Solar storm hits SpaceX’s Starlink satellites

NEW DELHI — Starlink, the satellite arm of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, on Saturday, warned users of a “degraded service” as the biggest geomagnetic storm struck the Earth due to solar activity in a very long time.

“Starlink is currently experiencing degraded service. Our team is investigating,” the company wrote on its website.

Earlier, in a post on X, the tech billionaire highlighted the severity of the storm, saying that it has put Starlink satellite fleet under intense pressure and described it as “the biggest in a long time”.

“Major geomagnetic solar storm happening right now. Biggest in a long time. Starlink satellites are under a lot of pressure, but holding up so far,” Musk wrote.

According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a major storm is currently occurring, which is the largest one since October 2003.

This storm is expected to continue over the weekend and poses potential risks to various systems such as navigation, power grids, and satellite navigation.

Meanwhile, Musk has said that Tesla will be investing over $500 million in its Supercharger network to create thousands of new chargers in 2024.

“Tesla will spend well over $500 million expanding our Supercharger network to create thousands of new chargers this year,” Musk wrote on X.

He also said that this money only accounts for new sites and expansions, and not for operations costs, which are much higher.