Satellite service is available « on all continents » – but not in countries hated by the US government
Starlink founder Elon Musk announced Monday that his satellite internet service has become « asset » on all continents. A service map released by the company, however, only shows current availability in parts of the Americas, Europe and Australia – along with Russia, China and several other countries in the US. « naughty » grayed list.
« Starlink is now active on all continents, including Antarctica », Musk tweeted Monday morning.
The map on Starlink’s website has not yet been updated to reflect this claim, showing Antarctica in gray – as are Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Afghanistan, Iran, Belarus, Russia and China. Satellite Internet service is currently only available in the western part of North America, Chile, southern Brazil, parts of Australia and most of the EU.
Ukraine is represented in the « waiting list » the shade but has not been labeled. Musk sent personally Starlink terminals in Kyiv earlier this year, gaining regulatory approval in June. While Starlink donated more than 3,600 terminals — and internet service — the US government paid for about 1,300 more, according to the Washington Post.
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The devices were used by the Ukrainian army, which drew criticism from Russia. Konstantin Vorontsov, the head of the Russian delegation to the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) working group, said last week that « the use by the United States and its allies of elements of civil infrastructure, including commercial ones, in outer space for military purposes » has been « challenging » and potentially in violation of the Outer Space Treaty.
“It seems that our colleagues do not realize that such actions actually constitute indirect involvement in military conflicts. Quasi-civilian infrastructure can become a legitimate target of retaliation,” adds Vorontsov.
Musk responded Friday with Tweeter this « Starlink is intended for peaceful use only. »
SpaceX has more than 3,000 Starlink satellites in orbit and plans to launch about 40,000 more over the next few years. However, Musk may face an uptick in solar flare activity, which is expected to peak in 2025. One such flare in February caused 38 of the newly launched satellites to miss orbital insertion and burn up in the atmosphere. , according to a recent report. highlighted by Newsweek.
