Starlink lowered the orbit of some satellites to speed up internet

Starlink lowers the orbit of its network to speed up connectivity

SpaceX (under Elon Musk’s leadership) continues to lower the altitude of its Star‑Link satellites to reduce latency and increase throughput.

What’s happening
* Moving to a lower low Earth orbit

On Wednesday, astronomer Jonathan MacDowell reported that 652 of more than 5,000 Star‑Link satellites had already dropped from about 550 km to roughly 480 km. At that time another 972 satellites were in the process of similar descent.

* One‑year plan

In January the company announced its intention to move 4,400 satellites into a 480‑km orbit this year. This should free up higher layers and simplify the removal of decommissioned units that gradually burn up in the atmosphere.

* Lower altitude – fewer collisions

At distances below 500 km the number of artificial objects is significantly reduced, lowering the risk of accidental collisions and easing group management.

How it affects users
* Reduced latency

The new height allows RTT (round‑trip time) to drop below 20 ms – already achieved in some U.S. regions. This is critical for video conferencing, online gaming, and cloud services.

* Improved signal

Closer to Earth the signal power and connection stability increase, especially under poor weather conditions or dense urban development.

Future of Starlink
* Gigabit speeds – next‑generation satellites are planned for a 340 km orbit.

* New rocket launches – their deployment will depend on regular Starship launches scheduled to begin in Q4 of this year.

* Network status – currently more than 8,000 satellites are operational, with about 2,000 already slated for decommissioning.

Thus, moving part of the constellation to a lower orbit is a step toward a faster and more reliable global internet network, as well as measures to manage the growing space traffic.