Starlink can be used for military comms, but controlling drones is prohibited:
The close relationship between SpaceX and Ukraine could be strained after the company limited the country's ability to use the Starlink satellite service for offensive military purposes. The move follows reports that Ukraine has been using Starlink to control drones.
SpaceX has supplied over 25,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine and maintained them since the war began, helping keep the nation's critical infrastructure and its citizens online as Russia continues its assault.
But Ukraine is said to have been utilizing Starlink in its offensive push against the Russian military, including using it to target enemies with drones, a violation of SpaceX policies.
Speaking at a conference in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday (via Reuters), SpaceX president and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell said Starlink was never meant to be weaponized.
"However, Ukrainians have leveraged it in ways that were unintentional and not part of any agreement," she said, referring to reports that Starlink had been used to control Ukraine's drones. "There are things that we can do to limit their ability to do that [controlling the drones]," she said, "There are things that we can do, and have done."
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 10 2023, @07:55PM (3 children)
> reports that Starlink had been used to control Ukraine's drones
Doesn't Starlink require an actively-aimed (motor driven) dish antenna? How the heck do you mount something like that on a drone? If the air drag of the dish didn't kill the drone's performance, surely the high speed airflow over the dish would prevent the aiming motors from keeping the dish aimed at a satellite?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by MostCynical on Friday February 10 2023, @09:30PM (1 child)
the US has been using satellite controlled drones for years. The dish can by built into the done, inside the fuselage.
The issue here is not getting signals to and from the drone.. how is starlink identifying and blocking drone messages?
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 10 2023, @10:09PM
Ok, larger drone required. I was thinking of the small commercial drones that I've seen on coverage of Ukraine.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Hartree on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:12AM
The antennas are flat faced phased arrays and are electronically steered rather than mechanically steered.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 10 2023, @09:46PM
George Dubya Bush said the same thing - "Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."
Of course, Dubya wasn't the first to make that bullshit arguement - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_are_either_with_us,_or_against_us [wikipedia.org]
Orwellian assholes gonna Orwell.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by DannyB on Friday February 10 2023, @10:12PM (8 children)
SpaceX may not want to be drawn in to the conflict in such a direct way. They do not, so far as I know, contract with any nation to build military equipment, or parts used in military equipment. At least now direct and knowingly.
SpaceX wants to do business internationally.
They probably don't want to be seen to be making weapons systems, or components of weapons systems. Especially if they are being called out on their product being directly used in a weapons system when/if their purpose in sending those terminals was for civilian use.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Friday February 10 2023, @11:52PM (6 children)
They're going to have a govt/military version of Starlink called Starshield [spacenews.com], separate from the Starlink network.
They're also helping to build and launch satellites for the USSF Space Development Agency's "Tracking Layer" [spacenews.com].
SDA Tracking Layer sats could launch starting in March 2023 [wikipedia.org]. SpaceX may have launched four test satellites for Starshield on January 13, 2022 (Transporter-3) and another four on June 19, 2022 (Globalstar-2 M087).
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 3, Touché) by Hartree on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:15AM (3 children)
What do you bet they shortly announce military tier pricing and ask for a higher fee?
(Score: 2) by takyon on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:30AM (1 child)
1. They won't announce the pricing.
2. It's not nearly ready to be relevant to Ukraine. Although maybe the war will drag on that long.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Hartree on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:41AM
I should have made it more clear I was joking. Sorry.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday February 13 2023, @05:31PM
It may be standard practice to ask the military for more money. In some sense, you are assuming some risk of being part of a war or conflict.
It would be worth 75% more if you might end up dead.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2) by captain normal on Saturday February 11 2023, @02:00AM (1 child)
Is that similar to the launching of Skynet of SF fame?
Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts"- --Daniel Patrick Moynihan--
(Score: 2) by takyon on Saturday February 11 2023, @05:58AM
It's just another tendril of Skynet.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by driverless on Saturday February 11 2023, @08:10AM
Yup. Once you start allowing your tech to be used for military purposes in other countries you end up in a world of pain. I'm ready to bash Musk with all the others, but I can see why they'd want to limit this sort of thing.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 10 2023, @10:13PM (13 children)
There is a video that appears to show Ukraine using drones to drop chemical weapons on Russian troops. Of course, truth is the first casualty of war, but if this is true, then Starlink may be assisting in committing war crimes.
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Friday February 10 2023, @11:35PM (10 children)
How did you identify that it was chemical weapons they dropped?
(Score: 2, Informative) by Mojibake Tengu on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:03AM (4 children)
It was https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanogen_chloride [wikipedia.org]
Even Ukrainians are boasting about that with videos on Telegram.
Drastic example: https://twitter.com/ArthurM40330824/status/1622780662259261442 [twitter.com]
Respect Authorities. Know your social status. Woke responsibly.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by Hartree on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:34AM
First grenade dropped is a standard frag which detonates after 4 seconds. The guy is in seizure before the second goes off. The second grenade is a VOG-17 (30 MM HE with impact fuse. Normally fired from an AGS-30 grenade launcher) which they've been dropping from drones for quite some time.
