On July 24, 2025, Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, suffered a rare and widespread outage that left millions of users across the globe without connectivity for approximately 2.5 hours.
The disruption, which began around 1900 GMT, impacted users in the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the Philippines, and beyond, with some regions experiencing complete service blackouts.
The incident, reported by over 61,000 users on Downdetector, underscored the critical role Starlink plays in providing internet access to over 6 million subscribers in 140 countries.
According to Michael Nicolls, Starlink’s Vice President of Engineering, the outage stemmed from a failure in critical internal software services that manage the core network infrastructure.
This software glitch disrupted the constellation of over 7,000 low-Earth-orbit satellites, causing connectivity to plummet to as low as 16% of normal levels in some areas. While the exact trigger remains under investigation, experts like Gregory Falco, a systems security specialist at Cornell University, speculated that a faulty software update or, less likely, a cyber-attack could be to blame.
No evidence currently supports claims of malicious activity, but the incident has raised questions about the robustness of Starlink’s software architecture.
SpaceX responded swiftly, with engineers working to restore services, as announced via the company’s official X account. Nicolls issued a public apology, emphasizing SpaceX’s commitment to identifying the root cause to prevent future disruptions.
Elon Musk, SpaceX’s CEO, also apologized on X, acknowledging the inconvenience to users who rely on Starlink for remote work, education, and communication in underserved regions.
The company has since initiated a comprehensive review of its network systems to pinpoint vulnerabilities and enhance resilience.
The outage highlighted Starlink’s importance as a lifeline for areas with limited terrestrial internet, from rural communities to conflict zones. However, it also exposed the risks of relying on centralized software systems for a global satellite network.
Moving forward, SpaceX is expected to implement stricter software testing protocols and possibly introduce redundant systems to mitigate similar failures. Users can anticipate updates from SpaceX in the coming weeks detailing preventive measures.
For now, Starlink services are fully operational, but the incident serves as a reminder of the challenges in scaling satellite internet.
