As giants compete to enter the field, what will happen in the field of satellite communications?
In recent years, the satellite communications industry worldwide has entered a period of rapid development.
There are more and more new technologies and new applications emerging in the field of satellite communications, which have become the focus of attention from the media and all walks of life.
Especially in the period just after 2022, both Huawei and Apple have successively released mobile phones equipped with satellite communication technology, which has caused a wave of craze both inside and outside the industry. People have speculated: Have we completely entered the era of satellite Internet? What impact will the rise of satellite communications have on our lives?
Today, Dazhan Electronics will give you a comprehensive interpretation.
The history of satellite communications
On October 4, 1957, the world's first artificial earth satellite "Sputnik 1" was launched into space, marking mankind's entry into the space age.
The background of "Sputnik 1" is during the Cold War. At that time, the man-made satellites launched by the superpowers were basically for military purposes.
Later, with the development of the times, people gradually discovered the civilian value of this satellite. Commercial satellites are increasingly being launched into space for use in areas such as ground remote sensing, meteorological observation, and broadcast communications.
my country's first satellite was named "Dongfanghong 1", which is the most famous satellite in the world. The satellite was launched on April 24, 1970. The "Eastern Red" music it played in space left unforgettable memories for countless Chinese people.
After entering the 1980s, international commercial satellites entered a new stage. It has become a trend to use satellites to relay television signals and forward communication messages.
At that time, the famous American Motorola came up with a good idea, which was to use 77 satellites to form a satellite phone network covering the world, so that you could make calls anywhere on the earth.
Yes, this is Project Iridium.
Iridium satellite (copy)
The Iridium project marks the first phase of human commercial satellite development. Limited by the technological level, business model and other factors at the time, the project ultimately failed, leaving a mess.
In the 21st century, some companies began to make a comeback. This time, they gave a more rational development direction, making it clear that they would serve as a supplement to land-based communication systems (not like the Iridium project, which wanted to replace base stations) and focus on users at sea and remote areas.
This change in positioning marks the second stage of my country's commercial satellite development.
This stage is represented by O3b Network Company. They have successfully partnered with telecommunications companies to provide satellite broadband communications services to islands and ships.
Among them, the positioning function of satellite communication has been changed in the second phase of development. It is no longer just for voice calls and television broadcast services, it is developing into a larger market, that is satellite Internet.
You can recall that around 2007, it was the 3G era and the smartphone era. The rise of the mobile Internet has had a huge impact on satellite communications, enabling satellites to gradually provide wider network coverage and access capabilities.
In 2015, Elon Musk officially launched the "Starlink" project based on SpaceX. It plans to launch 4,425 low-Earth orbit satellites (later increased to 42,000) to provide high-speed broadband network services to users around the world.
Falcon 9 rocket lifts off carrying Starlink satellite
The launch of the Starlink project shocked the whole world, and also advanced satellite communications to the third stage - the era of low-orbit broadband satellite Internet.
The so-called "low-orbit satellites" refer to satellites operating in low-Earth orbit 500-2000 kilometers above the ground. Although its coverage area is smaller than that of high-orbit and medium-orbit satellites, it can make up for the lack of coverage by increasing the number of satellites, thereby achieving the goals of large capacity, low latency, and fast network speeds.
In the third stage, in addition to low orbit, there is also the emergence of high-throughput communication satellites.
High-throughput satellites use wider communication bands (such as Ku, Ka), more advanced satellite platforms, more transponders, and stronger antennas to achieve larger communication bandwidth (such as 1-2 Gbps) than traditional satellites ) to bring users a better network experience.
All in all, it is precisely because of the emergence of these two satellites that the global satellite communications industry has advanced by leaps and bounds.
5. Application value of satellite communications
The development of artificial satellite communications does have its unique technical advantages.
Satellites are in space. As the saying goes, stand high and see far. It utilizes limited space resources and can easily achieve large-scale signal coverage.
As we know, after hundreds of years of construction and development, humans have established a relatively complete ground-based communication network on the earth, covering a large population. However, the current transportation network is mainly concentrated in residential areas.
When we say wide network coverage, we mean wide population coverage, not wide land coverage. Take our country as an example. We have the strongest network in the world, which can reach 99% coverage. However, the coverage rate of this land is only about 30%.
In other words, there are many deep mountains, forests, deserts, grasslands, and Gobi Desert in the vast expanse of land. There are no mobile phone signals in these places, let alone fiber optics.
Therefore, the use of satellite communication technology can make up for the shortcomings of traditional terrestrial communication systems and achieve coverage in remote areas.
Satellite communications, extremely wide coverage
Satellite communications can provide strong support for resource exploration, forest fire prevention, emergency and disaster relief, adventure tourism, wildlife protection and other application scenarios, which not only facilitates business development, but also ensures life safety.
For residents in less developed areas, satellite communications can allow them to access the Internet faster and cheaper, which can help promote local economic development and narrow the digital divide.
In recent years, the Internet of Things (such as asset management, geological disaster monitoring, etc.) based on satellite communications has also achieved good development and has huge market potential.
