'What's Starlink?' Elon Musk's SpaceX Project Has Trump Singing Its Praises
After making U.S. history as the second person to be elected to a nonconsecutive term as president, Donald Trump had high praise for Elon Musk , SpaceX and Starlink satellites in his election night victory speech.
Trump lauded Starlink, describing how he discussed with Musk the satellites' use in the wake of Hurricane Helene's destruction in North Carolina and Hurricane Milton's impacts across Florida.
This comes as Musk's SpaceX made Starlink internet service free for people living in areas affected by Helene and Milton across Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia—but only until the end of the year.
"The people from North Carolina came to me and they said, 'Would it be at all possible for you to speak to Elon Musk? We need Starlink,'" Trump said during his victory speech. "I said, 'What's Starlink?'"
Trump said he then asked Musk, "What the hell is it?"
"He said, 'It's a communication system that's very good.' I said, 'Elon, they need it really, really badly in North Carolina. Can you get it?'" Trump said.
A Starlink receiver that is required to access the Starlink network costs $349. SpaceX reportedly distributed 10,000 receiver kits in the storm-hit areas.
"He had that there so fast. It was incredible," Trump said. "So and it was great. It saved a lot of lives. He saved a lot of lives. But he's a character. He's a special guy. He's a super genius. We have to protect our geniuses. We don't have that many of them. We have to."
What Is Elon Musk's Starlink?
Starlink is a satellite constellation developed by SpaceX and was designed to provide high-speed broadband internet across the globe, particularly in remote areas. Unlike traditional communication satellites placed in geostationary orbits (around 22,000 miles above Earth), Starlink satellites operate in low earth orbit, at about 342 miles above the ground. This lower altitude reduces latency (delay in data transmission across a network), allowing for faster communication speeds.
"Starlink is ideally suited for areas where connectivity has been unreliable or completely unavailable," the Starlink's website says. "People across the globe are using Starlink to gain access to education, health services and even communications support during natural disasters."
Areas where Starlink's network is available can be seen in a map on its website. Most of North America, Western Europe and Australia are covered.
How Many Satellites Does Starlink Have?
So far, 7,213 Starlink satellites have been launched into space, 6,554 of which are still in orbit, with 6,499 remaining functional, according to astronomer Jonathan McDowell, who tracks the constellation on his website.
This means that Starlink makes up roughly half of all satellites in orbit around the Earth. As of September 20, there were 13,230 satellites in space, about 10,200 of which are still functioning, according to the European Space Agency.
SpaceX hopes to eventually have as many as 42,000 satellites orbiting around the Earth , in a mega-constellation.
How Big Is a Starlink Satellite?
Starlink satellites vary in size by version. The current iteration weighs about 573 pounds, measuring 9.2 by 4.6 feet, with a thickness of 0.7 feet and a solar array measuring 26 feet across.
There is some concern that all these Starlink satellites could affect astronomical observations because of the amount of light pollution they produce as they cross the night sky.
In June 2019, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) said in a statement: "The appearance of the pristine night sky, particularly when observed from dark sites, will nevertheless be altered, because the new satellites could be significantly brighter than existing orbiting man-made objects. The interference with the uncontaminated view of the night sky will be particularly important in the regions of the sky close to the horizon and less evident at high elevation."
The IAU continued: "Apart from their naked-eye visibility, it is estimated that the trails of the constellation satellites will be bright enough to saturate modern detectors on large telescopes. Wide-field scientific astronomical observations will therefore be severely affected."
Additionally, there are other concerns that the sheer number of Starlink satellites poses a risk of collision risk between objects in low earth orbit.
In addition to dropping the monthly Starlink fee until the end of the year, SpaceX collaborated with T-Mobile to allow texting so users can communicate with loved ones and emergency services following the hurricanes.
In his speech, Trump also effused about SpaceX's recent flight test of its Starship rocket, saying that he put a donor on hold for the best part of an hour while he watched.
"And I called Elon. I said, 'Elon, was that you?' He said, 'Yes, it was.' I said, 'Who else can do that? Can Russia do it?' 'No.' 'Can China do it?' 'No,'" Trump said in his speech.
"'Can the United States do it, other than, you?' 'No, nobody can do that.' I said, 'That's why I love you, Elon, that's great.'"
