage conducted by China" against former Canadian group Nortel.
Major Canadian mobile providers Bell, Rogers and Telus have said they will look to other groups — like Finland's Nokia or Sweden's Ericsson — for the deployment of their 5G networks.
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SpaceX engineers will conduct a Starlink AMA on Reddit starting at noon PST (3 PM EST, 20:00 UTC).
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Starlink AMA highlights:
- Service is limited to the address you signed up with. Being able to take your terminal anywhere you go is not currently supported but will be in the future. (Note: this appears to be about coverage more than about any contractual restrictions.)
- Obstructions like branches and poles interrupt the narrow beam signal to the satellites. They're working on software features to improve this.
- Starlink doesn't keep an internal database of satellites; it scans the sky when it powers on.
- The "space lasers" are cool tech but cost and production rate are the major current obstacles to full deployment.
- The production costs of "Dishy McFlatface" are an issue and they are working hard to bring them down.
- The terminal has a heater to keep itself operational in a variety of conditions and can melt snow obstructing itself.
- There are not currently any data caps. They'll look at this in the future to keep conditions optimal for their customers, not to charge more.
- Wider beta coming in January.
- IPv6 coming soon.
- The dish isn't built to survive tornadoes and hurricanes, so bring it inside if you're concerned about high winds.
- There's a bug bounty at https://bugcrowd.com/spacex.
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The FCC has completed its $10 billion rural broadband auction and announced the winners. SpaceX secured the fourth highest subsidy, $885.5 million, for its Starlink service and the highest of any satellite provider.
FCC publication (PDF), Ajit Pai on Twitter. I wouldn't link to him directly under normal circumstances lest I get contaminated but I'll make an exception here.
Edited by Fighteer on Dec 7th 2020 at 1:39:22 PM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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Ars Technica: Amazon’s answer to SpaceX Starlink delivers 400Mbps in prototype phase
The key innovation is building a Ka-band phased-array antenna that can fit both transmitter and receiver into a small formfactor. The 400 Mbps result was achieved with a geostationary satellite. Amazon's Project Kuiper has yet to launch any of its own satellites into orbit.
Amazon will be competing for LEO Internet with OneWeb and SpaceX's Starlink. It is not clear if it will launch exclusively on Blue Origin's upcoming New Glenn rocket or will contract with other launch providers as needed.
Of the three providers, only Starlink has moved into public beta testing of its product.
Edited by Fighteer on Dec 17th 2020 at 10:41:49 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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Ars Technica: AT&T reportedly struggling to sell DirecTV at anything but a huge loss
Despite the struggling satellite provider's continuing losses of customers and money, AT&T seems to think it should be valued at more than the $15 billion it's getting in its auction bids, and is considering extending the auction or withdrawing it entirely.
This is rich since AT&T bears a significant chunk of the responsibility for running it into the ground in the first place by raising prices and reducing service.
Edited by Fighteer on Dec 21st 2020 at 1:39:12 PM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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SpaceNews: Viasat asks FCC to perform environmental review of Starlink
Viasat seems to be a bit of a sorehead when it comes to SpaceX's Starlink megaconstellation. Background: the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) gives a categorical exemption to satellites, since they are presumed to have negligible environmental impacts due to their extreme scarcity. There just aren't enough rocket launches for any significant greenhouse gas effect, and the tiny mass that reenters every year is similarly trivial.
The argument by Viasat, which has been made by other parties as well, is that Starlink changes the math. With up to 40,000 satellites in orbit and dozens of rocket launches per year just to build and maintain the network, the exemption from environmental review should be waived.
It is worth noting that Viasat stands to lose badly if Starlink ends up working. It would probably drive the company out of business.
Edited by Fighteer on Dec 28th 2020 at 9:41:49 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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CNBC: SpaceX expands public beta test of Starlink satellite internet to Canada and the UK
We heard on the most recent launchcast that the Starlink public beta is now operating as far south as Virginia. Every batch they send to orbit expands the capacity of the network.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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CNBC: SpaceX says its Starlink satellite internet service now has over 10,000 users
This may not seem like a lot, but it's a big deal for the public beta of SpaceX, which has been drawing a lot of effort from its competitors to challenge it on regulatory grounds. The latest claim comes from an FCC filing.
