By Ron Faith
With the advent of the Falcon 9 starting in 2010, we saw the market respond with new and interesting business models for data services that were previously impractical. Factors like the falling cost of launch and Moore’s law came to the space industry. Consequently, we saw more spacecraft in space with smaller and lighter form factors that could perform with greater functionality. On a macro level this allowed for much greater access to space across the commercial, civil, and government/military sectors. Now that this new model for doing business in space is more fully entrenched, satellite operators have started looking towards increasingly complicated applications and services in increasingly exotic orbits. Applications like IoT, in-space servicing, orbital transfer, and debris cleanup are part of a trend towards growing diversity and specialization of spacecraft. These spacecraft and constellation will require a more holistic space networking solution in order for them to deliver against their full capability in a seamless way. Let’s look at some of the implications of this new trend.
Earth observation and communications required an increase in communication bandwidth and therefore a more robust ground solution, especially for Earth observation. Ground station providers responded by increasing the number downlink points around the globe to allow for more downlink time. This new wave of more specialized spacecraft, with orbits across LEO/MEO/GEO, will also have new and unique requirements for communicating with ground stations. Ground station providers will need to be ready to adapt to these new use cases with new greater flexibility and affordability. While traditionally you may have had a ground provider who specialized in LEO, now you may need one who can help you seamlessly transition between LEO, MEO, GEO, deep space, and even terrestrial. This will require new partnerships and will be incumbent upon the ground provider to help the satellite operator think beyond the traditional space to ground model.
This new multi-orbit, multi-network model is still relatively new and evolving. This model will be better suited to support spacecraft operators need to move between networks. For example, a cargo ship can be thought of as a (very large) IoT device that can achieve connectivity in a variety of ways. When the cargo ship is in port, say the Port of Seattle, it might use Wi-Fi or cellular coverage for connectivity. When it leaves port for the open ocean, it will need to be able to switch to a GEO satellite-based network. If the ship heads to the arctic as an ice breaker, the ship will need to more to LEO-based comms. The ship will need connectivity for both IoT and data services for the crew. The ship owner just wants a solution and will want to roam across different networks based on cost and performance. While a ship was one of the earlier use cases for IoT, there is an expected proliferation of both IoT devices and IoT capable satellites coming. A ship is an example of an IoT device moving around the Earth and needing to switch between networks as it moves, but what about a spacecraft moving between locations in space? In-space servicing, orbital transfer, and debris cleanup will require spacecraft that can move to different locations and also switch between networks depending on the particular application and location.
With the first wave of more capable satellites (EO & comms) well under way, and the second wave (IoT, etc.) on the horizon, there is a great opportunity to increase our overall capabilities, presence, and productivity in space. Whether the application is IoT, orbital transfer, in-space servicing, or debris removal, better partnerships between the satellite operator and new space networking companies will help us see that exciting future more quickly.
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