Internet access can come in many forms. The vast majority of people receive internet connectivity through their mobile data plan, whereas others use a finger or DSL connection. But if it is up to SpaceX, satellite-powered internet is just a few years away. The company asked the US government for permission to launch roughly 4,000 satellites into Earth’s orbit and provide Internet connectivity to the entire world.
Using Space Satellites For Internet Connectivity is Plausible
If it were up to Elon Musk and SpaceX, landline internet connectivity would become a thing of the past very soon. The company has developed a plan to launch satellites into space, which will act as a global internet network. Moreover, all of these satellites will provide high-speed connectivity to any place on earth.
This plan came to fruition in 2015, when Google, along with other partners, invested US$1bn into the Company. Rolling out a satellite-based internet network is not an easy feat, and early projections indicated it would take at last five years to develop the necessary hardware. By the look of things, those initial plans have been accelerated.
A few days ago, it became evident that SpaceX has sent an application to the US government regarding approval for the launching of 4,000 satellites into orbit. While that sounds very exciting, it also raises a lot of questions. For starters, no one really knows what this network will be used for. Moreover, there are a lot of privacy questions and concerns that need to be answered.
Speculators are hinting at how this idea might be part of a bigger plan. Elon Musk is a brilliant individual with big plans, yet no one knows exactly what he plans to do. One of the possibilities that Musk has hinted at is how these satellites could be used as an internet service in Mars, assuming us humans ever manage to colonize the planet.
News sources indicate that this global internet network will be rolled in at various stages. A total of 800 satellites will be launched into orbit at first, assuming there will be approval from the US government. That is a very delicate matter, as it remains doubtful that they will grant a private company to shoot satellites into space anytime soon.
That being said, SpaceX is not the only company in town with ambitious plans to start conquering space. OneWeb is a venture looking to achieve a similar goal, and they expect to have satellites in orbit before 2020. Whether or not that will be the case, remains to be seen, though.
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