Following US permission, Starlink will provide direct cellular connectivity in hurricane-affected areas
In order to allow Starlink satellites with direct-to-cellular capacity to offer mobile phone coverage in parts of North Carolina severely affected by Hurricane Helene, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted permission to SpaceX and Elon Musk’s T-Mobile.
In order to facilitate the restoration of wireless and Internet services in regions that have been badly damaged by catastrophes and to enable testing, the FCC frequently issues such temporary emergency permissions.
An FCC spokesman said Sunday that the agency remains “committed to assisting with recovery efforts in the states affected by Hurricane Helene. We stand ready to do whatever it takes to restore connectivity to hard-hit areas and save lives.”
«They have already been activated and started sending emergency alerts to cell phones on all North Carolina networks,» according to SpaceX. «Basic text messaging (SMS) capabilities for most cell phones on the T-Mobile network in North Carolina,» according to the firm, may be tested.
