SpaceX Is Testing Starlink Internet Service At Ireland's National Space Centre

Featured Image Source: The National Spacecentre at Elfordstown, Midleton, Co Cork. by Dan Linehan

SpaceX started to deliver Starlink Beta Internet service to select-customers who pre-ordered via Starlink.com since February. Ever since, the company is deploying internet-beaming satellites to expand broadband coverage worldwide. So far, Starlink is delivering internet to a limited amount of customers per region in the United States and abroad. Customers in multiple European countries are currently using Starlink, including users living in United Kingdom, Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Its likely that the service has already rolled-out to other regions in Europe, especially if customers order from a rural region.

Image Source: Irish Examiner 

The Irish Examiner reports that SpaceX’s Starlink service has been undergoing testing at Ireland’s National Space Centre (NSC) in Elfordstown, Midleton, East Cork. SpaceX installed a ground station at the facility where Ireland hosts antennas to communicate with satellites for various companies and organizations. NSC’s Chief Executive Rory FitzPatrick confirmed that SpaceX installed Starlink Gateway ground station antennas that beam data to the satellites in orbit. SpaceX's ground antennas look like a giant white ball, pictured above. “The first Starlink test system in Ireland is in my back garden. It’s been there since January,” FitzPatrick said. “We took delivery of the ground stations on campus in December, connected them via Enet backbone in January, and fired up the beta test dish at home as soon as it arrived,” they said. According to the report, FitzPatrick discussed his support for SpaceX’ broadband infrastructure during a conference called – ‘Transforming the Earth from Space.’ 

SpaceX is already accepting service pre-orders in Ireland. The company aims to have near-global broadband coverage before 2021 ends and is delivering Starlink equipment to its customers on a 'first-come, first-serve' basis. On Wednesday, May 26, SpaceX launched the 29th fleet of 60 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit. The launch marked the completion of the broadband constellation’s first orbital shell that consists of over 1,584 operational satellites. This means Starlink will be capable of beaming its signals to around 80% of Earth’s surface as soon as all satellites rise into an operational altitude of 550-kilometers which will take a couple of months. However, SpaceX still has a lot of work to do to make the network reliable, the constellation will need 4,408 satellites to provide dense coverage on a global scale.

Featured Image Source: The National Spacecentre at Elfordstown, Midleton, Co Cork. by Dan Linehan