The update on Starlink’s customer base came in a petition to the FCC, with SpaceX asking that Starlink be designated an “Eligible Telecommunications Carrier” or ETC.
The company noted that receiving this designation is necessary for Starlink to provide service to regions in “Alabama, Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.”
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(Teslarati): Starlink is quietly opening to preorders from the general public. I got an email earlier today with the same offer: go to the website (starlink.com), check availability in my area, and get 15 minutes to sign up.
SpaceX is being very careful about early orders because the service is still limited by the number of satellites in orbit. Too many users in a given area can saturate the system and make it slower for everyone. By its nature, it will perform better at mid to high latitudes because of the greater density of satellites at those inclinations, at least until more launches fill out the equatorial bands.
The company appears to be setting a pace for at least 24 launches in 2021, which would put 1,440 more satellites in orbit and more than double the current capacity of the network.
As a reminder, here are the rough specifications:
- 50 to 150 Mbps downstream, 20+ upstream. Future service as high as 10 Gbps.
- 20 to 40 ms latency, decreasing to below 20 as service increases.
- $99 deposit, $499 for the antenna, $99 per month for service. Equivalent prices in other currencies.
- The phased-array satellite transceiver must be positioned with an unobstructed view of the sky.
- It can handle most weather conditions, including snow and ice, but is not meant for extreme winds.
- It comes with a WiFi router and PoE (Power over Ethernet) cables.
Starlink is intended primarily for people who lack access to quality, affordable broadband service in their area. If you have a residential cable or fiber connection, you probably don't need it. Because there is a fixed amount of bandwidth available over any given surface area, it is not ideal for dense (urban, suburban) communities, but it will continue to expand into those areas as coverage improves.
Why is it so costly? Well, they're spending billions of dollars putting satellites into space, and that needs to be recouped. Ultimately, Starlink will become a publicly traded, for-profit ISP, and for that it has to show that it can be profitable. The antennas are expensive; in fact, teardowns have revealed that they are probably being sold well below the cost to build them. SpaceX plans to improve this with economies of scale, so the price may come down in the future.
Edited by Fighteer on Feb 8th 2021 at 11:32:14 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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Will Starlink work in the snow?
A user of the Starlink beta service performs tests of connectivity with snow covering Dishy McFlatface and also demonstrates the terminal's snow melting capability. It's weather sealed, of course. Snow does degrade the downstream bandwidth but the terminal never loses connection. Of course, he only puts a little bit on. I'd like to see how it performs buried beneath a half-meter.
Cleaning it is really simple, though, since it apparently uses microwaves to heat the surface later of snow. This allows it to be brushed off with ease.
Edited by Fighteer on Feb 11th 2021 at 10:59:20 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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Teslarati: Starlink FCC application reveal plans for satellite internet in moving vehicles
SpaceX has applied to the FCC for a modification of its Starlink license that allows the use of terminals on "moving vehicles, vessels, and aircraft". This is an expansion that has been strongly requested by the community and is essential to the fully-released product as envisioned.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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We hope to have “full connectivity globally” after about 28 launches.
The v1.0 satellites don't have "laser links" (also known as intersatellite links), but still planning to create a "mesh network" over the longer term.
Starlink L23 is this Wednesday, so that means the goal of global connectivity will be reached in six more launches, given a few weeks for the satellites to reach their target orbits.
I'm hearing that each V1.0 satellite is capable of 20 Gbps throughput, so that should give some idea of how many customers each can serve. Later versions will substantially increase that bandwidth.
A simple calculation tells us that if SpaceX launches 24 batches of 60 Starlink satellites per year and each satellite lasts an average of 5 years it can sustain 7,200 units in orbit with the current infrastructure, supporting 144 Tbps of maximum bandwidth in total.
