As of September 6th, 2024, Elon Musk has solidified his dominance in space, with nearly two-thirds of all active satellites now under his control.
This milestone was achieved following the launch of the 7,000th Starlink satellite this week.
SpaceX's Starlink network, which is growing by an average of three satellites per day, now constitutes roughly 62% of all active Earth satellites.
The latest data from non-profit satellite tracker CelesTrak shows that SpaceX has 6,370 active Starlink satellites in low-Earth orbit, with several hundred more inactive or deorbited.
This figure has risen more than six-fold in just three years and represents roughly ten times the number of Starlink’s closest rival, UK-based startup OneWeb.
SpaceX's dominance has prompted concerns about the amount of power the world’s richest person wields through his control of SpaceX and the Starlink network. In April 2023, Musk tweeted, “Between Tesla, Starlink and Twitter, I may have more real-time global economic data in one head than anyone ever.”
Starlink currently operates in 102 countries and has more than three million customers paying a monthly fee to access the network through a $300 ground-based dish.
The company expects to launch its service in dozens more countries, with only Afghanistan, China, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Syria not on the current waitlist due to internet restrictions or trade embargos. Despite these restrictions, people in those countries have still been able to access the network through illegally imported equipment, including activists in Iran who smuggled dozens of Starlink receivers into the country in 2022.
SpaceX plans to refresh the Starlink megaconstellation every five years with newer technology. At the end of their service, the old satellites will be steered into Earth's atmosphere where they will burn up. Additionally, SpaceX aims to launch up to 42,000 satellites to complete the Starlink constellation, capable of delivering high-speed internet and phone connectivity to any corner of the globe.
However, not all launches have been successful. A liquid oxygen leak during SpaceX's July 11 Falcon 9 launch caused problems, preventing the second stage from entering the proper orbit and resulting in the loss of 20 Starlink satellites. This incident marked the first failure for a SpaceX rocket in nearly a decade.
Despite these setbacks, Elon Musk's control over the satellite network continues to grow, raising both admiration and concern over the unprecedented influence he holds in the realm of global communications and beyond.
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