4 ms·

Gps is free to use. Running your own gnss service requires an atomic clock and possibly separate transmission hardware, which is possible, but adds cost, volume

by stereo 9mo ago

Gps is free to use. Running your own gnss service requires an atomic clock and possibly separate transmission hardware, which is possible, but adds cost, volume, and weight. According to [1], “[o]ne of the current generation of GPS satellites (Block III) weighs over 2,200 kg (4,850 lb), the weight of an average pickup truck. The body of these satellites are 1.8 m x 2.5 m x 3.4 m (5.9’ x 8.2’ x 11.2’) in size”. In comparison, “the current V2 Starlink satellite version weighs approximately 1,760 lbs (800 kilograms) at launch, almost three times heavier than the older generation satellites (weighing in at 573 lbs or 260 kg)” [2] [1] https://novatel.com/an-introduction-to-gnss/basic-concepts/satellites https://novatel.com/an-introduction-to-gnss/basic-concepts/s... [2] https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-satellites.html https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-satellites.html

Imustaskforhelp 9mo ago
> Gps is free to use. Running your own gnss service requires an atomic clock and possibly separate transmission hardware, which is possible, but adds cost, volume, and weight. Thanks you provide some great insights on why starlink didnt use gps but still if starlink wants to focus itself as the uncensorable internet in places like protests etc. I feel like they can probably do this after this recent incident I just can't feel but sad right now because starlink was still providing activists ways to report outside and that helped protestors a lot and information. Now even starlink got removed because starlink tried to save money and I think might not have thought about what if gps itself gets blocked. This is giving very bad signals for Iran. Is there any way now that Protestors are able to communicate to the outside world/ activists be able to report data outside?
- afavour 9mo ago
  > if starlink wants to focus itself as the uncensorable internet in places like protests etc I’m not sure Musk would actually want that though, especially these days.
  - sawjet 9mo ago
    Why not?
    - Forgeties79 9mo ago
      Because Musk is a fickle, unethical individual with poor impulse control and too much money who only talks about high minded concepts like “free speech” and “battling censorship” when it serves his interests at that moment.
      - lostlogin 9mo ago
        You are correct. It’s interesting to watch how ‘free speech’ works on Twitter.
        deleted 9mo ago
        [deleted]
    - afavour 9mo ago
      Because his enthusiasm for free speech is variable depending on whether he likes the speech or not.
  - hcurtiss 9mo ago
    Why not? Has Musk shut off Starlink? The reporting out of Ukraine was almost entirely wrong. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink_in_the_Russian-Ukrainian_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink_in_the_Russian-Ukrain...
    - Forgeties79 9mo ago
      Nobody brought up Ukraine
    - lostlogin 9mo ago
      From your link, with good sources: In 2022, Elon Musk denied a Ukrainian request to extend Starlink's coverage up to Russian-occupied Crimea during a counterattack on a Crimean port, from which Russia had been launching attacks against Ukrainian civilians; doing so would have violated US sanctions on Russia.[18] This event was widely reported in 2023, erroneously characterizing it as Musk "turning off" Starlink coverage in Crimea.[19][20] SpaceX executives repeatedly stated that Starlink needed to remain a civilian network;[21][22][12] in late 2022, as Starlink was being used as a tool in combat in Ukraine, SpaceX announced Starshield, a Starlink-like program designed for government customers.[23][21] Musk is reported to have said that Ukraine was "going too far" in threatening to inflict a “strategic defeat” on the Kremlin.[24] Musk, like Trump, has an interesting relationship with Russia. The investigations into that have been quashed, so we don’t get to find out about the rumoured Kremlin calls he was making. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/business/dealbook/musk-putin-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/business/dealbook/musk-pu...
- paganel 9mo ago
  Yes, ask their Mossad direct and local handlers (as per Mike Pompeo [1]) about how things are going, I’m sure that this being Mossad they have a ground-based way to get the information out. [1] https://xcancel.com/mikepompeo/status/2007180411638620659 https://xcancel.com/mikepompeo/status/2007180411638620659
  - woodruffw 9mo ago
    Mike Pompeo is a private citizen; is there some reason to believe that he has direct knowledge of foreign involvement in these protests? It seems unlikely, and doubly so that he’d actually disclose it if he did.
    - paganel 9mo ago
      You and I are private citizens, he’s former US Secretary of State, let’s quit the charade.
      - woodruffw 9mo ago
        “Former” is operative. I don’t see any reason to believe that Pompeo has special insider knowledge here, and sharing it makes zero sense even if he did. The more parsimonious explanation is that he’s a sidelined grifter whose only way to stay relevant is to speculate on social media.
        scottyah 9mo ago
        After reading Walter Isaacson's biography of US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, I would be extremely surprised to find that a former Secretary of State was suddenly out of the loop on major events.
        woodruffw 9mo ago
        Henry Kissinger was a notorious power broker, and basically remained "in the loop" until the day he died. Pompeo is neither of these things. But there's an even simpler way to reach this conclusion: given everything you and I know about Pompeo's politics, is there any reason to believe he'd want to introduce doubt about the legitimacy of popular protest in Iran?
- Noaidi 9mo ago
  [flagged]
  - breppp 9mo ago
    why stop there? maybe khamenei is a CIA asset made to create a caricature of an evil external enemy?
tucnak 9mo ago
GPS comparison is moot in this case, as there's no need for Starlink constellations to provide full GNSS capability, just locating the satellites precisely enough to facilitate beamforming.
mikewarot 9mo ago
Chip scale atomic clocks are quite small[1], have been used in space, and could be part of the existing Starlink satellites. Finding reliable details about the orbital vehicles the internet eludes me. [1] https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/aemDocuments/documents/FTD/ProductDocuments/Brochures/CSAC-SA65-Sell-Sheet-00003478.pdf https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/aemDocuments/documents/F...
deleted 9mo ago
[deleted]

