It might not be long before you would have internet being directly beamed down to your computer from space! Sounds something right out of science fiction, right? But then facts are stranger than fiction and there is a very strong possibility that in a decade the internet connection that you will have on your computer could be a live feed from space.
It was in June this year that Elon Musk announced the possibility that SpaceX could launch 700 microsatellites into the orbit to form a communication network, creating the web to transmit internet connections at very low costs throughout the globe. The proposed bunch of satellites will be light weight and will enable the company to offer a very low cost internet connection to the masses.
While SpaceX is positively contemplating this idea, Samsung has also announced the possibility that they might also launch microsatellites in space that will be positioned in the Low Earth Orbit or LEO to beam down the internet service. Samsung’s proposal includes launching a massive 4600 microsatellites that will cast a web of communication and internet transmission.
There are several other large corporations working on such concepts and if they are successful, it will not be long before internet transmission via satellite will become a reality. Companies like Google, Facebook and Virgin are already working on several concepts that will make low cost internet connection available to everyone. Facebook has plans of launching automated drones that will beam down the internet while Google is already working on helium balloons in Sri Lanka that will beam down the internet connection.
The number if internet users are expected to increase to 5 billion by the end of the next decade. This means that within the next 15 years there will be a massive need for identifying options to enable the spread and access of the internet to this large population. Current communications systems are insufficient to meet this kind of surge in the internet access. A large number of internet users will also mean, the data storage and data transmission requirements will be immense and therefore something as radical and drastic as the microsatellites might be needed to solve the problem.
However, microsatellites also pose a major problem related to space debris. The orbit around the earth is full of debris due to broken satellites and other objects that were launched in space. In Space, even light and small objects can cause severe damage to other satellites, astronauts and spacecrafts launched into space. A solution to this problem is also needed and therefore before any of these pioneers of space internet embark on their journey, it is essential that they understand these risks.
