Earlier, Bill Gerstenmaier, vice president of SpaceX construction and flight reliability, told the U.S. Senate Space and Science Subcommittee that SpaceX will launch more rockets in the next two and a half months, with plans to carry out at least 2 flight missions by the end of this year and prepare to carry out 100 missions in 2024.At least 144 missions.
To achieve this goal, SpaceX will have to conduct at least 12 missions per month next year. SpaceX executives revealed that one of the reasons for the increase in missions is related to the upcoming launch of a direct mobile phone satellite communication service.
SpaceX's satellite internet service StarlinkUnder the name "Direct to Cell", starting in 2024, it will provide direct satellite communication services using mobile phones, including text messages, calls and Internet transmission services, and will be available to all mobile phones that support LTE connection technology.
However, this service will only provide SMS transmission function in 2024, and it is expected that voice, network transmission, and IoT-related connection application functions will be added in 2025.
To achieve this goal, Starlink must launch more low-orbit satellites to support communication services and in sufficient numbers to cover the global communication range.
This service is based on Starlink's previous cooperation agreement with T-Mobile. T-Mobile will provide some 5G network frequency bands for Starlink's second-generation low-orbit satellite connection. Starlink will also allow mobile phones using T-Mobile's LTE connection technology to directly access satellite connection signals, and emphasizes that its service can already cover almost the entire service range in the United States.
After Apple began adding satellite emergency call functions to the iPhone 14 series, many mobile phones on the market also began to add similar functions, which has made competition in this demand market become fierce. Market analysts believe that the demand for connecting to the Internet via satellite will become more significant in the future, and it is expected to be included in the next 6G mobile network specifications and become a popular application technology.
