US FCC Approves SpaceX Satellite Deployment Plan

US FCC Approves SpaceX Satellite Deployment Plan
SpaceX founder Elon Musk arrives ahead of the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Crew Dragon capsule, before launch of their NASA commercial crew mission at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on April 23, 2021. Joe Skipper/Reuters
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WASHINGTON—The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said on Tuesday it had voted to approve a SpaceX plan to deploy some Starlink satellites at a lower earth orbit than planned as part of its push to offer space-based broadband internet.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX had asked the FCC for approval to fly 2,824 satellites at a lower orbit as part of the plan to provide high-speed broadband internet services to people who currently lack access.