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While Starlink and OneWeb are fighting for a monopoly on satellite Internet, our country is developing its projects in this area. One of them is the Sphere program. We understand what satellites are capable of and who launches them in our country
What is a “Sphere”?
Sphere is a program of Roscosmos, which implies the comprehensive development of space information technologies until 2030. It also includes the launch of a group of satellites for sensing the Earth from space: by 2030, it is planned to launch more than 500 objects. Also, 300 satellites will be launched to ensure the operation of the Internet of things, which will increase the total capacity of the Russian satellite infrastructure to 430 Gbps.
In June 2021, within the framework of the XIV International Navigation Forum “Navitech-2021”, the congress “Sphere” was held, where they spoke in detail about the immediate prospects of the program and discussed plans for the development of the space industry. In 2022, a new satellite will be presented, on which Roscosmos plans to spend ₽7 billion, and the implementation of the entire program will cost ₽800 billion, only ₽300 billion of which will be budgetary funds.
What size are the satellites?
All vehicles weighing over 1 ton are considered large satellites. Small ones are divided into the following categories:
- minisatellites (from 100 to 500 kg);
- microsatellites (from 10 to 100 kg);
- nanosatellites (lighter than 10 kg);
- cubesats (10x10x10 cm and weighing up to 1,3 kg);
- pocketcubes (5x5x5 cm and up to 250 gr);
- pico satellites (from 100 g to 1 kg).
Who today develops and launches satellites in our country
In addition to Roskosmos, among state corporations Gazprom is engaged in satellites. Its Gazprom Space Systems infrastructure includes the Yamal constellation of satellites and the ground control complex.
According to Euroconsult, in the world today the share of state participation in the space industry is 80%. By 2029, the market will grow fivefold, with about 1 satellites launched each year, with 500% being small satellites weighing up to 90 kg.
Development
“Sputniks” is a project that has been developing satellites and systems for their maintenance since 2011. The company has three satellite platforms: TableSat (microsatellites), OrbiCraft (educational platform for teaching students how to develop and launch satellites) and CubeSat (cubesat satellites). For ten years, the company has launched five of its own satellites into orbit, two more were developed on the basis of one of the platforms and launched from the ISS.
Success Rockets with the support of Roskosmos, it produces three platforms for creating cubesats, micro- and mini-satellites.
“Astronomicon” is developing ultra-small CubeSat satellites, the first batch of which is planned to be launched in November 2021 from the Vostochny cosmodrome. The company has platforms: ProtoS for designing nanosatellites based on deep learning and data from open sources; “Synergy” for ultra-small and nanosatellites; “Polytechnic” – to create an ecosystem of pico- and nanosatellites and “Origami” for nanosatellites.
Release
Company “Stratonautics” launches meteorological satellites into the stratosphere (to a height of up to 50 km) and places advertisements on them.
For ten years of work, 150 launches have been performed. The company has an educational project “Stratospheric Satellite” to launch devices developed by students and schoolchildren. Stratonavtika also conducts tests of satellites and other equipment in the stratosphere to make sure that it will work in conditions of weightlessness and space loads.
Another startup that plans to make money on advertising using microsatellites is Before Space. The satellites will be placed in orbit at an altitude of 600 km in the form of given figures, names and logos, and the lasers on the satellites will transmit a binary code with a link to the customer’s website. The first test launch took place in September 2020, and the first working satellites are promised to be put into orbit in 2022.
Data collection and processing
The missile companyLin Industrial» there is a project to deploy a constellation of 28 microsatellites for remote sensing of the Earth. This will make it possible to obtain a large amount of data, including images of the planet’s surface in the optical and infrared ranges. The main goal of the project is to meet the specific needs of private companies: for example, environmental and agricultural monitoring.
Company “Sovzond” deals with geoinformation technologies and space monitoring. Since 1992, it has been transmitting data for municipal government and agriculture/forestry via satellites, building topographic maps, 3D elevation and terrain models, and providing analytics and data visualization software.
Project “Lorette” produces hardware complexes for processing and transmission of Earth remote sensing data from space. Such data is used, for example, when detecting violations in the field of fishing and environmental safety, as well as detecting floods and forest fires. The company also participates in educational projects for children dedicated to the study of the Earth and space.
What are satellites used for?
Traditionally, satellites are used in the following areas:
How satellites help control drones
With the help of satellites, it is possible to create systems for the management and control of unmanned air and ground vehicles.
For aircraft frequency bands recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and special equipment are used. Such systems can be hybrid: for example, they can work with both space and ground base stations.
To develop control systems unmanned vehicles, V2X (vehicle-to-infrastructure) technology is needed. It implies the interaction of the car with the road surface, traffic lights, signs, signs – completely autonomously, without human intervention.
In order for V2X technologies to become a reality, dedicated communication channels with high bandwidth (up to 60 Mbps), minimal data transfer delay (
Satellite communications and navigation will help provide the necessary conditions for managing personal, public and commercial unmanned vehicles, set up communication channels with road infrastructure, monitor and respond in case of accidents and emergencies.
How satellites save people
Satellite “Life Button” is an ecosystem of integrated services based on space technologies. It is used for environmental monitoring, search and rescue, control of unmanned robotic systems, remote diagnostics and telemedicine.
Over 180 people go missing in our country every year. Satellite “Life Button” can help you quickly find people from the main risk groups: children, the elderly, those suffering from dementia. This will save more than 20 thousand lives per year.
The Future of the Satellite Industry
The main problems that hinder the development of satellite technologies are:
- difficulties for private companies to enter the market;
- dependence on state corporations and the state space program;
- complex and expensive development cycle;
- tight regulation;
- the space industry needs a lot of investment – private and public – to carry out scientific research and engineering.
The most promising, according to representatives of Glonass, among vehicles look like small and medium-sized satellites of wide application with inter-satellite communication links and long service life. The main trends here are the complete digitalization of the process, the use of COTS components (Commercial off-the-shelf, ready-made commercial product. — Trends) and open source software.
For launches satellites are increasingly used by small rockets or carrier aircraft, launching a large number of devices from different companies at once.
For data processing from satellites, edge technology is becoming more and more popular. It implies that all computational operations are performed as close as possible to the data source – that is, the satellite itself – in order to improve the quality and speed of transmission. This becomes possible due to the simplification of the requirements for the power supply of devices, performance characteristics and resistance to radiation.