Satisfied (5/9/23)

Good morning. It’s launch day!

T-5 hours until Polaris, Payload’s weekly space policy newsletter, lifts off. Our first issue includes an exclusive interview with Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK), chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, on his top priorities for the 118th Congress.

Sign up now to receive the first edition!

In today's edition:
⚡ Starlink speeds
🎙️ Pathfinder #0046
🔁 People on the move

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Starlink Users Are Happy With The Service

Starlink users in metro and non-metro areas are relatively happy with the service, despite a slowdown over the past year, according to data released Monday by Ookla, which analyzes internet performance metrics

Starlink’s net promoter score (NPS), which measures customers’ loyalty to a brand by asking how likely they are to recommend the service, beat out fixed broadband providers for both metro and nonmetro areas, despite slower median download speeds.

The numbers:

• Metro Starlink NPS = 31.94

• Non-metro Starlink NPS = 42.21

• Metro fixed broadband providers NPS = -23.62

• Non-metro fixed broadband providers NPS = -21.27

• Metro Starlink median download speed = 65.29 Mbps

• Non-metro Starlink median download speed = 72.18 Mbps

• Metro fixed broadband provider median download speeds = 203.93 Mbps

• Non-metro fixed broadband provider median download speeds = 100.41 Mbps

Starlink upload and download speeds in North America are down compared to Q1 2022, though they have started inching up again over the past two quarters. In the US, median download speeds are down ~24 Mbps compared to the first quarter of 2022, but the last two quarters experienced a jump of at least 13 Mbps.

The competition: Starlink in the US, Canada, and Mexico had the fastest upload and download speeds of all satellite internet providers in North America, beating out Viasat and HughesNet. Fixed providers remained at the top.

Looking at other regions: In Q1, Starlink in Chile held the title of fastest satellite provider in South America. In the Caribbean, Starlink in Jamaica outperformed Viasat and HughesNet and, notably, also all fixed broadband providers. Starlink also outperformed fixed providers in download speeds in Nigeria and the Philippines this quarter.

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Building on the legendary RADARSAT program, the company is investing in changing how and when we see the world with CHORUS, which will provide the most extensive radar imaging capacity on the market. With advanced C-band and X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar, innovative new technologies and operations concepts, it will deliver enhanced and Near Real-Time capabilities including next-generation Earth observation data, imagery and analytics; tipping and cueing techniques; client-controlled priority tasking; and subscription-based services.

There are significant opportunities for government and commercial customers worldwide to engage with CHORUS as it is developed and eventually launched.

Heading to GEOINT in St. Louis? Visit MDA’s booth (#1931) to learn more about MDA and its Earth observation capabilities.

Building Payload and Pathfinder #0046 with Ari Lewis

You need to be paying attention to the space industry. Why? Because Payload cofounder Ari Lewis has finally agreed to be a guest on Pathfinder.

You’ve probably seen Ari in his natural habitat: flying around the country to events and conferences, sporting his trademark Payload baseball cap, helping companies understand why they need to partner with Payload. But today, the lifeblood of Payload’s sales engine sits down with fellow cofounder and Pathfinder host Mo Islam.

Ari’s origin story: Ari began his career running a crypto hedge fund. He sold that during the heyday of the industry before working at the Ohio State treasurer’s office, where he was consulting for the government on how it could accept Bitcoin as a method of payment for taxes. He then founded a strategic communications firm called the Green Block Group.

This is all to say—Ari is not your typical space guy. He's got no engineering degree and no formal training in the industry. But that hasn't stopped him from making a serious impact. His traction begs the question: do you need a traditional background in the industry to make it big? Ari's answer would be a resounding no.

Episode Highlights

Mo and Ari discuss the Payload origin story, scaling a media organization, and the future vision of the business. They also talk about:

• Challenges faced by the space industry today

• Parallels between the space and crypto industries

• How to build a strong media brand

• The Payload 10-Year Vision

• And much more…

Where to find Pathfinder #0046?

Watch now on YouTube or listen on Apple, Spotify, or desktop!

In Other News

• Virgin Galactic announced the crew for Unity 25, the final test flight of VSS Unity before the first commercial mission launches in late June.

• NASA successfully established communications with the first two TROPICS satellites after launch.

• People must consider the ethical dilemmas posed by settling in space, one astrophysicist argues.

• ESA is partnering with the Union of European Football Associations to see how space can help soccer fans stay safe and connected at matches.

The View from Space

The James Webb Space Telescope unlocked another mystery of the cosmos: three discs of debris around the young star Fomalhaut, including inner belts that had never been seen.