(Credit: SpaceX)
A design change will allow SpaceX to send up more Starlink satellites per launch as the company races to add more network capacity.
In 2024, SpaceX typically launched 20 to 23 Starlink satellites per launch. But last month, it increased the number to 27 and 28 per flight while using the same Falcon 9 vehicles. This comes after it made a design change to the V2 Mini Starlink satellite, which can deliver 96Gbps of network bandwidth each.
The V2 Mini satellites debuted in early 2023, with the goal of delivering even higher quality broadband on the older V1.5 satellites. Since then, SpaceX has improved the design, resulting in the "V2 Mini Optimized."
SpaceX briefly mentioned the V2 Mini Optimized in its annual progress report for Starlink back in January. “The satellites have upgraded avionics, propulsion, and power systems, and are mass optimized for Falcon 9 to allow up to 29 satellites to launch on each mission—six more satellites per launch than the original V2 Mini design,” the report says.
SpaceX adds that the “V2 Mini Optimized satellites weigh approximately 575 kilograms (1,267 pounds) at launch, nearly 22% lighter than the original V2 Mini satellites, allowing Falcon to launch more network capacity to orbit per launch.”
According to the progress report, the V2 Mini Optimized were introduced last year, but the satellite load was only increased to 28 in the last two weeks. Starlink capacity is stretched in certain parts of the US, forcing the company to place new sign-ups for the residential plan behind a waitlist.
SpaceX is now developing a bigger and more powerful V3 Starlink satellite designed to power gigabit internet. But that equipment is dependent on the company’s Starship vehicle, which is still going through test flights.