Competitor to SpaceX's Starlink Experiences Outage Due to Neglecting Leap Year Considerations
Eutelsat experienced an unfortunate incident last year, failing to factor in the leap year, which consequently led to a humiliating 48-hour service interruption.
Confirming the situation on Thursday, OneWeb's satellite constellation stepped in to restore internet services, which had experienced an outage starting on December 31, 2024. OneWeb identified the root cause as a software issue within the ground segment, stating that the constellation was functioning optimally once more.
Joanna Darlington, Eutelsat's chief communications and investor relations officer, suggested that 2024's leap year was most likely the primary reason behind the software glitch. Likely, ignoring an extra day this year resulted in disruptions within the internet constellation's software, leading to the brief service disruption.
With a fleet surpassing 630 satellites in low Earth orbit, Eutelsat has been actively constructing its OneWeb constellation since 2020, launching batches of satellites designed to provide high-speed internet globally.
Eutelsat has faced numerous challenges. Initially relying on Russia's Soyuz rocket for satellite launches, but relations with Roscosmos drastically worsened following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In response to Western sanctions against Russia, Roscosmos refused to launch OneWeb satellites unless Eutelsat complied with a list of demands. Refusing this, Russia kept 36 of its satellites held in a storage facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Subsequently, Eutelsat relied on SpaceX and the Indian Space Research Organization for launching its satellites.
Despite launching its final batch of 36 satellites in March 2023, Eutelsat delayed the rollout of worldwide broadband coverage due to delays in obtaining approval for ground-based infrastructure in countries such as India, Thailand, and Turkey. Consequently, OneWeb's internet services are now limited to the Americas and certain parts of Europe and Asia. Eutelsat aims to address these issues this year, with plans to launch its full services by spring, as suggested by SpaceNews.
In contrast to SpaceX's Starlink constellation, OneWeb caters primarily to internet service providers (ISPs) and commercial clients. While Starlink offers services directly to end-users, OneWeb operates as an infrastructure provider rather than a direct consumer service.
Eutelsat recently procured 100 broadband satellites from Airbus to begin updating its constellation within a few years, as its satellites' lifespan is expected to end between 2027 and 2028. Post-recovery from the recent glitch, Eutelsat is determined to avoid any similar occurrences in 2028.
Utilizing advanced technology and science, Eutelsat is planning to upgrade its constellation with new satellites from Airbus, aiming to prevent any future software-related issues like the 2024 leap year glitch in space. As we look towards the future, the integration of these upgraded satellites will significantly contribute to maintaining a stable internet service.
