Mark Handley
5 HN recommenders · recommended in 4 months, 2020
10:15 · 506K views · Dec 21, 2019
Mark Handley of UCL explains, with simulation visualizations, how early Starlink satellites without inter-satellite links could still give low-latency wide-area communication by hopping via ground relays. He shows it can beat fibre on many long paths.
Cited in Starlink latency debates as a clear visual analysis showing sub-100ms latency is plausible even without inter-satellite links.
12 comments from Hacker News
I would highly recommend the video linked from this article: this video It's a simulation of the various ways in which the Starlink network could be arranged to route between satellites and ground stations; very detailed and super interesting.
You don't need inter-satellite links for low latency, as Mark Handley has elegantly pointed out in his incredible video. I don't think internet access will amount to even 50% of the revenue of Starlink. this video
If you want a really great visualization and latency estimates for starlink check out the models and videos this guy came up with: [LINK] this video The comment from the FCC about it not accounting for "processing [&] routing" is kindof nonsense on its face, those are not novel problems they're already done by ever other router and switch, including several other satellite networks.
The orbital planes top parts are all up there at high latitudes. The circle you are seeing is actually made up of several different orbital planes that swoop down toward/past the equator and then up/down to 60 degrees N/S. Seeing them move will make it clearer. Here’s an awesome visual explanation with a ton of other cool info: this video
A ground station doesn't have to actually be on the ground. They could park a boat in the ocean between London and NYC with equipment to act as a repeater. This YouTube video (along with others on this channel) does a good job of explaining how this could work. [ this video ]