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Uniting deep space travel.

Welcome to the Deep Space Travel Network! We gather coordinates to some of the universe’s most impressive sights and locations so you don’t have to! Whether you’re looking for your next galactic travel destination or looking to share your discovery with others, we thank you for choosing DSTN for your deep space travel needs!

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The future of spaceflight—from orbital vacations to humans on Mars

NASA aims to travel to the moon again—and beyond. Here’s a look at the 21st-century race to send humans into space.

Welcome to the 21st-century space race, one that could potentially lead to 10-minute space vacations, orbiting space hotels , and humans on Mars. Now, instead of warring superpowers battling for dominance in orbit, private companies are competing to make space travel easier and more affordable. This year, SpaceX achieved a major milestone— launching humans to the International Space Station (ISS) from the United States —but additional goalposts are on the star-studded horizon.

Private spaceflight

Private spaceflight is not a new concept . In the United States, commercial companies played a role in the aerospace industry right from the start: Since the 1960s, NASA has relied on private contractors to build spacecraft for every major human spaceflight program, starting with Project Mercury and continuing until the present.

Today, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is expanding on the agency’s relationship with private companies. Through it, NASA is relying on SpaceX and Boeing to build spacecraft capable of carrying humans into orbit. Once those vehicles are built, both companies retain ownership and control of the craft, and NASA can send astronauts into space for a fraction of the cost of a seat on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft.

SpaceX, which established a new paradigm by developing reusable rockets , has been running regular cargo resupply missions to the International Space Station since 2012. And in May 2020, the company’s Crew Dragon spacecraft carried NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken to the ISS , becoming the first crewed mission to launch from the United States in nearly a decade. The mission, called Demo-2, is scheduled to return to Earth in August. Boeing is currently developing its Starliner spacecraft and hopes to begin carrying astronauts to the ISS in 2021.

Other companies, such as Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic , are specializing in sub-orbital space tourism. Test launch video from inside the cabin of Blue Origin’s New Shepard shows off breathtaking views of our planet and a relatively calm journey for its first passenger, a test dummy cleverly dubbed “Mannequin Skywalker.” Virgin Galactic is running test flights on its sub-orbital spaceplane , which will offer paying customers roughly six minutes of weightlessness during its journey through Earth’s atmosphere.

With these and other spacecraft in the pipeline, countless dreams of zero-gravity somersaults could soon become a reality—at least for passengers able to pay the hefty sums for the experience.

Early U.S. Spaceflight

Looking to the moon

Moon missions are essential to the exploration of more distant worlds. After a long hiatus from the lunar neighborhood, NASA is again setting its sights on Earth’s nearest celestial neighbor with an ambitious plan to place a space station in lunar orbit sometime in the next decade. Sooner, though, the agency’s Artemis program , a sister to the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s, is aiming to put the first woman (and the next man) on the lunar surface by 2024.

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Extended lunar stays build the experience and expertise needed for the long-term space missions required to visit other planets. As well, the moon may also be used as a forward base of operations from which humans learn how to replenish essential supplies, such as rocket fuel and oxygen, by creating them from local material.

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Such skills are crucial for the future expansion of human presence into deeper space, which demands more independence from Earth-based resources. And although humans have visited the moon before, the cratered sphere still harbors its own scientific mysteries to be explored—including the presence and extent of water ice near the moon's south pole, which is one of the top target destinations for space exploration .

NASA is also enlisting the private sector to help it reach the moon. It has awarded three contracts to private companies working on developing human-rated lunar landers—including both Blue Origin and SpaceX. But the backbone of the Artemis program relies on a brand new, state-of-the-art spacecraft called Orion .

Archival Photos of Spaceflight

Currently being built and tested, Orion—like Crew Dragon and Starliner—is a space capsule similar to the spacecraft of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs, as well as Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft. But the Orion capsule is larger and can accommodate a four-person crew. And even though it has a somewhat retro design, the capsule concept is considered to be safer and more reliable than NASA’s space shuttle—a revolutionary vehicle for its time, but one that couldn’t fly beyond Earth’s orbit and suffered catastrophic failures.

Capsules, on the other hand, offer launch-abort capabilities that can protect astronauts in case of a rocket malfunction. And, their weight and design mean they can also travel beyond Earth’s immediate neighborhood, potentially ferrying humans to the moon, Mars, and beyond.

A new era in spaceflight

By moving into orbit with its Commercial Crew Program and partnering with private companies to reach the lunar surface, NASA hopes to change the economics of spaceflight by increasing competition and driving down costs. If space travel truly does become cheaper and more accessible, it’s possible that private citizens will routinely visit space and gaze upon our blue, watery home world—either from space capsules, space stations, or even space hotels like the inflatable habitats Bigelow Aerospace intends to build .

The United States isn’t the only country with its eyes on the sky. Russia regularly launches humans to the International Space Station aboard its Soyuz spacecraft. China is planning a large, multi-module space station capable of housing three taikonauts, and has already launched two orbiting test vehicles—Tiangong-1 and Tiangong-2, both of which safely burned up in the Earth’s atmosphere after several years in space.

Now, more than a dozen countries have the ability to launch rockets into Earth orbit. A half-dozen space agencies have designed spacecraft that shed the shackles of Earth’s gravity and traveled to the moon or Mars. And if all goes well, the United Arab Emirates will join that list in the summer of 2020 when its Hope spacecraft heads to the red planet . While there are no plans yet to send humans to Mars, these missions—and the discoveries that will come out of them—may help pave the way.

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Geospace Dynamics Constellation

GDC is a team of satellites that will study Earth’s upper atmosphere and provide the first direct global measurements of our planet’s dynamic and complex interface with the space environment.

Transforming rail: More convenient and sustainable train travel in the EU

Travelling by train in Europe is becoming more convenient and sustainable thanks to recent EU initiatives. New regulations for the trans-European transport network  (TEN-T) to improve rail connectivity and make travel greener have recently entered into force. This means better and more efficient rail services across Europe .

The EU's Action Plan to boost long-distance and cross-border passenger rail services is a key part of these efforts. It aims to double high-speed rail traffic by 2030 and triple it by 2050 . Launched in 2021, this plan focuses on removing obstacles, improving interoperability, modernising passenger rail infrastructure, and enhancing the quality of services across EU countries.

To further support cross-border travel, the European Commission has announced its support for 10 pilot projects to boost cross-border rail services . This will improve cross-border rail connections across the EU and make travel faster, easier and more affordable.

Young travellers can particularly benefit from the DiscoverEU  programme, which regularly offers free travel passes to 18-year-olds to explore Europe by train . This programme encourages cultural exchange and highlights the environmental advantages of rail travel. The next call for applications should be published in autumn 2024.

Passenger rights are also a significant focus of the EU’s transport policy. Travellers in Europe are well-protected in case something goes wrong during their trip. EU passenger rights  cover delays, cancellations, and accessibility issues.

The EU is committed to making train travel a top choice by improving regulations, creating ambitious plans, and supporting special programmes. These efforts aim to make rail travel more sustainable, efficient, and well-connected across Europe.

For more information

An Action Plan to boost long-distance and cross-border passenger rail services

Connecting Europe by train: 10 EU pilot services to boost cross-border rail

Mobility strategy

Know your EU passenger rights before you travel

Rail passenger rights

Travelling in Europe 2024

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Japan Warns of Elevated Risk of Giant Earthquake After Strong One Hits

The official warning came after a 7.1-magnitude temblor struck off the coast of southern Japan on Thursday.

Strong Earthquake Hits Southern Japan

Shake intensity.

