SpaceX’s Starlink service experienced a brief outage in the United States on Monday, August 18, according to reports. The service, provided by the American space exploration technology company SpaceX, has since resumed normal operation.
Data from the online platform Downdetector, which provides real-time information on website statuses, indicated that US Starlink users encountered issues when connecting to the satellite internet constellation provided by billionaire Elon Musk’s service.
However, the data from this crowd-sourced outage tracking platform showed that as of 2:13 PM Eastern Time, the number of reported Starlink service problems had decreased from a peak of over 43,000 to more than 2,800. The website tracks service disruptions by integrating status reports from multiple sources.
Downdetector’s data is based on user-submitted reports, and the actual number of affected users may vary.
NetBlocks, an organization overseeing internet governance and cybersecurity, also stated on social media that “network data shows that Starlink satellite internet service has experienced a significant outage, with an overall connectivity rate of only 32% of normal levels, confirming user reports of service disruption.”
Starlink and its parent company SpaceX have not immediately commented on this service interruption.
This incident marks the second outage for Starlink’s service within less than 40 days. On July 24, Starlink experienced one of its most severe international service interruptions to date, with Downdetector receiving reports from as many as 61,000 American and European Starlink users.
Following the incident, Starlink’s Vice President of Engineering, Michael Nicolls, stated on social media that the service interruption was caused by an internal software fault, but service was mostly restored within 2.5 hours of the incident.
SpaceX’s CEO Musk also issued an apology on social media, expressing regret for the outage and stating that SpaceX would address the root cause to prevent such situations in the future.
With over 6 million users across about 140 countries and regions worldwide, Starlink has become a significant player in the satellite internet industry.