Once Starship comes online, these numbers will increase substantially.
Edit: Ah, I figured there had to be more than tweets. CNBC covers Gwynne Shotwell's virtual panel at the Satellite 2021 “LEO Digital Forum”.
- Starlink pricing will not be "tiered": users will not be offered a menu of services; it's all in the one price.
- The goal for the U.S. is to cover 60 million Americans who have limited access to high-bandwidth Internet.
- U.S. is the early focus because of simpler customer service and supply chain.
- Early user terminals cost $3,000 to produce. The latest version costs $1,300. This means SpaceX is absorbing a substantial up-front loss to sell to customers for $499. Shotwell anticipates getting the final cost down to the "low hundreds".
- Starlink is not intended to replace existing consumer broadband. The big providers have nothing to worry about. It can relieve the burden and expense of running service out to unprofitable areas.
Edited by Fighteer on Apr 6th 2021 at 4:04:30 AM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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CNBC: Why Starlink Is Crucial To SpaceX’s Success
This well-produced video does an excellent job of describing what Starlink is and some of the challenges it faces. There's an accompanying article by Michael Sheetz in which he talks to some early beta users of the service.
To many of us, a $499 up-front cost and $99/month seems crazy for high-speed Internet, but for many people it's all they can get and/or significantly cheaper than the other options they have.
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Teslarati: US military wants SpaceX to create a miniature, battery-powered Starlink dish
The US Special Operations Command has put out a solicitation for proposals to develop a miniaturized, wireless Starlink antenna (that could even be man-portable) to provide internet communications in a field setting. If the military is willing to help fund this development it could have benefits to potential commercial Starlink customers as well.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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CNBC: FCC approves SpaceX change to its Starlink network, a win despite objections from Amazon and others
SpaceX is approved to operate more of its Starlink satellites at an altitude of 550 km. The original license called for a limited number at that altitude, with additional satellites at 1,200 km. SpaceX requested this modification to its license a year ago in response to numerous concerns, among them that the higher altitude would cause increased interference with astronomy and that failed satellites in that orbit would take much longer to decay, creating a substantially increased collision hazard.
Had the license modification not been approved, the company would have likely had to halt Starlink launches as it is rapidly approaching the originally approved quantity at 550 km. The FCC concluded that there is no additional hazard for debris or signal interference, a rebuttal to arguments made by numerous competitors including Amazon, whose Project Kuiper is expected to begin launches in 2022 and is required to place 1,600 satellites in orbit by 2026 to satisfy its own FCC license.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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CNBC: Google wins cloud deal from Elon Musk’s SpaceX for Starlink internet connectivity
The seven year deal will involve SpaceX installing Starlink ground stations at Google cloud data centers, allowing Google to expand its cloud presence and giving SpaceX access to enterprise customers.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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SpaceNews: Viasat asks FCC to halt Starlink launches while it seeks court ruling
Viasat keeps trying to stop SpaceX from competing with its satellite internet service by using environmental regulations as a pretext for lawsuits. In this case it's accusing the FCC of not performing required environmental reviews for light pollution, orbital collision/debris risk, and "reentry debris" from Starlink satellites when it modified SpaceX's application to allow an increased number of units at 550 km altitude.
The article drops the tidbit that Jim Bridenstine, NASA administrator during the Trump administration, has joined the board of Viasat. Nice work if you can get it. Bridenstine was widely applauded for his excellent management and advocacy for NASA's goals.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
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SpaceNews: China establishes company to build satellite broadband megaconstellation
It looks like China wants in on LEO satellite internet. With SpaceX's Starlink, OneWeb, and Amazon's Project Kuiper all building out or soon to start, the China Satellite Network Group Co. Ltd. has been formed to get that country into the game. There is no word on which contractors will be assigned to the project, named "Guowang" and I'm not seeing a definite timeline. The constellation would involve several different orbits and frequency spectra and total nearly 13,000 satellites.
Edited by Fighteer on May 31st 2021 at 1:10:10 PM
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Sorry man. I just found 'em.