By River Akira Davis Kiuko Notoya Hisako Ueno and Victoria Kim

River Akira Davis, Kiuko Notoya and Hisako Ueno reported from Tokyo, and Victoria Kim from Seoul.

Japan’s meteorological agency said on Thursday that there was a higher-than-usual chance that an immense earthquake could hit the country in the next few days, following a 7.1-magnitude temblor off the southern island of Kyushu.

Japan has long expected a major earthquake to occur along the Nankai Trough off its eastern coast. As of last year, researchers said there was a 60 percent chance that an earthquake of magnitude 8 to 9 — even more devastating than the one in 2011 that laid waste to the country’s northeast coast and knocked out cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant — would occur in the trough area over the next 20 years.

After the 7.1-magnitude quake on Thursday, Japan’s meteorological agency convened a group of experts to evaluate whether it could be related to the long-anticipated bigger disaster, called a “Nankai Trough megathrust earthquake.”

Experts warn that an earthquake between two tectonic plates that converge along the Nankai megathrust fault, which runs from Kyushu north through Tokyo, could cause devastation. It could extensively damage cities throughout Japan, potentially cause a tsunami and lead to hundreds of thousands of deaths.

“The possibility of a large-scale earthquake occurring in the area of ​​the Nankai Trough is relatively higher than usual,” the meteorological agency said in a statement late Thursday.

The risk that an earthquake of magnitude of 8 or higher would occur after one with a magnitude of 7 is particularly elevated for about a week after the initial temblor, the agency said.

Japan’s meteorological agency issued a “caution” level of warning on Thursday. The next step up would be an “alert,” which would advise residents to evacuate from areas deemed a tsunami risk. The agency said it was the first time Japan had issued a “caution.”

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida urged people to ensure that they were ready at all times in case an earthquake occurred and they had to evacuate. He told reporters that the government was on high alert.

Earlier on Thursday, a tsunami advisory was issued for coastal regions on the southern Japanese islands of Kyushu and Shikoku after the 7.1-magnitude quake. As of late Thursday evening, the maximum height of waves recorded reached about a foot and a half off the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture on Kyushu.

A handful of injuries but no deaths were reported related to the earthquake. Footage showed images of strong shaking in buildings in Miyazaki Prefecture, but damage in the area appeared to be minimal. The earthquake occurred less than 20 miles off the coast of Miyazaki, according to the United States Geological Survey.

Bullet train service was temporarily halted on Kyushu, and the Miyazaki Airport suspended takeoffs and landings to inspect runways for any damage. Both bullet train and airport operations resumed later Thursday evening.

The Kyushu Electric Power Company said its nuclear power plants were operating normally.

Separate from the heightened possibility of a Nankai Trough earthquake, Japan’s meteorological agency advised being alert for aftershocks of a similar magnitude off the eastern coast of Miyazaki Prefecture over the next week. It said that landslides could also be a risk if there is rain in the coming days.

An earlier version of this article used an incorrect map showing an earthquake on Japan’s west coast. The earthquakes occurred on Japan’s east coast.

How we handle corrections

River Akira Davis covers Japan, including its economy and businesses, and is based in Tokyo. More about River Akira Davis

Kiuko Notoya is a Tokyo-based reporter and researcher, covering news and features from Japan. More about Kiuko Notoya

Hisako Ueno is a reporter and researcher based in Tokyo, writing on Japanese politics, business, labor, gender and culture. More about Hisako Ueno

Victoria Kim is a reporter based in Seoul and focuses on breaking news coverage across the world. More about Victoria Kim

Around the World With The Times

Our reporters across the globe take you into the field..

China’s New Great Wall: China has built dozens of villages along its disputed borders , a New York Times analysis found. These outposts are one way that Beijing is projecting its power abroad.

France’s Triumph of Ambition:  Away from the Olympics, France may be mired in political problems, but its pride in staging a remarkable Games appears likely to endure for a long time .

Venezuela’s Political Crisis: President Nicolás Maduro believed the Venezuelan government’s control of all levers of power would give him an election victory. Then came the shock .

Summer Camps in Ukraine:  As the once carefree summers of Ukrainian childhood and young adulthood are forever altered by war, traditional camps have taken on a more patriotic tone .

A Beloved Italian Path Reopens:  After 12 years and a 24 million euro makeover, officials hope the reopening of the Via dell’Amore in Cinque Terre will be an opportunity to rethink tourism in the popular area .

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GEO/MEO/LEO satellites: Why GEO is winning

Reaching New (Lower?) Heights in Space

The journey to global satellite communications started more than 50 years ago with the launch of the first geostationary communication satellite Syncom 3 used to telecast the 1964 Tokyo Summer Olympics. Since then, space has become a far more saturated place, with satellites lifting off to low, medium, and high Earth orbits to connect people around the globe. The first race for Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellations in the 1990s ended in bankruptcy for most, and nearly twenty years expired before the second race began.

Today, LEO satellite operators are the drivers of “new space” investment. As modern life has gone digital around the world, Big Tech has joined traditional operators to capitalize on the demand for connectivity. Giants from Alphabet, with the Loon balloon project, to Facebook and Airbus, with their Zephyr solar-powered drones, have made forays into providing worldwide Internet connectivity. With OneWeb seemingly at the helm until their bankruptcy announcement in March 2020, LEO constellation plans have attracted impressive levels of capital and served as the satellite industry’s shiny new objects.

While the LEO opportunity window seems to have matured, however, growth and success have been limited by evolving technical designs, underestimated costs, and overpromised capabilities. On the other hand, the “old space” geosynchronous (GEO) satellite industry has remained steady. Although capacity prices have dropped in the last decade, GEO operators continue launching new satellites and expanding their services to new markets, from expanded government commercial SATCOM expenditures to the aviation and telecommunications backhaul markets.

Despite the excitement of LEO/MEO constellation possibilities, geosynchronous satellite operators are still winning in the growing SATCOM market.

State of MEO – Current Solutions

SES’ O3b constellation is the only valid Mid-Earth Orbit (MEO) solution in today’s market. Initially designed with the laudable intention of connecting the “other” three billion people, the company’s business plan and mission have shifted to providing “fully-managed services in the dynamic mobility, fixed data, and government markets,” which sounds a lot like every other successful satellite operator’s mission. The constellation is comprised of thirteen operational satellites providing regional coverage from about 5000 miles away.

Since the acquisition by SES, O3b has offered large-scale links attractive for base-wide government operations and regional telecom operators for backhaul. While economical at the hundreds-of-MHz scale, the offering seems to be the opposite of its original purpose: low-cost, high-volume broadband. With a six-figure price tag on the remote ground equipment, it is simply not an option for individual users. Although the newly branded mPOWER network attempts to capture a user-level market, the details of that service are unclear.

Given the relatively undeveloped state of MEO satellite communications, the geosynchronous industry continues to dominate.

The State of LEO – Where the Companies Stand

Recent news of two promising upstarts – LeoSat and OneWeb – failing to even deliver a complete constellation before entering bankruptcy may have dampened investment prospects for LEO projects. The development of an entirely new satellite constellation from scratch is a highly complex, highly technical undertaking. Announcements of unfathomably low-cost solution elements have been a trend among hopeful operators. SpaceX projected the cost of the Starlink customer remotes, which must be capable of auto-tracking and self-installable, to be in the low hundreds of dollars. Based on existing technology costs, this seems unlikely. OneWeb budgeted for a satellite price of $350,000 and ended up spending just under $1M on each, and these did not include optical technology for Inter-Satellite Links that would have reduced the number of costly ground stations required. With a fleet of about 650 satellites at triple the cost, it is not a shock that the business model did not pan out. The failure of OneWeb prompts the question of whether investors will begin to lose faith in LEO potential and allocate capital elsewhere. The outcome of OneWeb’s sales process is to be determined, and it may yet be revived for national security reasons. Still, the purchase of OneWeb for its frequency licensing and/or national security concerns is unlikely to translate into increased enthusiasm for the LEO concept.

