Thursday, March 28, 2024

The SpaceX Starlink Map

animated globe showing the 5,601 Starlink satellites orbiting the Earth

StarLinkMap is a new real-time animated map of the 5,601 satellites currently orbiting the Earth as part of Starlink's huge satellite internet constellation.

Starlink's megaconstellation of satellites, built and operated by SpaceX, provides high-speed broadband to even the most remote corners of the globe. Launched in 2019, Starlink boasts over 5,000 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), and eventually plans to expand to over 42,000 satellites. Starlink satellites orbit Earth at a much lower altitude than traditional communication satellites. This lower orbit translates to significantly reduced signal latency, meaning that they can offer faster internet speeds.

The StarLinkMap shows the real-time location of all 5,601 satellites in the Starlink constellation. Select any one of these 5,601 satellites on the map and you can view its number and the path of its orbit. Even if you select the 'Live' view you can see the individual satellites orbiting the Earth. However, if you select the '16x' speed option, it is much easier to see the satellites moving relative to the Earth. 

As well as the interactive real-time map SarLinkMap includes a dashboard which provides a wealth of information about Starlink, including information on the launch of the last Starlink satellite and when the next satellite is due to be launched.



You can also follow the orbits of Starlink satellites on the Satellite Map. This map also consists of a 3D globe of the Earth showing the real-time location in space of all Starlink satellites. 

A search option on the Satellite Map allows you to find any individual satellite on the map by name. You can even use the 'Settings' menu to filter the satellites shown on the map by individual SpaceX launches. The settings menu also allows you to switch between the 3D globe view and a 2D Mercator map projection.

As well as visualizing the huge Starlink constellation in real-time the Satellite Map also shows the locations of Oneweb and GPS satellites.

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