James Bond mixes satellites and sex, but Sky and Space Global will encircle Earth’s equator using 200 nanosats with the help of Virgin Galactic.
Sky and Space Global has a goal and promises to deliver ‘affordable communication services to - ANYONE, ANYWHERE, ANYTIME,’ which will ‘connect the 4 billion people currently without access to basic mobile coverage, including text messaging and voice calls.’
Data speeds will be around 100kbps for mobile users, although fixed locations can get faster speeds - see the video below for more detail on that - but the network will grow, the nano satellite network will be progressively upgraded with better technologies and faster speeds once the initial network is in place, and faster speeds will definitely come.
However to simply give voice, text and a consistent level of data to 4 billion people that didn’t have it previously, in an affordable way, and you clearly have something special that has simply never been done before - but is finally being done now.
Having recently listed on the ASX, Sky and Space Global’s plan to deliver 200 nano satellites will focus on the equator from 15 degrees south latitude to 15 degrees north in its initial constellation.
{loadposition alex08}These nano satellites are 80% cheaper than traditional satellites.
Even better is that nanp satellite technology is rapidly maturing, and even more so at the behest, drive, vision, technical capability and that of its talented hardware and launch partners, Sky and Space Global, (SSG) the age of nano satellites has arrived to fill price and coverage gaps so the rest of the world - and then all of it - can benefit from the new technology and the new competition.
After all, once SSG has its 200 nano satellite constellation up and running, and generating revenue, the next phase will use even more advanced nano satellite technology to expand SSG’s network of satellites to deliver global coverage, challenging the incumbent major satellite phone and data players on a global basis - hello Inmarsat, Iridium and others!
Last week, SSG’s CEO, Meir Moalem and its CTO, Meidad Pariente, were in Sydney, and I was offered the opportunity of meeting them and learning about the company, its vision and more. Naturally I wanted to do a video interview, which is embedded above.
Both men are remarkable, with rich histories in their respective military and high-tech fields, and you’ll learn more of their history in the video above.
You’ll see how SSG’s nano satellites are covering the equator, a strip in the sky that doesn’t already have low earth orbiting satellites encircling it, which enables SSG to deliver affordable phone and data communications to many countries, including third world countries, in the zone of coverage.
As noted above, this will bring voice and data communications to 4 billion people in a low cost way, delivering information, communications, apps and more to so many more people that in itself will be an incredible achievement and gift to humanity.
Such capability at the fingertips of effectively everyone (seeing as the rest of us already have 4G and modern technology at our fingers), one can only imagine and hope that this will surely improve us as a species and a people simply because so many more people are lifted up into the digitally connected era in places where there is no mobile coverage.
After all, not everyone can just pop by their local phone shop to get a cheap pre-paid SIM with unlimited voice and text and several gig of data.
So - it was truly fascinating and interesting to meet with Meir and Meidad and talk to them about SSG, it’s progress, its coming Indian launch of its three test satellites, and the plan it has already agreed to with Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic to progressively launch 200 satellites to complete the initial SSG commercial constellation, which will happen in 2018.
The first three "pilot" satellites - dubbed the "three diamonds", Buddha, Dharma and Sangha - are in construction, and will be ready for take-off mid 2017 aboard an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).
As noted above, the company also recently signed a letter of intent with Richard Bransons' Virgin Galactic to use its orbital launch vehicle, LauncherOne, in 2018, so exciting times are clearly ahead!
So, without further ado, here is the excellent video interview with Sky and Space Globa’s CEO, Meir Moalem and its CTO, Meidad Pariente - the article continues below, please read on!
In the video, I introduced Meir and Meidad and welcomed them to the interview.
I asked them to tell us a bit about the company’s history, and their own, and how the idea for SSG came about. We discussed the technology, the initial 3 nano satellite launch, the launch partner, the 200 satellite constellation, its launch by Virgin Galactic, expected data speeds, expected prices and plenty more.
Indeed, we spoke about all of the things listed above and more, so if you’re still reading here and haven’t watched the video yet, put yourself in the pilot seat, and get ready for take off!