A few other prominent companies competing for space in Low Earth Orbit are at various stages of development. SpaceX has launched 480 Starlink satellites so far, and with its irreverent CEO Elon Musk and recent successful NASA ISS launch, it has been generating a lot of buzz. However, Starlink’s developments seem to be focused solely on launching satellites into the orbit, with no real details on the ground segment infrastructure or end-user solution. Project Kuiper, another mega-constellation funded by Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, plans to operate a fleet of 3,236 satellites. Amazon has yet to deploy any satellites, nor does it have any launches scheduled. As of early February 2019, it lacked regulatory approvals to proceed with deployment.

Telesat, a global operator in the GEO space, has perhaps more feasible ambitions of launching just over a hundred LEO satellites to fulfill its constellation design. So far, it has launched two prototype satellites into low orbit. Telesat LEO recently completed Phase 1 in-orbit testing, assessing latency and viability of the solution. However, since 2018, the project has been under wraps with no new information on design and manufacturing.

The current LEO satellite projects have many limitations and unknowns that make their execution highly uncharted territory, both technically and economically. The business case for LEOs is still nebulous. The true cost of building and launching the satellites, building a ground segment, and developing the customer terminals seems unclear. Then there is the actual price tag on LEO service, also yet to be publicly discussed, and whether that even leads to profitability at some point. Presumably, the market bearing prices from existing ISPs like Comcast, Verizon, Hughes, and ViaSat will drive pricing as much as cost-based analysis. It is also possible that when and if new LEO constellations are operational, competitors will drive their own pricing down to make LEO operations less profitable and, therefore, less sustainable.

The Quiet Part – Ground Segment

With fanfare and marketing focused on designing and launching satellites, LEO operators have largely left an equally vital component of a successful satellite network out of the discussion: the ground segment. Teleports, or ground system infrastructure, are required to transmit and receive satellite signals and route data traffic from the satellite layer to the Internet. Compared to GEO teleport requirements, and due to the complexity of constantly tracking the NGSO LEO satellites, the required ground infrastructure is more sophisticated, numerous, and costly. Depending on the LEO system, cost estimates for a LEO Broadband gateway, including the associated antennas and Earth station technology infrastructure, are between ~$2-7 million (Quilty Analytics LLC, 2020). Hundreds of these geographically distant ground stations could be needed to provide global coverage for any given LEO constellation. Cost is just one component. The timeline and logistics of actually building these gateways will undoubtedly add to the aggressive timelines offered by operators.

One alternative to reduce the ground segment footprint is to build inter-satellite links (ISL) into LEO satellite design. However, ISL is complex and costly, making it harder to incorporate in Gen 1 constellations, where operators are trying to conserve cash. So far, only two companies, SpaceX and Telesat, are planning to add this functionality to their satellite design.

Let’s not forget about the end-user. To actually take advantage of the LEO bonanza, the customer on the ground must have a VSAT antenna to receive and send their data. None of the LEO operators have discussed the manufacturing and distribution process of end-user equipment. Tracking antennas are required for following MEO/LEO satellites in the sky, making them substantially more complicated and costly than a simple parabolic antenna. Although the talk of the low-cost LEO satellite antennas has begun, it’s not clear how companies are planning to actually achieve and deliver an affordable consumer-based price point. Kymeta flat-panel antennas may play a role in getting LEO customers online. Kepler modem-based LEO test satellites and O3b have both successfully connected with Kymeta u7 antennas. The new u8 MSAT is planned for LEO/MEO adoption by 2022. Questions abound: will complete customer remotes be vertically integrated by operators? How successfully can these be rolled out? Can an average “unconnected” consumer afford and install them?

Without question, LEO satellite constellation projects face significant hurdles as they seek operational success and profitability. In some respects, the completion of a global LEO constellation seems further away now than ever. Following the recent OneWeb announcement, CEO Greg Wyler said, “I think LEO satellites have a long way to go. They are still in their infancy in terms of design and technology… Even though they look like they are supercharged compared to ten years ago, they are still pretty darned inefficient vehicles for communications. Another major problem for the satellite in consumer broadband is the constantly growing uplink speed requirements of consumers.” (Holmes, In the Eye of the Storm: Greg Wyler Breaks Cover to Talk OneWeb, 2020)

GEO – Viable Communications Networks Available Today

GEO operators continue to dominate today’s and tomorrow’s satellite communications markets. Although financial stability remains a struggle, this group has operating satellites in space, landing rights, established ground segment, successful distribution channels, and ever-improving end-user equipment.

The Big Four GEO operators, including Intelsat despite its filing for bankruptcy protection, are still investing in GEO. Each company is purchasing new geosynchronous satellites and investing in next-generation technologies onboard.

Intelsat has a leading presence in geosynchronous orbit with a fleet of over 50 satellites. Combined with High Throughput Satellites and over 30 ground stations, it provides extensive global coverage. SES has over 30 operational GEO satellites and 16 ground stations around the globe. Eutelsat currently operates twenty-five geostationary satellites and is planning to launch five more over the next three years. They also operate several telemetry, tracking, and control stations around the world. Telesat, the pioneer in commercializing Ku-band in the 1980s, operates thirteen satellites and teleport infrastructure concentrated primarily in North America.

In addition to these companies, there are numerous regional and state-owned satellite operators occupying the majority of available orbital slots over the Earth’s landmasses. Nearly all satellite communications used for enterprise, government and military organizations, telecommunications backhaul, and consumer-based broadband are today in geosynchronous orbit.

Unfortunately for the unconnected, mass-market broadband is not the dream for this sector; but the new era of mature low-orbiting satellite solutions has simply not yet arrived.

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Everything you need to know about space travel (almost)

We're a long way from home...

Paul Parsons

When did we first start exploring space?

The first human-made object to go into space was a German V2 missile , launched on a test flight in 1942. Although uncrewed, it reached an altitude of 189km (117 miles).

Former Nazi rocket scientists were later recruited by both America and Russia (often at gunpoint in the latter case), where they were instrumental in developing Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) – rockets capable of carrying nuclear weapons from one side of the planet to the other.

It was these super-missiles that formed the basis for the space programmes of both post-war superpowers. As it happened, Russia was the first to reach Earth orbit, when it launched the uncrewed Sputnik 1 in October 1957, followed a month later by Sputnik 2, carrying the dog Laika – the first live animal in space.

The USA sent its first uncrewed satellite, Explorer 1, into orbit soon after, in January 1958. A slew of robotic spaceflights followed, from both sides of the Atlantic, before Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin piloted Vostok 1 into orbit on 12 April 1961, to become the first human being in space . And from there the space race proper began, culminating in Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin becoming the first people to walk on the Moon as part of NASA's Apollo programme .

Why is space travel important?

Space exploration is the future. It satisfies the human urge to explore and to travel, and in the years and decades to come it could even provide our species with new places to call home – especially relevant now, as Earth becomes increasingly crowded .

Extending our reach into space is also necessary for the advancement of science. Space telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope and probes to the distant worlds of the Solar System are continually updating, and occasionally revolutionising, our understanding of astronomy and physics.

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But there are also some very practical reasons, such as mining asteroids for materials that are extremely rare here on Earth.

One example is the huge reserve of the chemical isotope helium-3 thought to be locked away in the soil on the surface of the Moon . This isotope is a potential fuel for future nuclear fusion reactors – power stations that tap into the same source of energy as the Sun. Unlike other fusion fuels, helium-3 gives off no hard-to-contain and deadly neutron radiation.

