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With Hurricane Milton expected to hit Florida tomorrow, SpaceX confirmed moments back that, along with T Mobile, it has activated text messaging through the Starlink satellites in the state. According to the company, T Mobile customers can use the Starlink satellite internet network to send and receive text messages on their smartphones. Additionally, users will also be able to receive emergency alerts on their smartphones and text 911 to receive help.
Since SpaceX is still building out its Starlink constellation with satellites that are capable of supporting cellular connectivity, users will have to use the service outdoors and retry sending text messages multiple times before they work.
SpaceX Confirms Starlink Satellites Can Support Text SMS Messages In Florida Ahead Of Hurricane Milton
Milton is expected to hit Florida tomorrow, with residents in the Sunshine State preparing in advance to avoid its impact. Those preparing themselves for the catastrophe include NASA, which operates the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The space agency shared earlier today that the KSC is now in HURCON II status, which limits the site to only essential employees.
As per SpaceX's post on X, after the FCC granted it emergency special temporary authority to provide coverage in Florida for Milton, T Mobile customers in the state will be able to use their phones to connect to the Starlink network. SpaceX already tested its Starlink satellites with text messaging capabilities ahead of its announcements, and the firm added that Starlink will allow users in Florida to send text messages, message emergency services and receive emergency alerts.
This coverage is through the newer direct to cell satellites that have been a regular feature of SpaceX's Starlink launches in 2024. These satellites are different from the standard spacecraft that beam down the Internet to Starlink user dishes.
Milton's approach comes less than two weeks after Helene devastated Florida as it moved North and took out cellphone coverage for millions of residents in its wake. Now, estimates show that Milton might be the first time in a hundred years that a hurricane hits Tampa and St. Petersburg, and since it will impact Florida soon after Helene, the hurricane is expected to rain down the debris left over from Helene's destruction.
The hurricane is expected to hit land on Florida's west coast tomorrow and cross central Florida before making its way to the Atlantic Ocean. Ahead of the storm, SpaceX shared in its post that T Mobile users attempting to send text messages with Starlink should see 'T-Mobile SpaceX' in their network name. Since the service was approved by the FCC as an emergency, it might take a few tries to send the messages, as the firm adds that "Users may have to manually retry text messages if they don't go through at first."
Signal strength should be one or two bars, according to SpaceX, and Starlink for T Mobile text messaging "works best outdoors, and occasionally works indoors near a window." T Mobile already tested the world's first emergency alert with Starlink in September, and today's announcement follows one earlier this week where SpaceX announced that the FCC had given emergency authorization for Starlink text messaging in areas hit by Helene.
