"The State Department has enlisted Starlink, the satellite internet service run by Elon Musk's SpaceX, to support its staff in Jamaica in the event that Hurricane Melissa, a Category 5 storm that made landfall on October 28, disrupts communications on the island nation, the agency said. "We have pre-provisioned Starlink in Jamaica and will use it for communications if necessary," a spokesperson for the agency said."
"On-location agency staff are likely to use Starshield-a version of the Starlink service tailored for national-security applications-at the embassy, the second official said. The consumer service Starlink might be used by smaller teams who may need to travel within the country, the official added. The move shows how critical satellite-based internet has become in the wake of natural disasters, particularly when ground-based communications services go offline."
Starlink and Starshield have been pre-provisioned in Jamaica to support U.S. diplomatic staff if Hurricane Melissa disrupts communications. On-location embassy personnel will likely use Starshield, a national-security-tailored Starlink version, while smaller traveling teams may use the consumer Starlink service. The deployment aims to provide live communications and sustain operations if ground-based networks fail. Multiple U.S. agencies, including the National Science Foundation and Department of Homeland Security, now use Starlink for video calls, real-time data support, and remote research. SpaceX has expanded government sales and developed Starshield for Defense Department use, though the two services have experienced linked outages.
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