However, for this to happen the first challenge to overcome is how to build a base on the Moon. In 2019, China's Chang’e 4 mission marked the beginning of a new space race to conquer the Moon, signalling their intent to build a permanent lunar base , while the NASA Artemis mission plans to build a space station, called Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway , providing a platform to ferry astronauts to the Moon's surface.

Could humans travel into interstellar space and how would we get there?

It’s entirely feasible that human explorers will visit the furthest reaches of our Solar System. The stars, however, are another matter. Interstellar space is so vast that it takes light – the fastest thing we know of in the Universe – years, centuries and millennia to traverse it. Faster-than-light travel may be possible one day, but is unlikely to become a reality in our lifetimes.

It’s not impossible that humans might one day cross this cosmic gulf, though it won’t be easy. The combustion-powered rocket engines of today certainly aren’t up to the job – they just don’t use fuel efficiently enough. Instead, interstellar spacecraft may create a rocket-like propulsion jet using electric and magnetic fields. This so-called ‘ ion drive ’ technology has already been tested aboard uncrewed Solar System probes.

Another possibility is to push spacecraft off towards the stars using the light from a high-powered laser . A consortium of scientists calling themselves Breakthrough Starshot is already planning to send a flotilla of tiny robotic probes to our nearest star, Proxima Centauri, using just this method.

Though whether human astronauts could survive such punishing acceleration, or the decades-long journey through deep space, remains to be seen.

How do we benefit from space exploration?

Pushing forward the frontiers of science is the stated goal of many space missions . But even the development of space travel technology itself can lead to unintended yet beneficial ‘spin-off’ technologies with some very down-to-earth applications.

Notable spin-offs from the US space programme, NASA, include memory foam mattresses, artificial hearts, and the lubricant spray WD-40. Doubtless, there are many more to come.

Read more about space exploration:

• The next giant leaps: The UK missions getting us to the Moon
• Move over, Mars: why we should look further afield for future human colonies
• Everything you need to know about the Voyager mission
• 6 out-of-this-world experiments recreating space on Earth

Space exploration also instils a sense of wonder, it reminds us that there are issues beyond our humdrum planet and its petty squabbles, and without doubt it helps to inspire each new generation of young scientists. It’s also an insurance policy. We’re now all too aware that global calamities can and do happen – for instance, climate change and the giant asteroid that smashed into the Earth 65 million years ago, leading to the total extinction of the dinosaurs .

The lesson for the human species is that we keep all our eggs in one basket at our peril. On the other hand, a healthy space programme, and the means to travel to other worlds, gives us an out.

Is space travel dangerous?

In short, yes – very. Reaching orbit means accelerating up to around 28,000kph (17,000mph, or 22 times the speed of sound ). If anything goes wrong at that speed, it’s seldom good news.

Then there’s the growing cloud of space junk to contend with in Earth's orbit – defunct satellites, discarded rocket stages and other detritus – all moving just as fast. A five-gram bolt hitting at orbital speed packs as much energy as a 200kg weight dropped from the top of an 18-storey building.

And getting to space is just the start of the danger. The principal hazard once there is cancer-producing radiation – the typical dose from one day in space is equivalent to what you’d receive over an entire year back on Earth, thanks to the planet’s atmosphere and protective magnetic field.

Add to that the icy cold airless vacuum , the need to bring all your own food and water, plus the effects of long-duration weightlessness on bone density, the brain and muscular condition – including that of the heart – and it soon becomes clear that venturing into space really isn’t for the faint-hearted.

When will space travel be available to everyone?

It’s already happening – that is, assuming your pockets are deep enough. The first self-funded ‘space tourist’ was US businessman Dennis Tito, who in 2001 spent a week aboard the International Space Station (ISS) for the cool sum of $20m (£15m).

Virgin Galactic has long been promising to take customers on short sub-orbital hops into space – where passengers get to experience rocket propulsion and several minutes of weightlessness, before gliding back to a runway landing on Earth, all for $250k (£190k). In late July 2020, the company unveiled the finished cabin in its SpaceShipTwo vehicle, suggesting that commercial spaceflights may begin shortly.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s SpaceX , which in May 2020 became the first private company to launch a human crew to Earth orbit aboard the Crew Dragon , plans to offer stays on the ISS for $35k (£27k) per night. SpaceX is now prototyping its huge Starship vehicle , which is designed to take 100 passengers from Earth to as far afield as Mars for around $20k (£15k) per head. Musk stated in January that he hoped to be operating 1,000 Starships by 2050.

10 Short Lessons in Space Travel by Paul Parsons is out now (£9.99, Michael O'Mara)

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The best hotels, cruises and more for 2024, according to virtuoso travel experts.

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Taj Mahal private experience arranged by Virtuoso winner Best Ultra Luxury Operator Micato Safaris

The luxury travel network Virtuoso revealed the nominations and winners for its 2024 Best of the Best awards at this year's Virtuoso Travel Week held in Las Vegas this month. The 36th annual gala spotlights the network's most popular travel agencies, advisors, and preferred partners.

Virtuoso surveyed hundreds of travel agencies and more than 12,000 high-end travel advisors to select the winners in each category, ranging from the most innovative experience to the best achievement in design. I have personally visited many of the nominated properties and agree with some of these selections, although many deserving countries still need to be included in these honors. Strangely, Italy garnered most of this year's Hotel of the Year nominations, and no U.S. hotel was included in the new hotel category. Winners will be updated following the ceremony.

Bulgari Hotel Rome terrace

Hotel Of The Year

Bulgari Hotel Roma (Italy)

Located on a historic address at Piazza Augusto Imperatore, in the Campo Marzio area, the Hotel is adjacent to the top sites including Via del Corso, and Spanish Steps. The 114 room and suite hotel incorporate stunning Italian elegance in every detail of its design, hospitality and experience.

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Some good news—and some bad news—about ‘house of the dragon’ season 3, stranger things season 5 leak—hacker claims new episodes release in 48 hours, hotel hassler rome (italy).

For over a century the Hassler, located in enviable position at the top of the Spanish Steps has been a legend in Rome. The 87 rooms and suites offer city or garden views and feature some of the most stunning suites in the country. The famed Michelin starred Imàgo restaurant is on the 6th floor with dramatic city views, and of course the famed Hassler Bar is where you can rub shoulders with Hollywood royalty.

J.K. Place Capri (Italy)

This legendary hotel is positioned directly on the water's edge and appears like a nautically inspired mansion. The 22 rooms (20 with sea views) provide the ultimate glamour getaway from the bustle of the island center. One of the only hotels on the island that’s right on the ocean, and in the old town, on a cliff overlooking the harbor.

Passalacqua (Italy)

One of the 50 Best Hotels in the World , this 18th century villa on the edge of Italy's Lake Como features 24-suites divided between three buildings: the 18th-century Villa, the neighboring Palazz, and the lakeside Casa al Lago.

The Dewberry Charleston (USA)

The mid-century decor in this 155, including 48 suites hotel is one of the highlights attracting a devoted hipster crowd. The former federal building offers a mix of marble, dark wood and brass, and has become quite the culinary destination for foodies.

Maroma, A Belmond Hotel Riviera Maya

Best New Or Reimagined Hotel

Carlton Cannes (France)

Maroma, A Belmond Hotel Riviera Maya (Mexico)

Raffles London at The OWO (England)

Rosewood Munich (Germany)

Miraval Arizona Resort & Spa

Best Wellness Property

*winner: miraval arizona resort & spa (tucson, arizona).

