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Elon Musk’s Starlink could make Earth visible to alien civilizations: paper
While humanity has advanced significantly in the short time it has existed on Earth, the planet is, for all intents and purposes, still invisible, at least to potential advanced civilizations that are also looking for life in the cosmos. If an intelligent civilization were to look in Earth’s direction, they would likely see very little evidence that humans exist or have existed. According to a new paper, however, this could change with the buildout of Elon Musk’s Starlink, which could very well become Earth’s first “megastructure.”
The paper–titled “From the SpaceX Starlink megaconstellation to the search for Type-I civilizations” and written by Zaza Osmanov, a professor in astrophysics at the Free University of Tbilisi, Georgia–notes that Starlink’s massive size could give Earth its first “techno-signature” that’s actually visible from deep space.
A techno-signature is evidence for the use of technology or industrial activity in other parts of the Universe, which could be a good way to confirm the presence of an advanced civilization.
As noted by Osmanov, instruments like the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile and China’s FAST radio telescope already have enough technology to locate megastructures like Starlink in deep space. The professor notes that since Earth’s advanced interferometers are able to detect this activity from other planets today, any other civilization with comparable or better tech would likely be able to do the same, and potentially find Earth in the process.
Osmanov estimates that ultimately, Starlink could be visible to instruments like the VLT on planets up to 260 light-years away, while instruments comparable to the FAST telescope would likely be able to detect the megaconstellation as far out as 520 light-years away. This would require Starlink to be fully ramped, of course, which would likely take a considerable amount of time.
The idea of humans creating a megastructure invokes ideas such as the Kardashev Scale, a measure of how technologically advanced a civilization is based on how much energy it’s able to harness. According to the Kardashev Scale, a Type-1 Civilization could harness all the energy that falls on a planet from its parent star, a Type-2 civilization can harness all the energy produced by its parent star (through systems like a Dyson sphere), and a Type-3 civilization can harness the total energy in a galaxy.
Osmanov notes that humans, at least for now, could be considered as a Type-0.7 civilization. Though considering Elon Musk’s ventures such as Tesla and SpaceX, as well as Starlink’s potential future as a megastructure that gives Earth its first techno-signature, perhaps humans are on a path to becoming a Type-1 civilization after all.
Osmanov’s paper, which has been accepted for publication in the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society, could be accessed below.
Starlink Type 1 Civilization by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
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Elon Musk
Starlink achieves major milestones in 2025 progress report
Starlink wrapped up 2025 with impressive growth, adding more than 4.6 million new active customers and expanding service to 35 additional countries, territories, and markets.
Starlink wrapped up 2025 with impressive growth, adding more than 4.6 million new active customers and expanding service to 35 additional countries, territories, and markets. The company also completed deployment of its first-generation Direct to Cell constellation, launching over 650 satellites in just 18 months to enable cellular connectivity.
SpaceX highlighted Starlink’s impressive 2025 progress in an extensive report.
Key achievements from Starlink’s 2025 Progress
Starlink connected over 4.6 million new customers with high-speed internet while bringing service to 35 more regions worldwide in 2025. Starlink is now connecting 9.2 million people worldwide. The service achieved this just weeks after hitting its 8 million customer milestone.
Starlink is now available in 155 markets, including areas that are unreachable by traditional ISPs. As per SpaceX, Starlink has also provided over 21 million airline passengers and 20 million cruise passengers with reliable high-speed internet connectivity during their travels.
Starlink Direct to Cell
Starlink’s Direct to Cell constellation, more than 650 satellites strong, has already connected over 12 million people at least once, marking a breakthrough in global mobile coverage.
Starlink Direct to Cell is currently rolled out to 22 countries and 6 continents, with over 6 million monthly customers. Starlink Direct to Cell also has 27 MNO partners to date.
“This year, SpaceX completed deployment of the first generation of the Starlink Direct to Cell constellation, with more than 650 satellites launched to low-Earth orbit in just 18 months. Starlink Direct to Cell has connected more than 12 million people, and counting, at least once, providing life-saving connectivity when people need it most,” SpaceX wrote.
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Tesla Giga Nevada celebrates production of 6 millionth drive unit
To celebrate the milestone, the Giga Nevada team gathered for a celebratory group photo.
Tesla’s Giga Nevada has reached an impressive milestone, producing its 6 millionth drive unit as 2925 came to a close.
To celebrate the milestone, the Giga Nevada team gathered for a celebratory group photo.
6 million drive units
The achievement was shared by the official Tesla Manufacturing account on social media platform X. “Congratulations to the Giga Nevada team for producing their 6 millionth Drive Unit!” Tesla wrote.
The photo showed numerous factory workers assembled on the production floor, proudly holding golden balloons that spelled out “6000000″ in front of drive unit assembly stations. Elon Musk gave credit to the Giga Nevada team, writing, “Congrats on 6M drive units!” in a post on X.
Giga Nevada’s essential role
Giga Nevada produces drive units, battery packs, and energy products. The facility has been a cornerstone of Tesla’s scaling since opening, and it was the crucial facility that ultimately enabled Tesla to ramp the Model 3 and Model Y. Even today, it serves as Tesla’s core hub for battery and drivetrain components for vehicles that are produced in the United States.
Giga Nevada is expected to support Tesla’s ambitious 2026 targets, including the launch of vehicles like the Tesla Semi and the Cybercab. Tesla will have a very busy 2026, and based on Giga Nevada’s activities so far, it appears that the facility will be equally busy as well.
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Tesla Supercharger network delivers record 6.7 TWh in 2025
The network now exceeds 75,000 stalls globally, and it supports even non-Tesla vehicles across several key markets.
Tesla’s Supercharger Network had its biggest year ever in 2025, delivering a record 6.7 TWh of electricity to vehicles worldwide.
To celebrate its busy year, the official @TeslaCharging account shared an infographic showing the Supercharger Network’s growth from near-zero in 2012 to this year’s impressive milestone.
Record 6.7 TWh delivered in 2025
The bar chart shows steady Supercharger energy delivery increases since 2012. Based on the graphic, the Supercharger Network started small in the mid-2010s and accelerated sharply after 2019, when the Model 3 was going mainstream.
Each year from 2020 onward showed significantly more energy delivery, with 2025’s four quarters combining for the highest total yet at 6.7 TWh.
This energy powered millions of charging sessions across Tesla’s growing fleet of vehicles worldwide. The network now exceeds 75,000 stalls globally, and it supports even non-Tesla vehicles across several key markets. This makes the Supercharger Network loved not just by Tesla owners but EV drivers as a whole.
Resilience after Supercharger team changes
2025’s record energy delivery comes despite earlier 2024 layoffs on the Supercharger team, which sparked concerns about the system’s expansion pace. Max de Zegher, Tesla Director of Charging North America, also highlighted that “Outside China, Superchargers delivered more energy than all other fast chargers combined.”
Longtime Tesla owner and FSD tester Whole Mars Catalog noted the achievement as proof of continued momentum post-layoffs. At the time of the Supercharger team’s layoffs in 2024, numerous critics were claiming that Elon Musk was halting the network’s expansion altogether, and that the team only remained because the adults in the room convinced the juvenile CEO to relent.
Such a scenario, at least based on the graphic posted by the Tesla Charging team on X, seems highly implausible.
Starlink achieves major milestones in 2025 progress report
Tesla Giga Nevada celebrates production of 6 millionth drive unit
