Starlink just passed a major milestone in its plans to provide broadband internet via a constellation of satellites: approval for 1 million ground antenna.
SpaceX, Elon Musk’s other company, has been launching the Starlink constellation of satellites in batches of as many as 60 at a time. Eventually, some 12,000 satellites will provide high-speed internet worldwide. In order for the system to work, however, there has to be a network of ground antenna to relay the signal to their final destinations.
According to CNBC, “the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has authorized SpaceX to begin rolling out as many as 1 million of the ground antenna the company will need to connect users to its Starlink satellite internet network.”
Each antenna will be roughly 19 inches across and should be fairly easy to recognize.
“It looks like a UFO on a stick,” said Elon Musk, according to CNBC. “It’s very important that you don’t need a specialist to install. The goal is for … just two instructions and they can be done in either order: Point at sky, plug in.”
Once operational, Starlink should be a good internet option for under-served communities, where cable, DSL, fiber or 5G are not viable options.