# Ground Network and Laser Links Hub: [[Topics/Starlink/Starlink|Starlink]] · Related: [[Topics/Starlink/Constellation and Orbits|Constellation and Orbits]] · [[Topics/Starlink/Jamming and Resilience|Jamming and Resilience]] ## The path a packet takes User terminal → satellite overhead (Ku-band) → either straight down to a **gateway** (ground station, Ka-band, with E-band added in 2024) ⚠️ (band split is the standard description; the FCC grants cover Ku and Ka without assigning roles here) or across **laser links** to other satellites → gateway → internet. Lasers let traffic cross oceans or reach places with no nearby gateway. ## Gateways - Starlink says it has 100+ gateway sites in the US with 1,500+ antennas, built in Redmond, Washington ([Progress Report 2025](https://starlink.com/public-files/starlinkProgressReport_2025.pdf)). - "Community Gateways" bring a Starlink trunk to isolated towns or islands; 13 new sites in 2025 (same report). - On Mar 8, 2024 the FCC authorized the 7,500 Gen2 satellites to use E-band, 71–76 GHz down and 81–86 GHz up ([DA 24-222](https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-24-222A1.txt)). The order does not say E-band is for gateways only; that use is the common reading ⚠️. - In the "hack" story, the translated thread claimed gateway domes around Ukraine were being burned "on orders from the darknet" ([@RSA_Observer](https://x.com/RSA_Observer/status/2113578319023083695)) ❓ (unverified; the thread disclaims itself). ## Laser inter-satellite links (ISLs) From the [Progress Report 2025](https://starlink.com/public-files/starlinkProgressReport_2025.pdf): - Each V2 Mini carries three lasers; the mesh has more than 24,000 lasers in orbit. - Links carry "hundreds of gigabits"; 400 Gbps upgrades are planned; a Mini Laser for partner satellites has shown more than 25 Gbps. - Routing over lasers cut ping loss 2–3x and improved latency by 30–40 ms in parts of Asia and Africa. - The lasers re-routed traffic around damaged ground networks after disasters (report case studies). - SpaceX sells the laser terminal to partner satellites, which is how they can join the Starshield network ([Starshield](https://www.spacex.com/starshield/)). ## Beams and cells - Satellites form many steerable spot beams. The terminal switches satellites "many times per minute", and the app's obstruction map shows where the sky is blocked (Progress Report 2025). - Service is organized by ground **cells**, each with a capacity budget and time-slot schedule. That is why cells can be "sold out" or disabled (see [[Topics/Starlink/Access Control and Speed Policy|Access Control]]) ⚠️ (cell mechanics from Kutkov and community analysis). - Beams have soft edges. A beam aimed at Ukraine can spill across the border even where service is not authorized, which is why receiving a signal is not the same as being allowed to connect ([Kutkov](https://x.com/olegkutkov/status/2113986509481144709)). ## Performance (2025) Median download above 200 Mbps, upload above 30 Mbps, latency about 26 ms with a 20 ms goal ([Progress Report 2025](https://starlink.com/public-files/starlinkProgressReport_2025.pdf)).