Starlink performs well in most bad weather conditions, including rain, snow, and wind. However, heavy rain and snow can cause internet outages. Starlink has several features that help it perform well in bad weather. First, the antenna is of the phased array type, meaning it has a high field of view.
According to the company's website it was “designed and rigorously tested to handle a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions, Starlink is proven to withstand extreme cold and heat, sleet, heavy rain, and gale force winds — and it can even melt snow.”
Starlink offers reliable connectivity in light rains or light snow, remaining unaffected during such conditions. However, during heavy storms or significant snowfalls, temporary dropouts may occur, and users may experience a slight decrease in speeds, typically around 30-40% slower than usual.
Install the dish antenna in a protected location: It is important to install the Starlink dish in a location protected from extreme weather conditions, such as under an eave or roof. This will help to ensure that the dish can transmit and receive data effectively, even in inclement weather.
Starlink has been hailed as a game-changer by many adopters. Since its launch just two and a half years ago, its coverage has expanded rapidly and many cruisers crossing the Atlantic last season reported full service mid-ocean.
Run the Cable
For my initial setup, I simply led the cable through an open window: It's a simple (and temporary) solution, but it works fine.
But Musk points out the new dish has been designed to survive winds at over 174 miles per hour. For perspective, a category 5 hurricane can cause wind speeds to reach over 157mph. (Starlink's other high-performance dish can only withstand winds at over 50mph.)
Perfectly fine in cloudy weather or normal rain. I haven't noticed any difference at all. And it rains a LOT here. There have been maybe three times in the nine months I've had it where absolutely torrential rain has made Starlink stop working for 5 to 20 minutes.
SpaceX's Starlink internet is a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet provider from the mind of Elon Musk. Starlink internet offers unlimited data, above broadband speeds for most of its plans, and less latency than most satellite internet providers.
Much of the internet's cabling is underground, so if there is flooding, moisture can get into the cables or their connectors. This can significantly interfere with signals or even block them entirely, by reducing the bandwidth or causing an electrical short-circuit.
The Flat High-Performance Starlink is a game-changer for those who need consistent internet connectivity while in motion. With enhanced GPS capabilities and a wide field of view, the Flat High-Performance Starlink can connect to more satellites, providing high-speed, low-latency internet on the go.
The company got its start offering faster speeds and much lower latency than other satellite providers, but now offers download speeds comparable to those offered by other satellite providers. Starlink still offers decently low latency for satellite, but it can't compete against fiber or cable internet providers.
The streaks those satellites leave in astronomical images mar observations of telescopes even in the most remote locations. The reflection of sunlight from these satellites might lead to an unwanted brightening of the night sky even in areas far away from urban light pollution.
Anytime you're dealing with a satellite internet service such as Starlink or Cox, you must be wary of the effects of wind. It is because it takes just one stormy gale to leave you disconnected. Hence, taking care of aspects such as how strong your dish is in the face of strong winds is crucial.
The router is designed to receive signals from the Starlink satellites, which orbit at an altitude of around 340 miles. This means that the router has a range of up to around 600 miles in all directions, depending on the location of the user.
To quote Starlink's website, the Starlink dish "can withstand extreme cold, heat, hail, sleet, heavy rain, gale force winds, and even rocket engines." That last bit isn't an exaggeration.
The extent of the interference is dependent on how heavy the rain is. With light to moderate rain storms, I don't see any real degradation of service, but with torrential downpours my Starlink will be very slow or drop out completely for anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes.
Weather – The environment needs to stay within the Starlink routers operating temperature range of -22°F to 122°F (-30°C to 50°C). Excessive moisture, dust, heat, or cold can potentially damage the router. I recommend purchasing a weatherproof enclosure to better control the weather factor.
The Standard Starlink hardware uses 50-75 watts on average.
This includes the antenna, router, power supply, and cables. When there is no network activity, the Standard Starlink uses about 20 watts to remain connected to the satellite network. Starlink runs off of 100-240V, 50-60Hz. It draws up to 2 amps.
The standard Starlink dish consumes roughly 1 kilowatt hour of electricity in 24 hours. That's just shy of the usable capacity in a 100 amp-hour lithium battery.
If you need to elevate your Starlink dish, a number of mounting options are available to help. Whether you want to put your dish on your roof, on the side of your house, or even in the middle of a field, here are the accessories that let you do it.
While the exact direction that a Starlink satellite dish should face will depend on where you are located, it will most likely need to be pointing somewhere between 15 and 35 degrees from being pointed straight up and angled to the north.
Optimal Starlink Mounting Position
The optimal placement of the Starlink dish is somewhere near the peak of your roof, which is likely to be the highest mounting location available to you.
This is caused by too many Starlink customers in your area trying to connect at the same time. Since there is limited bandwidth through the satellites, you are competing with other Starlink users for speed. You can test to see if your issue is network congestion by performing a speed test outside of peak hours.