by stereo 9mo ago

Imustaskforhelp 9mo ago

> Gps is free to use. Running your own gnss service requires an atomic clock and possibly separate transmission hardware, which is possible, but adds cost, volume, and weight. Thanks you provide some great insights on why starlink didnt use gps but still if starlink wants to focus itself as the uncensorable internet in places like protests etc. I feel like they can probably do this after this recent incident I just can't feel but sad right now because starlink was still providing activists ways to report outside and that helped protestors a lot and information. Now even starlink got removed because starlink tried to save money and I think might not have thought about what if gps itself gets blocked. This is giving very bad signals for Iran. Is there any way now that Protestors are able to communicate to the outside world/ activists be able to report data outside?

afavour 9mo ago
> if starlink wants to focus itself as the uncensorable internet in places like protests etc I’m not sure Musk would actually want that though, especially these days.
- sawjet 9mo ago
  Why not?
  - Forgeties79 9mo ago
    Because Musk is a fickle, unethical individual with poor impulse control and too much money who only talks about high minded concepts like “free speech” and “battling censorship” when it serves his interests at that moment.
    - lostlogin 9mo ago
      You are correct. It’s interesting to watch how ‘free speech’ works on Twitter.
      - deleted 9mo ago
        [deleted]
  - afavour 9mo ago
    Because his enthusiasm for free speech is variable depending on whether he likes the speech or not.
- hcurtiss 9mo ago
  Why not? Has Musk shut off Starlink? The reporting out of Ukraine was almost entirely wrong. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink_in_the_Russian-Ukrainian_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink_in_the_Russian-Ukrain...
  - Forgeties79 9mo ago
    Nobody brought up Ukraine
  - lostlogin 9mo ago
    From your link, with good sources: In 2022, Elon Musk denied a Ukrainian request to extend Starlink's coverage up to Russian-occupied Crimea during a counterattack on a Crimean port, from which Russia had been launching attacks against Ukrainian civilians; doing so would have violated US sanctions on Russia.[18] This event was widely reported in 2023, erroneously characterizing it as Musk "turning off" Starlink coverage in Crimea.[19][20] SpaceX executives repeatedly stated that Starlink needed to remain a civilian network;[21][22][12] in late 2022, as Starlink was being used as a tool in combat in Ukraine, SpaceX announced Starshield, a Starlink-like program designed for government customers.[23][21] Musk is reported to have said that Ukraine was "going too far" in threatening to inflict a “strategic defeat” on the Kremlin.[24] Musk, like Trump, has an interesting relationship with Russia. The investigations into that have been quashed, so we don’t get to find out about the rumoured Kremlin calls he was making. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/business/dealbook/musk-putin-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/business/dealbook/musk-pu...
paganel 9mo ago
Yes, ask their Mossad direct and local handlers (as per Mike Pompeo [1]) about how things are going, I’m sure that this being Mossad they have a ground-based way to get the information out. [1] https://xcancel.com/mikepompeo/status/2007180411638620659 https://xcancel.com/mikepompeo/status/2007180411638620659
- woodruffw 9mo ago
  Mike Pompeo is a private citizen; is there some reason to believe that he has direct knowledge of foreign involvement in these protests? It seems unlikely, and doubly so that he’d actually disclose it if he did.
  - paganel 9mo ago
    You and I are private citizens, he’s former US Secretary of State, let’s quit the charade.
    - woodruffw 9mo ago
      “Former” is operative. I don’t see any reason to believe that Pompeo has special insider knowledge here, and sharing it makes zero sense even if he did. The more parsimonious explanation is that he’s a sidelined grifter whose only way to stay relevant is to speculate on social media.
      - scottyah 9mo ago
        After reading Walter Isaacson's biography of US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, I would be extremely surprised to find that a former Secretary of State was suddenly out of the loop on major events.
        woodruffw 9mo ago
        Henry Kissinger was a notorious power broker, and basically remained "in the loop" until the day he died. Pompeo is neither of these things. But there's an even simpler way to reach this conclusion: given everything you and I know about Pompeo's politics, is there any reason to believe he'd want to introduce doubt about the legitimacy of popular protest in Iran?
Noaidi 9mo ago
[flagged]
- breppp 9mo ago
  why stop there? maybe khamenei is a CIA asset made to create a caricature of an evil external enemy?

tucnak 9mo ago

GPS comparison is moot in this case, as there's no need for Starlink constellations to provide full GNSS capability, just locating the satellites precisely enough to facilitate beamforming.

mikewarot 9mo ago

Chip scale atomic clocks are quite small[1], have been used in space, and could be part of the existing Starlink satellites. Finding reliable details about the orbital vehicles the internet eludes me. [1] https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/aemDocuments/documents/FTD/ProductDocuments/Brochures/CSAC-SA65-Sell-Sheet-00003478.pdf https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/aemDocuments/documents/F...

deleted 9mo ago

[deleted]