Featuring a wide range of casita-style rooms, suites, villas, and retreats, all are designed for comfort and wellness. Surrounded by the tranquil beauty of the Sonoran Desert and sweeping Santa Catalina Mountains, the resort offers wellness programs, spa treatments, healthy cuisine, and world-class wellness specialists.

Cloister at The Boca Raton (Florida)

Grand Hotel Victoria Concept & Spa (Lake Como, Italy)

Hacienda AltaGracia, Auberge Resorts Collection (Costa Rica)

SHA Wellness Clinic (Spain)

Best Ocean Cruise Line

Explora Journeys

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Silversea Cruises

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Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, winner of the 2023 Virtuoso Award

Best River Cruise Line

AmaWaterways

Aqua Expeditions

Tauck River Cruising

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

Viking River Cruises

Best Expedition Cruise Line

Lindblad Expeditions

Quark Expeditions

Best Tour Operator

WINNER: Micato Safaris . Nominees were Abercrombie & Kent USA, LLC, Classic Vacations, Tauck, Wilderness

Best Adventure Operator

WINNER: Lindblad Expeditions . Nominees were Backroads, Big Five Tours & Expeditions, Inc, G Adventures, Swain Destinations

Wharekauhau Country Estate in New Zealand

Hotelier Of The Year

According to Virtuoso, “This award recognizes an experienced hotel manager with unparalleled leadership and vision, an unrelenting passion for the industry, an engaged commitment to the network of Virtuoso travel advisors, and an astute appreciation for detail.”

Nominees are: Allen Highfield (Montage Healdsburg, California), Andrew Pike (The Milestone Hotel and Residences, London), Conor O’Leary (Gleneagles, Scotland), Richard Rooney (Wharekauhau Country Estate, New Zealand), Simone Giorgi (Park Hyatt Milano)

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Leo, geo, meo satellites – what’s the difference.

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Canada Is Losing Regional Connectivity As Low-Cost Alternative Airlines Struggle

American airlines flight delayed nearly 7 hours after fake passport & landing gear issues, when will delta air lines retire its boeing 717s.

Here at Simple Flying Connectivity, we frequently reference different types of satellites used for inflight connectivity. While you may well know the meanings of the acronyms LEO, GEO and MEO, do you really understand the difference between them?

Let’s take a look to find out what makes these types of satellites different.

GEO – Geosynchronous Equatorial Orbit

These satellites, also sometimes called geostationary satellites, are probably the most widely recognized and most well-understood types of satellites. Because they move at the same velocity as the Earth and on a path that is parallel to the Earth’s rotation, they appear to be stationary in the sky.

Want to stay up to date with inflight connectivity news? Sign up for our monthly IFC newsletter. 

This enables them to provide coverage to a specific area of the Earth. Orbiting at around 35,000 km (22,000 miles) above the surface, GEO satellites take precisely 24 hours to perform a complete orbit of the Earth. As the largest type of satellite and the extreme distance at which they orbit the Earth, only three GEO satellites are required for complete communications coverage.

GEO satellites have been around for over 50 years. The first was NASA’s Syncom III experiment, which took place in 1964 and provided worldwide television coverage of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. As of December 2019, the UCS Satellite Database lists 562 GEO satellites in orbit, but space isn’t full yet. The ‘ring’ around Earth can accommodate up to 1,800 GEO satellites, so there’s plenty of room for more!

While GEO has been the tried and tested satellite for everything from television to essential government communications, it does have its downsides. These are the most expensive satellites to procure and, due to the curvature of the Earth, coverage cannot be provided above or below plus or minus 70 degrees latitude.

MEO – Medium Earth Orbit

MEO satellites orbit at a lower altitude than GEO, usually occupying the space between 5,000 and 12,000 km (3,100 – 7,500 miles). Their relative proximity to Earth means they achieve far lower latency than GEO units, making them suitable for high-speed telephone signals and similar missions.

MEO satellites can transmit data at up to 1.6 Gbit/s, which is a much snappier connection than most of us achieve through fiber connections to our homes. These types of satellites are also used for functions such as GPS, Glonass and Galileo, as well as in polar orbit to provide coverage at extreme latitudes.

Depending on their altitude, MEO satellites usually complete one orbit of the Earth in between two and eight hours, although some can take up to 24 hours to orbit. Their smaller size and lower orbit means between eight and 20 units will be required to provide complete coverage of the Earth.

LEO – Low Earth Orbit

One of the hot topics right now is the race to establish a network of Low Earth Orbit satellites. LEO satellites occupy the lowest orbit of all satellite types, often between 800 – 1,600 km (500 – 1,000 miles) above the surface. This proximity to Earth makes them ideal for very high speed, low latency communications, often exhibiting a delay of just 0.05 seconds.

LEO satellites tend to be very small, making them much quicker and cheaper to produce than their bigger brothers. They also fly much faster, completing an orbit in as little as 40 – 100 minutes. However, their proximity to Earth means many more are needed to provide complete global coverage.

Companies like SpaceX and Iridium are planning to put tens of thousands of LEO satellites into orbit over the next months and years. These huge mega constellations are likely to provide faster, more stable and more complete coverage for data connections in the future, but are still at an early stage in terms of network development.

This article is brought to you by Simple Flying Connectivity, a new category on Simple Flying dedicated to inflight connectivity. Click here to read all of our inflight connectivity content.

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Nasa’s space geodesy project mapping out a bright future.

In April 2019, an international team of more than 300 scientists unveiled the first recorded images of a black hole, its dark shadow and vivid orange disk peering back across 55 million light years of space. Capturing images from so far away required the combined power of eight radio telescopes across four continents, working together to essentially form a massive Earth-sized telescope called the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT).

The technology that powers EHT imaging is also used by scientists at NASA and worldwide to measure the Earth. Very long baseline interferometry, or VLBI, is a technique that combines waveforms recorded by two or more radio telescopes. This versatile tool is used not only in astronomy, but also geodesy: The science of measuring Earth’s size, shape, rotation and orientation in space.

Geodesy lets us see maps on our phones, measure ocean tides, plan rocket launches, calibrate clocks, forecast earthquakes, track tsunamis and maintain satellite orbits. As a geodetic tool, VLBI helps scientists precisely measure distances and topography and track changes to Earth’s surface and rotation over time. Scientists at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and MIT’s Haystack Observatory in Westford, Massachusetts, pioneered the geodetic use of VLBI in the 1960s.

Today, NASA, MIT Haystack and other partners collaborate to improve and expand geodetic stations around the world as part of NASA’s Space Geodesy Project (SGP). MIT Haystack serves as the hub for hardware and software development that benefits both astronomy and geodesy, partnering with the National Science Foundation to support the EHT and with NASA to boost the SGP. Together, that synergy contributed directly to realizing the black hole image while working towards smaller, faster radio telescopes, more automation and access to multiple geodetic tools in the same place, enabling more precise maps, charts, flight paths and orbits than ever before.

VLBI: All About That Baseline  

Radio telescopes measure radio waves. These waves are weaker and fainter than visible light, but they penetrate interstellar dust and gases and interference from Earth’s own atmosphere in ways that visible light cannot. They also give astronomers information about space that does not exist in the visible spectrum.

Viewing radio waves requires large, sensitive telescopes. A VLBI array has magnifying power, or “angular resolution,” equivalent to a single telescope with a dish as wide as the longest baseline between two telescopes in the array. (For example, the EHT’s most distant telescopes were separated by more than 7,000 miles, equaling a single telescope more than twice as wide as the United States.) Each telescope in the EHT array captured the radio waves emitted by the black hole from a unique angle, depending on their location on Earth. Adding all these observations together with a powerful computer yielded the final images.

