SpaceX wants to help restore Tonga’s internet connectivity through its Starlink satellites.
Tonga is still trying to restore internet access after the January 15 volcanic eruption. SpaceX could well help this small state of Polynesia with more than 170 islands in the South Pacific. Indeed, according to The Wall Street Journal, Fiji Communications Minister Ayyaz Sayed-Khayoum understands that SpaceX will seek to re-establish communications with Tonga via its Starlink satellite internet service. The US company has a team in Fiji responsible for building a ground station that will serve as an internet relay.
SpaceX wants to help restore Tonga’s internet connection
The American edition of Engadget turned to SpaceX for details. It is currently difficult to say what services Tongan residents can use, but connecting to Fiji or Tonga will be new to the company anyway. At the time of this writing, the Starlink public beta is only available in 25 countries, with Australia and New Zealand being the closest neighbors that will benefit from it. There are about 1,800 satellites in operation, but this number is constantly growing, and SpaceX logically wants to increase coverage.
thanks to its Starlink satellites
Such a reunion can be much more difficult than it seems. Tonga authorized Kacific to provide satellite internet services in the country at the end of January, ending a long battle. It’s hard to say how much these disagreements might affect SpaceX’s plans, but one thing’s for sure: it will spur competition. At the same time, this Pacific nation still does not have a submarine cable to access the Internet and will not return in the next few weeks. As such, the country will have no choice but to seek outside help if it wants to quickly restore communications, and SpaceX’s help could provide Tonga with valuable security in the event of another disaster of its kind.