—  What's going on with Elon Musk, SpaceX's Starlink and Ukraine? Here's what we know. Starshield will offer higher levels of cybersecurity than typical Starlink satellites, according to SpaceX's Starshield page, featuring "additional high-assurance cryptographic capability to host classified payloads and process data securely, meeting the most demanding government requirements." The satellites will be able to communicate with existing Starlink satellites through a laser communications systems already aboard SpaceX's massive broadband constellation, potentially boosting the range and capabilities of Starshield as the company and the Pentagon develop the new military-focused constellation. SpaceX has already launched more than 5,000 Starlink satellites to date, according to astronomer Jonathan McDowell, and over 4,000 remain operational. The company has applied to launch nearly 30,000 additional satellites on top of those. Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com. See all comments (1)