(Photo Illustration by Jaque Silva/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
For the first time, T-Mobile has used SpaceX’s cellular Starlink satellites in space to beam an emergency alert to a phone on the ground.
The alert was sent on Sept. 5, when T-Mobile kicked off a test demonstrating how the Starlink satellites can deliver an emergency evacuation notice to users on the ground, bucking the need to rely on traditional cell towers.
"The alert was sent 217 miles into space where it was received by one of the more than 175 Starlink direct-to-smartphone satellites currently in low-earth orbit that effectively function as cell towers in space,” T-Mobile says. “The alert was then broadcast to a geographic area impacted by the hypothetical evacuation notice and received by a T-Mobile smartphone.”
“In total, it took emergency operators just seconds to queue up an emergency message and deliver that message via Starlink satellites to users on the ground,” the carrier adds.
The carrier touted the achievement on Wednesday as both SpaceX and T-Mobile have urged the FCC to clear the satellites for commercial operations. The goal is to launch the Starlink capability for phones this fall, enabling T-Mobile to serve users in cellular dead zones.
Previous tests from SpaceX show the same satellites can power video calls, a 17Mbps download rate, and other internet functions on devices including iPhones, Google Pixels, and Samsung Galaxy handsets. But despite the technological achievement, rival carriers including AT&T and Verizon have been calling on the FCC to essentially restrict the Starlink technology over fears it’ll trigger radio interference with their own networks.
In a possible attempt to sway regulators, both SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk have been telling the FCC and the public that cellular Starlink satellites stand to benefit all users since they can theoretically deliver free emergency alerts to any phone, regardless of carrier. On Wednesday, T-Mobile made the same point, saying the “emergency alerts will work for everyone – even Verizon, AT&T and other wireless provider customers will receive critical emergency alerts.”
The carrier also noted that the satellite capability means it can “bring critical emergency alerts to 500,000+ square miles of land currently unreachable with earth-based cell towers.”
T-Mobile's statement comes a day before a rival cellular satellite service is expected to reach its own milestone. On Thursday morning, AST SpaceMobile—which counts AT&T and Verizon as major investors— plans on sending up its first batch of commercial satellites, which will also act like cell towers in space. Once the satellites are fully deployed, AST SpaceMobile then plans on kicking off beta tests as soon as December, pending regulatory approval.