US State Department signs two-year Starlink disaster-response deal

The U.S. Department of State and SpaceX's Starlink announced a two-year memorandum of understanding on June 12 to use Starlink's low-Earth-orbit network to restore communications during international disasters and humanitarian crises. The department's Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response will coordinate directly with Starlink to give emergency responders and affected populations rapid connectivity when storms, outbreaks, or other crises knock out infrastructure. The agreement formalizes the ad hoc deployments Starlink has made during events such as Hurricane Melissa, Typhoon Kalmaegi, and recent cyclones, and lands the same week parent SpaceX debuted on the Nasdaq.