Forget 5G wireless, SpaceX and T-Mobile want to offer Zero-G coverage

From arstechnica.com

T-Mobile's Mike Sievert and SpaceX's Elon Musk appear on stage at Starbase Thursday evening.

BOCA CHICA, Texas—SpaceX and T-Mobile announced an ambitious plan on Thursday evening to provide ubiquitous connectivity to anyone with a cell phone from space.

The project would pair SpaceX’s Starlink satellite technology with the second largest wireless carrier in the United States, T-Mobile US, and its mid-band spectrum, mobile network, and large customer base.

Delivering space-to-ground internet to mobile phones will require SpaceX to finalize development of its second generation of Starlink satellites. These will be significantly larger than the current ones, which have a mass of about 295 kg. SpaceX founder and chief engineer Elon Musk said project could enter “beta service” before the end of 2023.

Read more…