3 ms·

Starlink is apparently 65% of all active satellites, it would be very expensive to emulate that without super efficient launching capabilities.

• palmotea 7mo ago
  > Starlink is apparently 65% of all active satellites, it would be very expensive to emulate that without super efficient launching capabilities. But does a military really need that many to get the necessary capability? Would a smaller constellation be sufficient, especially without competing civilian users?
  • iSnow 7mo ago
    >But does a military really need that many to get the necessary capability? No. The German army wants a constellation of initially 40, and later just over 100 satellites. They do not want or need to replicate the massive Starlink numbers.
    • kolinko 7mo ago
      The numbers just don't add up there. With just 40-100 satellites they need to be GEO, and this means crappy transfers, big lags (200-300 absolute minimum, more 500ms), and most importantly - big, power hungry antennas. It's a PR project to calm people down, not a real solution.