Update ground stations: 303 gateways (250 operational, 53 planned), 14 PoPs

README.md

@@ -39,6 +39,14 @@ size_categories:
 
 Starlink ground infrastructure data: gateway earth stations and internet Points of Presence (PoPs).
 
+## Dataset description
+
+Starlink's ground segment is as critical to its operation as the satellites themselves. Each gateway earth station houses multiple parabolic antennas (typically 2-4 dishes per site) that maintain continuous Ka-band and Ku-band links with the overhead satellite constellation. When a user terminal communicates with a Starlink satellite, the signal is relayed down to the nearest gateway, which connects to the terrestrial internet backbone. The geographic distribution of gateways directly determines service quality: users far from any gateway experience higher latency because their traffic must hop across multiple satellites via inter-satellite laser links before reaching a ground connection point.
+
+SpaceX has been aggressively expanding its gateway network worldwide to reduce this "bent-pipe" latency and increase aggregate network capacity. Early service relied on a handful of US gateways, but the network now spans six continents. Each gateway site requires regulatory approval from the host country's telecommunications authority -- in the US, this means FCC International Bureau (IBFS) earth station license filings, which are public record and provide precise geographic coordinates. The Points of Presence (PoPs) serve a different function: these are internet exchange points in major cities where Starlink peers with other networks and content delivery providers, determining the last-mile routing of user traffic after it exits the Starlink network.
+
+This dataset is valuable for network performance modeling (estimating latency based on user-to-gateway distance), regulatory analysis of Starlink's global expansion strategy, competitive intelligence in the satellite broadband market, and visualization of the ground infrastructure that supports the world's largest satellite constellation.
+
 ## Configs
 
 ### `gateways` — 303 ground stations (250 operational, 53 planned)

data/gateways.parquet

@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1
-oid sha256:dc68321522c1d164a046bf1603c50e53e982a860456bdd93e245b670ef8f77ed
+oid sha256:6b69034a11de2eff38b70a69c00b6e883cae8e0164a77fbee1e121aa6d724b8a
 size 12474

data/pops.parquet

@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1
-oid sha256:a5304648a47bab78b376855df70fc5b947ae12307335d71c4cbe2321950efe6e
+oid sha256:eedf362d086989b1eec1c9cf9afd90087494204ed7d446b9ef4d4b516ae5a432
 size 3666