SpaceX’s Starlink Maritime has been deployed on a $35 million Instagram-famous superyacht.
The 18-foot yacht known as the Loon has over 62,000 followers on the social network — posting pictures of the yacht, crew and food on board — and began using the high-speed, low-latency satellite internet service offered by Elon Musk, the company in July when it debuted for the first time.
Starlink Maritime costs $5,000 per month for speeds of around 150-200 Mbs and according to the superyacht’s captain, it worked very well. The service has a $10,000 upfront hardware fee for two “rugged” Starlink dishes.
People at sea struggle to access reliable internet, with Starlink potentially revolutionizing connectivity for sea travelers and workers.
SpaceX’s Starlink Maritime has been deployed on a $30 million Instagram-famous superyacht named Loon, currently en route to Florida, seen above
Starlink Maritime costs $5,000 a month for speeds of around 150-200Mbps and according to the superyacht’s captain, it has worked very well
The 18-foot yacht began using the high-speed, low-latency satellite internet service offered by Elon Musk’s company in July when it debuted for the first time
“We have a superyacht, a $30 million 180-foot superyacht. We upgraded to Starlink the day it became available for the maritime facility,” Captain Paul Clarke told Teslarati, which first broke the news.
Boat International described the luxury yacht: “Inside, Claudette Bonville’s classically inspired interiors feature lustrous wood paneling and large windows that offer panoramic views.
“A highlight is the domed Sky Lounge, which can accommodate up to 100 guests for evening soirees. On the lower levels, six spacious cabins accommodate up to 12 guests, served by a crew of 14.’
The superyacht also has an infinity pool, hot tub, open air bar and toy box with a ‘FunAir floating sea pool, inflatable slide, jet skis, golf setup, SeaBobs and equipment for sports such as water skiing and wakeboarding”.
Boat International described the luxury yacht: “Inside, Claudette Bonville’s classically inspired interiors feature lustrous wood paneling and large windows that offer panoramic views
“On the lower levels, six lavish cabins accommodate up to 12 guests, served by a crew of 14,” the publication reads
The superyacht, which is available for charter for $325,000 per week, also has an infinity pool, hot tub and open-air bar
SpaceX founder Elon Musk responded to the Teslarati story about the yacht’s Starlink service on Twitter, saying “cool.”
The boat website reports that Loon is available for rent for $325,000 a week.
Clarke previously paid $10,000 for the service plus $50,000 for Viasat equipment, and speeds were around 40-80 Mbps.
Musk responded to the Teslarati story on Twitter, saying “cool.” Starlink, which costs $110 per month with a one-time equipment fee of $599 for residential customers, currently has over 2,900 satellites in orbit, with plans for at least 42,000 in orbit.
‘I think it’s great. Honestly we’re really happy with it in the early days and I think it’s a total game changer,” Clarke told Teslarati. “The fact that we can stream multiple streams in high definition, where previously we were struggling with one or two streams.
“Any TV on the boat can be turned on to stream Netflix and live sports with no issues. Definitely highly recommended.”
Starlink Maritime currently only covers the waters around North America, Europe and Australia.
By the fourth quarter of this year, the company plans to extend this coverage to a much larger portion of the oceans in the northern hemisphere, and plans to extend it to the rest of the world’s oceans in the first quarter of 2023.
The company forecasts maritime performance speeds of 100-350 Mbit/s down and 20-40 Mbit/s up for its location.
“We are now on our way to Florida and plan to spend the next four to six weeks in Florida just to ensure the boat’s annual maintenance. And then we go down to the Caribbean. It will be a good test for that area as well before we launch into the Mediterranean again, probably in May next year.’
Last week, SpaceX announced a partnership with Royal Caribbean to deploy Starlink on its fleet of cruise ships to solve the historically poor connectivity that typifies such ships.
The low-latency broadband will be installed on all of the company’s International, Celebrity and Silversea cruise ships, as well as all new ships under these brands, and will be completed by March 2023.
“This technology will deliver game-changing internet connectivity onboard our ships, enhancing the cruise experience for guests and crew alike,” said Jason Liberty, President and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, in a statement.
“It will enhance and enable high-bandwidth activities like video streaming, as well as activities like video calling.
‘I think it’s great. Honestly we’re really happy with it in the early days and I think it’s a total game changer,” Clarke told Teslarati. “The fact that we can stream multiple streams in high definition, whereas previously we were struggling with one or two streams running.”
Starlink Maritime currently only covers the waters around North America, Europe and Australia