In the 1960’s, scientists at NASA Goddard and MIT Haystack realized that this slight difference in perspective was a valuable source of information — not just about space, but about Earth.

“The basic principle of geodetic VLBI is that radio waves coming in from a distant source hit one station before the other,” said Stephen Merkowitz , manager of NASA’s Space Geodesy Project . “We use quasars, which are very distant active galaxies, so far away that they are fixed points in the sky. We measure the time delay between when the signal hits those two points, and convert to a distance using the speed of light.”

Earth’s rotation causes changes to the time delay between the quasar signals observed by the VLBI stations, allowing scientists to precisely measure the rotation’s speed. They can also use this data to measure the location and distance between the VLBI stations, and by repeating these measurements over time, can observe even tiny, slow changes to the Earth’s surface, like continental drift.

Perhaps VLBI’s most important function is helping to build the International Terrestrial and Celestial Reference Frames. The Terrestrial Reference Frame assigns coordinates to locations on Earth, including its center, providing a consistent framework to relate measurements to each other.

“Suppose you have a mission that measures the sea level in the Gulf of Mexico and have a tide gauge off the coast of Louisiana that is also taking sea level measurements, and you want to tie those together so you have some ground truth to the space observations,” Merkowitz said. “If they’re not in the same reference frame, you can’t do that. If your frame isn’t precise and stable, that will introduce all kinds of errors into that tie. So, a good reference frame allows you to connect different data sets through geolocation.”

The Celestial Reference Frame serves a similar purpose, but instead of creating a stable framework for Earth locations, it creates a framework for locating astronomical objects. Scientists use Earth Orientation Parameters — measurements of time, orientation and rotation — to link the two frames together. This creates a total system to geolocate objects in space and on Earth.

One example of an everyday technology that depends on these reference frames is the Global Positioning System , or GPS. GPS relies on a constellation of satellites constantly broadcasting their locations and times to GPS-enabled devices on the ground, from cell phones to farm equipment. The satellites in the constellation rely on the Terrestrial Reference Frame and the Earth Orientation Parameters to relay their location, so keeping those frameworks precise and accurate is essential for daily activities around the world.

Quantities we sometimes take for granted, like the length of Earth’s day and how fast it rotates, are not actually constant, Merkowitz said. “They depend on lots of different things like weather, major mass motions like El Niño or La Niña, and movements of large amounts of water,” he explained.

Charting a Course for Geodesy’s Future

With Earth constantly changing, geodesy keeps maps accurate, planes and ships on course and satellite measurements precise. In fact, VLBI and other tools are vital for Earth-observing satellites like ICESat-2 and instruments like GEDI , both of which use laser pulses to measure the structures of ice sheets and forests. Without knowing exactly where the spacecraft are located above Earth’s surface, scientists wouldn’t be able to make these kind of precision measurements.

“When you do precision orbit determination for something like ICESat-2, it requires the reference frame as input,” Merkowitz said. “ICESat-2 is very sensitive to errors, so if the calculation of Earth’s center is off, it translates into an error in the science measurements. Precision orbit missions and missions that measure heights are particularly dependent on the framework.”

In 2007, the National Academy of Sciences reported that the nation’s geodesy infrastructure was aging too quickly to keep up with growing demands for data. So NASA launched the Space Geodesy Project to develop and deploy the next generation of geodetic stations, which includes VLBI as well as other techniques that use lasers to precisely track satellites (called satellite laser ranging, or SLR).

The new VLBI stations will be able to sample across a broad range of frequencies instead of just two, giving them more flexibility to keep collecting data if there is interference from Wi-Fi or other signals. Their smaller size and quicker movement will make them more adaptable to atmospheric conditions, but to make up for the smaller dishes (remember, with radio telescopes, bigger is better), they will sample data much faster. Eventually, Merkowitz said, the systems will be able to collect data 24 hours a day without human supervision to provide much more rapid measurements.

The National Academy of Sciences and other international geodetic associations recommend that, for the best science outcomes, the updated Space Geodesy Network should be accurate to within one millimeter, or about the thickness of an ID card. It should also be stable to within one-tenth of a millimeter — the width of a human hair. This precision is crucial for measuring sea levels, which are increasing at about 3.4 millimeters, or 0.13 inches, per year, Merkowitz said.

The project is in its first phase: replacing NASA’s domestic geodetic stations with the next-generation systems.  NASA recently installed its third domestic VLBI station in Texas; its next-generation VLBI stations in Hawaii and Maryland are already in operation and routinely taking measurements. 

NASA is also working with international partners to help transition the international VLBI network to the next-generation technology, Merkowitz said. “International cooperation is vital to the success of space geodesy. Measuring global effects requires a global network, and NASA cannot do this alone.”

The next-generation network will support more precise GPS, increasingly precise reference frames and better support for the many ways we use maps in today’s world. With the help of VLBI, the team will help us know where we are – and where we’re going – with even more accuracy in the future.

By: Jessica Merzdorf NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt , Md. 

Cinemark to show $5 retro movies through Aug. 18. How to find your nearest theater in Florida

You can time travel back to 1984 this week. Sort of.

Movie theatre chain Cinemark is celebrating its 40th anniversary by showing films from the year the company was founded, dubbing the event "Big in ‘84."

According to a press release, even the pricing is "taking a ride in a time machine," with tickets just $5. Here's how to take advantage of the gnarly deal in Florida.

What movies will be shown at Cinemark?

Each day from Monday, Aug. 12 to Sunday, Aug. 18 will feature different 1984 movies on the big screen: 

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

• August 12:  "The Karate Kid"
• August 13:  "The Terminator"
• August 14:  "Gremlins"
• August 15:  "Purple Rain"
• August 16:  "Ghostbusters"
• August 17:  "A Nightmare on Elm Street," "The Last Starfighter"
• August 18:  "Footloose," "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom"

Where to find the nearest Cinemark theaters in Florida

Across Florida, there are eight Cinemark locations:

• Cinemark Bistro Boca Raton and XD - 3200 Airport Road, Boca Raton FL 33431
• Cinemark Boynton Beach 14 and XD - 1151 N Congress Ave., Boynton Beach FL 33426
• Cinemark Paradise 24 and XD - 15601 Sheridan St., Davie FL 33331
• Cinemark Tinseltown Jacksonville and XD - 4535 Southside Blvd., Jacksonville FL 32216
• Cinemark Lakeland Square Mall and XD - 3800 US Highway 98 N, Suite 910 Lakeland FL 33809
• Cinemark Orlando and XD - 5150 International Drive, Orlando FL 32819
• Universal Cinemark at CityWalk and XD - 6000 Universal Blvd., Suite 740 Orlando FL 32819
• Cinemark Jacksonville Atlantic North and XD - 11567 Atlantic Blvd., Jacksonville FL 32225

You can find your nearest Cinemark on their  website here .

GEO 2.0: The Future of Geostationary Orbit

From healthier orders for large satellites to software-defined payloads, microsats, multi-orbit service and a key role in the data relay networks of the future, there is a lot going on in GEO. In this digital era, operators and service providers are given a new level of flexibility to rival the stuffy perception of a once rigid industry.

June 27, 2022

Smallsats and the rise of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations have generated attention and media coverage in recent years. At the same time, orders for large satellites in Geostationary Orbit (GEO) fell drastically. While orders for big birds have picked up once again, albeit not with the same gusto of the 2010 and earlier, the industry is also seeing GEO taking to the big trend in “small.”

Microsats in GEO are doing big things, far more than the excitement of 2006 when the two ultra-suspicious MiTEx satellites were roaming about at an unknown orbital position in GEO. How about serving a nation’s video and data demands? And all with 5 kilowatts, compared to what would have typically taken much more energy, time, and money to manufacture, launch, and operate previously.

