SpaceX's Starlink suffered one of its biggest international outages on Thursday when an internal software failure knocked tens of thousands of users offline, a rare disruption for Elon Musk's powerful satellite internet system.

Starlink is a satellite internet constellation that works as an international telecommunication provider, part of the American aerospace company SpaceX, founded by controversial billionaire Elon Musk. The network provides coverage to around 130 countries and territories, aiming to provide global mobile broadband.

Watch Falcon 9 launch 24 @Starlink satellites to orbit from California — SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 27, 2025. The new

Elon Musk's Starlink was down for hours last night following a global outage - and users vented their fury, demanding refunds for the satellite internet service

Thousands of people across the globe have been impacted by the Starlink outage - the satellite internet constellation created by Elon Musk's company SpaceX

T-Mobile's T-Satellite service, powered by Elon Musk's Starlink, could backfire once a speculated 12-month exclusivity deal ends.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has bought Starlink services — but also fell into the crosshairs of Musk. In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in 2024, Musk said FEMA was blocking deliveries of the terminals, a claim the agency called false. FEMA did not respond to repeated requests for comment on its use of Starlink.

No one doubts that rocket tests mean failures, but the question for Starship is this: Is it just having extended teething pains, or are its failures a symptom of a fundamentally unworkable design that will never be fixed?