SpaceX gets permission to phase out satellites Starlink It’s the first of a generation of larger spacecraft designed to provide greater throughput in broadband communications. On August 16, the Federal Communications Commission amended SpaceX’s license to allow it to operate up to 4,408 Gen1 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO).

The change is due to SpaceX’s upgraded Starlink It is under license from Gen1, which features technology developed for the company’s second-generation array and licensed separately, allowing for up to 7,500 lower-orbit satellites.

According to statistics provided by astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, SpaceX has 6,325 Starlink satellites in orbit since the start of its 2019 launch campaign, 4,216 of which are Generation 1 spacecraft with a design life of about five years. The company has launched more than 6,800 satellites to date. Starlinkalso awaiting approval to deploy around 30,000 Starlink Gen2.

The FCC said the amended license paves the way for Gen1 Starlinks with upgraded beamforming and digital processing equipment, allowing SpaceX to provide broadband with narrower beams. The narrower beams will allow the company to use licensed frequencies more efficiently and increase network capacity, according to SpaceX.

The latest Starlink Gen1 satellites weigh around 300 kilograms (700 pounds), while the largest satellites in SpaceX’s current Gen2 network weigh around 800 kilograms (1,800 pounds). SpaceX eventually plans to deploy Gen2 Starlinks, which weigh around 2,000 kilograms (6,000 pounds), once its next-generation Starship rocket enters service.

SpaceX also proposed deploying larger, upgraded ones 1st Generation Starlinks It has two potential form factors, one that would launch from the Falcon 9 and the other that would use Starship.

Dish Network asked the FCC to reject SpaceX’s request for a license change over concerns that the updated Gen1 Starlinks could interfere with other communications systems. Satellite TV companies argued that SpaceX’s use of smaller beams would violate rules limiting satellite power, which the FCC rejected.

“With this change, SpaceX will utilize advanced beamforming technology that will provide narrower, more focused guidance to ground stations,” the FCC said. “With this more targeted capability, SpaceX will be better able to meet the requirement that no more than one satellite beam on the same frequency simultaneously into any area or overlapping areas.”

SpaceX Among other conditions associated with the amended license, it must reach a mutually acceptable agreement with the National Science Foundation to reduce the impact of its satellites on ground-based optical astronomy.