United States-based users are reporting outages affecting SpaceX’s Starlink service, according to outage tracking website DownDetector. At the time of writing this report, there have been around 1,000 reports of problems accessing Starlink’s internet service, with 86 per cent of users citing ‘network issues’ and 14 per cent reporting a ‘total blackout’.
Starlink, a subsidiary of Elon Musk’s rocket company SpaceX, operates a network of satellites in Earth’s orbit that work together to provide high-speed internet.
The company offers high-speed, low-latency broadband internet globally through satellite technology.
It uses a constellation of 7,000 (intended to increase to 40,000) low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites, situated 550 km above the Earth. Its LEO satellites are the world’s largest and deliver broadband internet capable of supporting streaming, online gaming, and video calls.
Its most acclaimed use case is the ability to provide internet access in rural and underserved areas, where traditional options like cable or fibre are unreliable or unavailable.
For the tech to work, Starlink‘s satellites communicate with ground stations and user terminals, which require an unobstructed, clear view of the sky.
In the United States, the Residential Lite plan costs around $80 ( ₹6,800) per month and includes unlimited, albeit deprioritised, data. Customers are also required to purchase a Starlink standard kit for a one-time fee of $349 ( ₹29,700). The company also offers roam plans for users who travel frequently, starting at $50 ( ₹4,200) for 50GB of data, with an additional $299 ( ₹25,400) charge for the Starlink Mini Kit.
Netizens react to Starlink outage:
“Starlink works rather poorly compared to the claims,” wrote one user on the DownDetector comments section.
“I can’t connect to any of my mobile games on wifi, and yesterday I could.” added another user.
“Starlink is only great when it is working. Then they suddenly restrict your connection, no email, no call. Ticket opened by AI, 3 days no resolution, no email, no contact centre. And they are expanding rapidly. Brace for zero customer service when there is an issue,” added yet another user.