Of course, size isn’t everything, it’s about what you can do with it that counts most. And here, the question applies to all birds, large and small, being sent into the sky: is it software defined? Can it enable the network control and efficiency now being touted by network operators? What is happening in GEO to realize the satellite operator’s promise of flexibility? What enables them to not only adjust to changing customer demand over the life of the satellite, but to see in-orbit servicing potentiate extended missions?

The software-defined payload could be the game changer that sees GEO satellites become one of the most efficient and lowest cost technologies to deliver services to end users. The value is that with software-defined satellites, no spectrum or power need be wasted covering areas that are not demanded by end users. Power, spectrum, and coverage can be dynamically assignable as demand, customers and usage patterns shift.

This should impact pricing, says Tom Choi, CEO at Saturn Satellite Networks, the company that designed and developed the Nationsat communications microsatellite to efficiently provide a country’s data and video services with 5 kilowatts.

“Software-defined high-throughput satellites (HTS) from GEO will most likely reduce the pricing to end users by at least one order of magnitude than current pricing. It will be a very compelling proposition versus LEO systems that are priced higher than GEO HTS and require much more expensive and power-hungry terminals,” says Choi. “LEO broadband will have its niche, but the bulk of the future connectivity via satellite will belong to software-defined radio HTS in GEO.”

Currently, Saturn Satellite Networks is working on developing its SDR fleet for GEO, the Intelligent Space Node (ISN), and has built a backlog of more than $1 billion in end-user commitments.

The Economics of GEO

More than half of all GEO orders since 2019 have been for software-defined platforms and at the same time, the case for microsats is growing.

“This will only increase over time,” says John Gedmark, CEO and co-founder of Astranis, which develops what it calls MicroGEO satellites. “We believe smallsats are the future. Dedicated is better than shared. Fast is better than slow. Custom is better than one-size-fits-all. For customers, flexibility and resiliency are increasingly important, so GEO satellites are getting smaller, more agile and less expensive. These days, a customer can have their own dedicated communications satellite in GEO for very little cash up front. Modularity, expandability and the ability to play nice with other infrastructure is also increasingly important because customers don’t want to be locked in to a technology that requires substantial investment in new ground equipment.”

With such innovation going on in GEO, how is this orbit driving the market? According to Northern Sky Research, the fixed satellite service (FSS) market today is about $13 billion per year, and is expected to grow to about $20 billion by 2030. Of this $20 billion, it is projected that about $15 billion will be from FSS in GEO and the remaining $5 billion in LEO.

Within this context, what are the contributing applications and how will the servicing of satellites come into play? While data and connectivity are the growing segments of the FSS market, satellites play a significant role in the distribution of broadcast content. However, will this be the case in the next 10 to 20 years, as video continues to shift online and appeal for on-demand content continues to grow? Here, an operator’s ability to extend the life of a broadcasting satellite greatly changes the game. Conversely, how could the operator justify investing some $200 million today to support a diminishing application?

“Especially when entering a new orbital slot or developing new market segments, the economics of smaller GEO satellites will outweigh the investment of larger GEO satellites,” adds Choi. “Multiple companies have announced plans for GEO satellite manufacturing, but the use of heritage components are a must when providing technology to customers who depend on GEO satellites to last 15 to 20 years. Instead of reinventing every component, Saturn Satellite Networks is only using heritage components for our satellites.”

Trends in GEO: Then & Now

According to Euroconsult, there was an average of 20 new satellites per year in the late 2000s when the order rate of GEO communications satellites decreased to less than or equal to 10 from 2017 to 2019. Then came the exceptional boom: year 2020 saw 18 orders, of which 13 were for the accelerated C-band clearance plan of the FCC in the U.S. accepted by SES and Intelsat. Excluding these 13 C-band satellites, the other five orders were replacement satellites of five regional operators.

Euroconsult expects a return to an average of 12 orders per year from 2023, based on a replacement or expansion scenario that considers both market drivers and inhibitors, such as 5G networks deployment, competition of broadband constellations and introduction of life extension services.

“This number may prove too optimistic if the 10 largest commercial operators adopt a replacement or expansion strategy that favors non-GEO investment, such as terrestrial networks, HAPS and LEO constellations, or if the investment is in more capable and larger satellites,” says Maxime Puteaux, principal advisor at Euroconsult.

A growing trend: software-defined satellites are getting traction. Airbus has already sold seven since 2019. In 2022, four of five orders were based on Thales’s new Space Inspire bus, which supports fully reconfigurable, software-defined payloads, emphasizing operators’ need for flexibility in a changing satcom market.

When it comes to the value proposition of software-defined satellites, the key word is flexibility. They allow operators to adapt to changes in market demand and business plans. As these satellites are reconfigurable in orbit, operators can change coverage, frequency and bandwidth allocation to changing demand patterns.

“This mitigates the market risk for satellite operators that are investing in satellites with a 15-year lifetime,” says Nathan de Ruiter, managing director at Euroconsult. “We certainly expect a more efficient use of the satellite bandwidth and hence higher utilization rates on software-defined satellites. The next question is whether software-defined satellites can provide a pathway to achieve significant cost reduction and better integration with 5G terrestrial networks, two of the industry’s biggest challenges today. If able to achieve both, it can be a game changer for the satcom industry.”

Life Extension Services a Niche Market

There is, however, also the question of keeping old tech in an ever-changing world. Satellite servicing is pitched as a means to extend the lives of in-orbit satellites that are functionally well but running out of fuel.

“I don’t think satellite servicing changes the economics of GEO at all,” says Gedmark. “Think of it like this: if you had a laptop from 20 years ago and the battery died today, what would you rather do –spend $1,000 to buy a custom replacement battery, or spend $1,000 for a brand-new, state-of-the-art machine?”

Beyond microGEO, how can any older satellite compete with the new game-changing capabilities of software-defined payloads? Airbus was the first to market with its new generation of software-defined satellites. The OneSat spacecraft features a fully reconfigurable, processed payload enabling capacity to be reallocated and the broadcast footprint dynamically changed to suit the market. This enables operators to completely change what their satellite does in orbit: adjust the coverage area, capacity, power allocation and frequency to meet short- and long-term evolving mission scenarios.

“Some companies will pay to extend the lives of their satellites, but there will be a trade off in extending the life of a 15-year-old satellite, or investing in more flexible and efficient state-of-the-art spacecraft such as OneSat. Some of our ultra-reliable Eurostar GEO satellites have already operated perfectly in orbit many years longer than their 15-year design life, but we would expect operators to look to maximize their returns with the most modern technology offered,” says Jean-Marc Nasr, executive vice president of Airbus Space Systems.

Simply put, without software-defined payloads, you’re up against a significant disadvantage, one that diminishes the benefits afforded by microGEO, adds Nasr. “MicroGEO spacecraft may appeal to operators looking to serve smaller market segments with fewer targeted services. However, without the flexibility to adapt to changing market conditions, it may make them a harder business case to justify in the longer term,” he says.

Euroconsult believes the life extension services market will remain a niche, despite growth in adoption rates modelled over the next decades.

“A growing life extension services adoption rate among the satellite operators does not compensate for a structurally decreasing GEO market,” says Puteaux. “There is a window of opportunity, driven by chemical satellites, for the life extension services market between today and 2040, but the market beyond 2040 remains uncertain. The global reduction of manufacturing and launch costs, coupled with the relatively low cost of capital, drives continuous CapEx efficiency improvements, facilitating the feasibility of financing and launching replacement satellites rather than procuring life extension services.”

