SpaceX has problems with Starlink V2 satellites

Some of the newest Starlink V2 satellites from the first batch launched on February 27 require low-Earth orbit intelligence, informed SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Twitter. About it became known spacenews.

“Starlink V2 has a lot of new technologies, so as expected, we had some issues. Some satellites will be deorbited, others will be thoroughly tested,” the businessman wrote.

The publication notes that around March 15, the newest satellites began to decline, which led to speculation about problems with them.

SpaceNews recalls that Starlink V2 spacecraft, unlike V1, equipped with modified phased array antennas, provide a fourfold increase in throughput. In addition, the latest satellites feature electric motors that run on argon rather than krypton.

The publication notes that we are talking about Starlink V2 Mini spacecraft weighing 800 kilograms each, designed to be launched on the Falcon 9 rocket. Meanwhile, it is proposed to launch 2000-kilogram Starlink V2 satellites on the Starship carrier. The mass of the V1 satellite (the first generation of Starlink) was 300 kilograms.

In December, Reuters reported that SpaceX received FCC approval to deploy up to 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites.