For those of you who don't know, 'Starlink' is a massive satellite constellation SpaceX intends to put into low Earth orbit. Specifically, they want to launch 12,000 satellites over the next several years. The constellation is supposed to provide broadband to the US and international customers. As of 3 days ago, SpaceX already has two demo satellites up and running. Apparently, this is more than just talk.
Here's the thing. Early this morning, Elon Musk (replying to someone on Twitter) said Starlink's network:
Will be simpler than IPv6 and have tiny packet overhead. Definitely peer-to-peer.
He followed it up, an hour later, with the elaboration:
End-to-end encryption encoded at firmware level. Unlikely to be hacked w current computing tech. If it is (and we learn about it), a crypto fix will go out immediately via network-wide firmware update.
I must say, I found it more than a little surprising that they are intending to implement a massive packet switching network without IP (at least internally). I suppose they could be planning to move traffic through a network of fixed connections, but this would seem to be suboptimal for the scenario we're talking about. Most SpaceX fans seem to be responding enthusiastically, but I'm curious what the more technical audience makes of this.
by Helt-Texas http://ift.tt/2sPjqzg
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