Multi-Orbit Service

LEO also plays a complementary role for the industry to offer multi-orbit service. When combined with GEO, customers can get the best of both worlds – or rather, the best of the GEO and non-GEO satellite parking lots. While LEO can provide lower latency and ubiquitous global coverage, GEO adds a significant amount of high capacity over concentrated high-demand fixed areas. Of course, as LEO’s ubiquitous coverage and lower latency comes at a higher cost and lower availability, it’s somewhat limited to a market willing to pay a premium.

Because GEO is very efficient in delivering non-latency sensitive traffic such as video streaming for consumers, in a multi-orbit future, latency sensitive traffic would likely flow over LEO or Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) and video traffic over GEO. This would all need to be enabled through intelligent traffic routing software.

When combined, service providers can mix and match both GEO and non-GEO satellite capacity to meet the requirements of end users. Mobility and government seem like likely verticals for the multi-orbit market as this service aligns well with their user requirements. However, the ground segment has to play an enabling role here.

“The actual market adoption of multi-orbit services will largely depend on the ground segment. The performance, reliability and price of the multi-orbit user terminals will define the applicability across different user segments. There will always be the trade-off between additional flexibility versus cost, and appetite can significantly differ between user segments,” says de Ruiter.

The software built into the satellites answers the growing demand for more capacity and more flexibility. And supporting this total system is the software within the ground platform, explains

Adrian Morris, executive vice president of Engineering at Hughes Network Systems. With its software suite, the Hughes Jupiter System is scalable and configurable for a variety of GEO satellites around the world, with some features and applications implemented via software.

Playing an enabling role in multi-orbit service makes it an exciting time for satellite as it holds great promise for all kinds of applications, adds Morris.

“As good as GEO is at delivering capacity right where it’s needed the most, there are places it does not reach, such as the higher latitudes and poles, where LEO satellites can offer coverage. In this way, GEO and LEO are complementary, but taking the concept a step further, a multi-orbit solution delivering both GEO and LEO capacity to the same premise or business, holds tremendous promise for enterprise, government and residential services,” says Morris.

For enterprise and government solutions, a multi-orbit solution offers redundancy and resiliency, ensuring a connection no matter what may happen. Hughes is leading a private 5G implementation for the U.S. Navy at the Whidbey Island Naval Air Base in Washington State. For global connectivity as well as resilience, the architecture of that network includes both LEO and GEO backhaul.

“Our enterprise customers, including oil and gas pipelines and nationwide retailers, are interested in adding LEO to their networks and SD-WAN deployments. In some cases, the customer wants LEO for site connectivity in remote and rural places. In other instances, the customer wants a LEO overlay across the entire network as either a secondary or tertiary back-up system,” says Morris.

During this year’s SATELLITE show, Hughes demonstrated a seamless multi-orbit GEO-LEO connection using Hughes Jupiter 2 GEO capacity and OneWeb LEO capacity. The multi-orbit solution delivered a visibly “snappier” internet experience that supported a multi-player, fast-twitch video game and web browsing without buffering. The demonstration showcased the best of both worlds, with the GEO link handling background downloads and big files, while the LEO connection gave the service a boost – quickly establishing a video stream, which would then continue transmitting over GEO.

“Make no mistake, GEO is essential to the multi-orbit future. These satellites are the workhorses of the connected ecosystem, capable of transmitting gigabits of data quickly and efficiently, whether for primary or back-up connectivity, backhaul or broadband. LEO is quickly growing crowded; while satellites in GEO have delivered essential connectivity for decades, along with industry and geo-political cooperation and consideration for in-orbit operations. In the same way the transoceanic fiber cables have connected continents for decades, GEO satellites will deliver tried and true connectivity worldwide for many years to come,” says Morris.

Bifurcation: Enter the Big Birds

For Mark Dankberg, executive chairman of Viasat, enabling multi-orbit service is analogous to 5G, and how networks must use different transmission bands, coverage areas, and physical layer techniques to obtain network level results that are not economical, or even possible, when using just a single transmission medium. For multi-orbit service, the underlying principle is to combine different transmission resources with different advantages and disadvantages to achieve a single seamless, aggregate service for users.

“We believe the most effective and highest performing networks will dynamically integrate transmission via multiple orbits, multiple frequency bands, as well as integration with terrestrial components, such as wired or wireless for end-user and infrastructure applications,” says Dankberg.

In stark contrast to the emerging microGEO trend, Viasat is ready to welcome its global ViaSat-3 Ka-band constellation, with each satellite expected to weigh several tons. With bigger is better clout, ViaSat-3 is expected to deliver unprecedented capacity; at least 1 terabyte per second, with download speeds of up to hundreds of megabits per second to individuals, businesses and governments on the ground, in the air and at sea.

A satellite being software-defined is not the be-all and end-all, says Dankberg. Value depends on the type and degree of reconfigurability enabled – and the trade-offs involved in achieving that reconfigurability. Satellites are often constrained in the sense that if they had more resources, such as power, volume or mass, they could increase bandwidth and coverage. Therefore, if the resource consumption required for a software-defined satellite is so substantial that it decreases total bandwidth or coverage, then it might decrease value.

“Also, the rate – microseconds, hours, or days – at which satellites can be reconfigured, and the actual mechanism for allocating bandwidth have a large impact on value creation. And this can be much different in unicast versus broadcast applications,” says Dankberg. “For instance, a mechanically steerable spot beam is reconfigurable and may be software-defined, but may not be as valuable in unicast markets as a dynamic, spatially and frequency agile phased array beamformer. But the phased array may consume so much more power than the mechanically steered beam and reduce total bandwidth or coverage so much as to destroy, rather than create value.”

Because of their very large field of view – a third of the earth – for serving other satellites in space together with how satellites can be designed to serve a very large number of highly dispersed space vehicles simply and directly, GEO satellites are valuable in space relay networks.

“An extremely high-capacity satellite, like ViaSat-3, that can maintain a grid of beams covering the entire planet can support satellites in virtually any orbit below GEO with a simple modular user terminal. GEO space relay service can be acquired on demand to augment other services,” says Dankberg.

In April this year, Viasat was selected by NASA as part of its Communications Services Project to develop and demonstrate space relay capabilities for a variety of applications.

Euroconsult also sees GEO as the pivotal enabler of space relay networks. “GEO is expected to play a key role as the backbone in the data relay market considering the trade-off that the orbit offers in terms of coverage, and line of sight for both space and ground segments,” says Puteaux. VS

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Puzzle solutions for Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024

Note: Most subscribers have some, but not all, of the puzzles that correspond to the following set of solutions for their local newspaper.

USA TODAY crossword

Play the USA TODAY Crossword Puzzle .

Los Angeles Times crossword

Today’s crossword (mcmeel), daily commuter crossword.

Play the USA TODAY Sudoku Game .

Jumbles: FENCE      RUMOR      FIXATE      WHIMSY      

Answer: The team won the baseball game after their relief pitcher − CAME "THREW"

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CRYPTOGRAPHY PUZZLES 

Celebrity cipher.

"Seek that which within lies waiting to begin the fight of your life that is everyday." − Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson

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Cryptoquote

IF IT COULD ONLY BE LIKE THIS ALWAYS − ALWAYS SUMMER, ALWAYS ALONE, THE FRUIT ALWAYS RIPE. − EVELYN WAUGH

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JOKEY NOTIFICATION PHRASE THAT WAS DISPLAYED ONB A JAR OF SWEET PICKLES: "THIS IS NOT A DILL."

OTHER PUZZLES

IOWA      IDAHO      KANSAS      ALASKA      ARKANSAS      

AWAIT, TRAITOR, REPERTOIRE, ERASES, SWAPPED

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7 little words.

• ADIRONDACKS

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Some beautiful rural towns

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