Making the NBN obsolete - Starlink and 5G

Recently I was prompted to go outside and watch the ISS (International Space Station) go overhead again.

It is the third brightest object in our sky behind the sun and the moon, so when it is visible it is always a treat to watch it zip overhead.

This time though I was treated to a bonus surprise.

As I scanned the skies I saw a pair of satellites chasing each other with one overtaking the other.

As I watched though, these chasing satellites continued to grow in number and I quickly realised I was watching a train of Space X Starlink satellites trundle overhead.

They are launched in batches of 60 and there are already 300 up there.

NOTE: It isn't really a fair comparison, but there are only 2 NBN Skymuster satellites. Kinda makes you think doesn't it?!

They'll slowly space out and go into higher orbits where they won't be so visible.

But, as you can imagine, astronomers aren't happy and people are seeing more UFOs than ever.

Starlink will provide cheap and globally accessible internet to everyone...well, theoretically.

You are going to need some hardware to talk to the constellation of satellites, but already it is being touted as a cheaper and better solution than our NBN.

I am sure that surprises no-one.

From the get-go the NBN was always going to be made obsolete, time was the only variable.

At the time the 5G phone network was the most imminent threat.

It is fair to say that the delays and "problems" experienced by the 5G rollout are somewhat greater than just technical. Those with vested interests in the current technology are making life hard for those deploying 5G.

Even before the NBN rollout, those of us with even a hint of knowledge in this area were aware that the "next" mobile phone network upgrade would eclipse the NBN anyway.

It WAS one of the arguments for deploying a better, read fiber to the premises, NBN.

But Elon, true to his word, seems to be making another miracle happen and bypassing the politicians holding humanity back.

While opinions vary about Elon and what he is doing, there's little doubt that he doesn't stand around waiting for others to fix things.

I like that.

David