In addition to the ground, satellite communications are also widely used in marine communications and aviation communications. These areas also have a high demand for network connectivity, have many valuable customers, and have a high return on investment.
Satellite Communication Industry Outlook
Satellite communications has attracted many companies to participate due to its wide range of applications and high commercial value.
In addition to the "Starlink" mentioned before, many companies abroad are also conducting commercial satellite Internet projects. For example, South Korea's Samsung's Space Internet Plan, Amazon's "Quipel Plan", the "Earth Orbiting Satellite" plan of "Earth Orbiting Satellite" and so on.
In 2022, as mainstream mobile phone manufacturers such as Huawei and Apple accelerate their deployment of satellite communications, a new track of "smartphone + satellite communications" has been opened up. Next, Qualcomm and Iridium are targeting the market where mobile phones are directly connected to satellites, applying satellite communications to Android phones. The technology will be available in the second half of this year and is expected to be more powerful than the iPhone.
The industry generally believes that satellite communications will become a standard configuration of flagship mobile phones between 2023 and 2024.
In our country, our country is actively deploying satellite Internet industry and technology.
In 2016, the "Aerospace White Paper" was released at the national level. It is clearly stated that the satellite system level and basic product capabilities will be improved, the three major systems of satellite remote sensing, satellite communications and broadcasting, and satellite navigation and positioning will be built, a space-ground integrated information network will be built, a space infrastructure system will be basically built, and continuous and stable business service capabilities will be formed. , to promote the development of satellite and application industries.
In addition, the white paper also states that "private capital and social forces are encouraged and guided to participate in aerospace scientific research and production and other aerospace activities in an orderly manner to promote the development of commercial aerospace."
On April 20, 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission included satellite Internet, 5G, industrial Internet, etc. in the information infrastructure for the first time, clarifying the great strategic significance of building satellite Internet.
In China, the more familiar ones are China Satcom and Star Network Group. But in fact, the development of private enterprises in the commercial aerospace field is also something worth noting.
Among them, Zhejiang Shikong Daoyu Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Shikong Daoyu") is the most typical.
Spacetime Daoyu is a young company founded in 2018. It is currently working on building the world's first low-orbit future travel constellation. It has currently implemented nine satellites in orbit and is expected to have a total of 72 satellites in the first phase by 2025. The satellites will all be put into use. In just a few years, they have made remarkable achievements in the production and application of satellites.
In terms of satellite manufacturing, Spacetime Daoyu has achieved a one-stop AIT from satellite development to mass production with its independently developed universal satellite platforms of multiple orders of magnitude and low-cost, high-reliability satellite and supply chain products. Delivered in orbit.
In terms of satellite applications, through the satellite mobile communication systems of Beidou 3 and Tiantong 1, medium and low-speed satellite communication services, high-precision satellite-based positioning services, and satellite remote sensing artificial intelligence services can be provided.
Today's Time and Space Daoyu has formed a research and development system with "Shanghai Research Institute" as the core and "Nanjing" and "Xi'an" as the backing. It has established "Guangzhou", "Qingdao", "Beijing", and "Zhejiang" Taizhou’s satellite super factory.
As the only private commercial aerospace unicorn in China that has achieved a closed-loop business, it has formed a complete industrial chain covering satellite R&D, manufacturing, measurement and control, and application, and is striving to become the world's leading aerospace information and communication infrastructure and application solutions. provider.
In June 2022, the "One Arrow and Nine Stars" successfully entered orbit, ushering in a new era of China's commercial aerospace.
As a private commercial aerospace company, Spacetime Daoyu is building the world's first low-orbit future travel constellation while making full use of the "Beidou 3" and "Tiantong 1" satellite mobile communication systems to provide users with satellite application data Serve. Combining aerospace technology with new energy vehicles, it provides satellite-based high-precision positioning services for vehicles through its own constellations and ground systems, empowering smart travel.
In terms of consumer electronics, Geely will officially enter the mobile phone industry in 2021, and Spacetime Daoyu, as a company under Geely, is likely to provide satellite application services to help Geely create a new way of mobile travel. From this point on It seems that the future development space is huge.
The last sentence
The future of mankind will be a vast sea of stars.
Wang Yang, CEO of Spacetime Daoyu, believes that for a private commercial aerospace company, technology and application scenarios are indispensable, and both are indispensable. In the process of marketization, the development direction of private commercial aerospace is not only technological innovation, but more importantly, the application of aerospace technology into human production and life, thereby promoting economic development.
In the past few decades, we have witnessed the vigorous development of satellite technology and the tremendous value it brings to human society. At present, this technology has entered a new stage of development, its commercial application is getting faster and faster, and its market potential is growing.
In the tide of digital transformation, it is very meaningful to seize the opportunity and build a three-dimensional digital network that combines "empty" and "empty".
We are very optimistic about the development prospects of aerospace technology companies such as Kongshi Daoyu. Their innovations in satellite technology have already begun to take shape. I believe that they will definitely bring more surprises in the near future.