I'm rather disgusted at the video and the music, but it doesn't look like chemical to me. TASS has said this before with no evidence.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Saturday February 11 2023, @02:27AM (1 child)
But instead of a massive propaganda storm, we see people interpreting a video on Twitter. There's something wrong with the narrative.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday February 11 2023, @02:30AM
(Score: 4, Touché) by Opportunist on Saturday February 11 2023, @11:57AM
Yeah, there's nothing more credible than someone on TikTok claiming to be Ukrainian and boasting using chemical weapons. But please accept that I'm kinda wary, I mean, there is lots of lying and propaganda going about, I better wait for RT and Russia 24 to confirm it, ok?
(Score: 0, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:06AM (2 children)
The videos are posted on YouTube, search for "Ukraine chemical weapons" and you'll find them.
I have no idea if they're real or if they're Russian propaganda. But just because the Russian government is evil doesn't automatically make the Ukrainian government good.
(Score: 3, Informative) by khallow on Saturday February 11 2023, @02:29AM
I looked at the video and well, I don't buy that it's chemical weapons. For example, the above linked video claimed to have shown chemical weapons in action, but it ignores that shrapnel would work at that range from impact and the wind was blowing strongly away from the soldiers affected!
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Saturday February 11 2023, @12:01PM
But it also doesn't mean they're being stupid. Chemical weapons are a close second to nukes when it comes to the "do not use if you don't want to be called Teh EVILZ" category. Ukraine lives and dies by being the poor, attacked, injured and assaulted party in this war, with Russia being the evil imperialist aggressor. They've literally done everything to appear like the victim, assaulted by a far superior bully.
And now they supposedly release videos of themselves gassing their enemies.
Seriously. C'mon.
(Score: 3, Funny) by driverless on Saturday February 11 2023, @08:08AM (1 child)
It's been confirmed by multiple news sources, Russia Today, TASS, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Russia 24, Sean Hannity, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, ... how could it not be true?
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Saturday February 11 2023, @11:31AM
Unless Weekly World News confirms it, color me unimpressed.
(Score: 2) by janrinok on Saturday February 11 2023, @06:46AM
Your claim raises so many questions. Can you provide a link to the video or to any other sources that discuss this please?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday February 27 2023, @06:41PM
(Score: 5, Informative) by coolgopher on Saturday February 11 2023, @01:21AM
So much for Elon's claims to be all about freedom and openness. Well, another nail in its already nail-studded coffin.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 11 2023, @04:15PM
Elon doesn't want to piss off his Russian investors.
(Score: 2, Disagree) by TheGratefulNet on Saturday February 11 2023, @05:15PM (3 children)
its about self defense.
in what world does a country who was INVADED not have every right to use every power it can get its hands on, to restore its land back to its own people?
clearly, this is musk's influence and his hate for democracy. like the R's, these days, as well.
the US should send 100% of what ukraine needs. stop pussying around. the longer we hold back, the longer this strain on the WORLD continues.
and yes, part of this is selfish. I want the world back the way it was, dammit. fuck russia in any way possible. bomb them. I dont fucking care. I want the world back the way it was and nothing should be off the table. nothing. I mean it.
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Saturday February 11 2023, @10:59PM (2 children)
Keep in mind that Putin probably feels the same way. It's just that his view of the past is different than yours.
(Score: 2) by cykros on Sunday February 12 2023, @07:44PM (1 child)
Not just Putin; plenty of us who've been paying attention to what our tax dollars have been getting used for in stirring the pot with proxy wars are pretty sick of it. Doesn't take a rocket surgeon to see that the Orange Revolution and the Maidan Uprising had western backing, despite the fact that even the GUARDIAN acknowledged that Yanukovych's election was free and fair. And let's never mind the leaked phone call that the BBC didn't deny was real from Victoria Nuland discussing the imperialistic agenda over there.
Is Putin's invasion just? No. Should we be defending against it? No; we've done enough damage already, and every day we send another dollar just piles on the bodies of this war we instigated. You don't fix the damage caused by a bull in a China shop by sending the bull in to protect against looters.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday February 12 2023, @08:31PM
Why shouldn't it have been backed by western governments? Reviewing Yanukovych's actions at the end indicates to me that he was establishing a non-democratic, authoritarian government in the usual ways - siding with an external power and banning protest and opposition. Keep in mind who Russia's allies are these days. Not a single democratic government in the bunch.
And I see GUARDIAN acknowledging Zelenskyy's election [theguardian.com] as well.
People keep forgetting that there's a huge difference between a western supported coup and a western run coup. Afghanistan is an example of the latter. Everything required US aid and soldiers from the initial overthrow of the Taliban government to the long term stability of the regime. And when that support went away, so did the government. My take is that Russia thought it was getting one of those in Ukraine as well. Turned out otherwise. The US didn't need to put a zillion boots on the ground despite Russia being a far greater foe than the Taliban ever was.
We should oppose unjust wars everywhere - not cower because the bad guys are willing to sacrifice a lot of people. And once again, you ignore the elephant in the room. There's no reason to expect Russia to stop with just Ukraine. If we don't defend against it now when the body count is low, when will we and how many more of those piles of bodies will it cost? My take is that even if Ukraine were to surrender tomorrow, we've already saved a bunch of people by setting back Russia's war goals by at least years, perhaps even forever.
That doesn't make even a little sense. Russia won't stop warring on its own. The original bull is still there and has been there for eight years.