Two-thirds of the satellites are controlled by Starlink

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The number of Starlink satellites in orbit continues to increase. Recently, SpaceX, Elon Musk's company, announced the launch of 21 new satellites from Florida, USA. With this launch, Starlink reaches a new milestone as it has just launched its 7,000th satellite. On top of that, as Elon Musk explains in a post on his social network X, Starlink now controls nearly two-thirds of all active Earth satellites.

According to an article in The Independent, which relies on data from the NGO CelesTrak, Starlink currently has 6,370 active satellites (hundreds more are inactive or have been de-orbited). This corresponds to a share of 62%, out of a total of 10,247 active satellites. Starlink’s closest competitor, OneWeb, controls 631 active satellites, with a share of 6%. In order to offer its satellite connection service to the world, Starlink is launching one satellite after another. And in recent years, the number of Starlink satellites has grown exponentially.

Starlink dominates space

Indeed, still according to The Independent article, the SpaceX company's service had a 29% share of all active satellites in 2021, compared to 62% today. And Elon Musk's goals are still far from being achieved, since he plans to send a total of 42,000 satellites into space. In addition, Starlink is expanding its service by offering a new “Direct-to-cell” offer that allows you to connect directly to your smartphone. And to enable this connection, Starlink must send new satellites capable of connecting to 4G smartphones. Moreover, of the 21 Starlink satellites recently launched, 13 are Direct-to-cell satellites which will therefore be able to connect 4G smartphones.

Starlink’s roadmap foresees the commercialization of this mobile connection starting this year. However, initially, this connection will only allow text messages. But from 2025, Starlink Direct-to-cell will also support calls and mobile data. Unlike Starlink’s residential offers, Direct-to-cell requires cooperation between SpaceX and telephone operators. In the United States, for example, it works with the operator T-Mobile (no partnership has yet been announced for France). But recently, Elon Musk announced that Direct-to-cell will allow anyone to use Starlink satellites for emergencies, and it will be free.

• SpaceX Just Launched 21 New Starlink Satellites
• This launch was special, as it included the 7,000th satellite launched by Starlink
• And now, Starlink controls nearly two-thirds of active satellites
• In 2021, it had a 29% share of active satellites
• But Elon Musk's goal of launching 42,000 satellites is still far from being reached
• In addition to offering residential offers, Starlink is also developing a network capable of connecting directly to smartphones, which requires the launch of a new type of satellite

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