Satellites firing lasers at each other in space sounds like science fiction, but it's happening right now, as terabytes of data quickly pass across the Starlink network. Muon Space satellites are set to adopt the technology, enabling a near future when they transfer data as easily as we access the internet on the ground.
This week, Muon announced it will incorporate Starlink's mini laser technology into its upcoming Halo spacecraft, with the first outfitted satellite going up in 2027. Starlink satellites communicate with each other using lasers, creating a mesh network in low-Earth orbit, or LEO. The tech supports 25Gbps connections between satellites at a range of up to 4,000 kilometers. Higher data speeds are available at shorter distances.
Muon Space will be the first company outside of Starlink parent SpaceX to use the mini laser technology on its satellites.
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Satellites typically suffer from bottlenecks like latency when communicating with ground stations, and lag when traveling between them.
"Most of the Earth observation and analytics in space have been constrained at a systems level by this little straw of connectivity, which gets pinched most of the time and only gets connected once in a while," Muon Space's president, Gregory Smirin, told CNET.
With the mini laser technology, Muon satellites will join the Starlink network for real-time data access and high-bandwidth streaming. Muon says latency gets reduced to milliseconds. It also noted that data is end-to-end encrypted to maintain the security of customer information.
Normally, this kind of announcement is intended to excite Muon's existing and potential corporate customers, but the broader implications of the technology will also be felt by everyday people. Smirin equated the adoption of the mini laser technology on satellites to the shift from the days when people connected to the internet using dial-up modems to the always-on access that's prevalent today.
"Even in 2027, you're going to start to see the impact of this kind of persistent connectivity on services that will be visible to individuals," Smirin said. "Space is becoming a ground truth enabler."
For example, Muon Space is the hardware supplier behind FireSat, the system of satellites developed in conjunction with Google and the Earth Fire Alliance to locate and track wildfires from space. In July, the companies released the first FireSat images from an initial protoflight satellite in orbit for testing.
Smirin explained that reducing latency will help operators track a fire's direction and progress. He cited this year's wildfires in Los Angeles, when the winds and smoke prevented aircraft from flying overhead to make accurate observations. With FireSat, you could get that information on an ongoing basis, enabling responders to better establish perimeters for personnel and equipment.
"We're providing five to ten times the capacity that the rest of the new space industry is providing, so this is a massive step forward," he said.
Smirin said the company is confident in the technology. After all, these are the same terminals Starlink uses to operate its global mesh network. "It's operating today for everyone, and it's reliable, and now it's about bringing that capacity to organizations outside of Starlink."