Satellites News 2 June 2025

Space-Weather Satellites: Earth’s Cosmic Early Warning System

SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory), launched in 1995, became the first satellite to continuously observe the Sun from the Sun–Earth L1 point and carries the LASCO coronagraph, enabling CME tracking and the discovery of more than 5,000 comets. ACE (Advanced Composition Explorer), launched in 1997, and NOAA’s DSCOVR (Deep Space Climate Observatory), launched in 2015, sit at the Sun–Earth L1 to sample the solar wind and provide roughly 15 minutes to 60 minutes of advance warning of approaching CMEs. STEREO, launched in 2006, consists of two spacecraft, STEREO-A ahead of Earth and STEREO-B behind, providing stereoscopic views of solar activity;

8 June 2025

Internet Access in Comoros: From Island Gaps to Satellite Signals

The Union of the Comoros comprises Grande Comore (Ngazidja), Anjouan (Ndzuwani), Mohéli (Mwali) and the Mayotte territory, with island geography that complicates terrestrial network rollout. Submarine cables have transformed connectivity: EASSy landed in Moroni in 2010–2011, AVASSA was completed in 2016, and FLY-LION3 landed at Itsandra, Moroni in 2019, creating three major international links. Internally, AVASSA connects Grande Comore and Anjouan (Mohéli is linked by microwave), while a Comoros Domestic Cable System (CDCS) is planned and Comoros Cables manages open wholesale access for both carriers. Fixed broadband remains scarce, with about 3,000 fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023 (roughly 0.3 per

7 June 2025

Comoros · Connectivity · Internet · Satellites · Technology

Hyperspectral Eyes in the Sky: How Space-Based Imaging Is Revolutionizing Earth Observation

NASA’s Hyperion, launched in 2000 on the EO-1 satellite, collected 220 spectral bands from 400 to 2500 nm at 30 m resolution. A hyperspectral data cube stacks hundreds of narrow wavelength bands for every ground pixel, creating a two-dimensional spatial image plus a spectral dimension. Hyperspectral imaging records hundreds of narrow bands (often 10 nm or less) enabling identification of materials by their spectral fingerprints, unlike RGB’s 3 broad bands or multispectral’s 5–30 bands. Space-based hyperspectral sensors are typically passive, in sun-synchronous low Earth orbits, and commonly use pushbroom scanning to build full images with high signal-to-noise ratio. The VNIR-SWIR

7 June 2025

Earth Observation · Hyperspectral Imaging · Innovation · NASDAQ:SATL · Satellites · Space Technology

Sky Scanners: How SAR Imaging Satellites Are Redefining Earth Observation

About 75% of the planet is obscured by cloud cover or darkness at any moment, making optical imaging inaccessible. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites actively illuminate the ground with microwave radar and synthesize a large aperture by moving the antenna to produce high-resolution images. SAR can operate day or night and in all weather, providing 24/7 imaging. Sentinel-1 (ESA) comprises satellites Sentinel-1A launched in 2014 and Sentinel-1B in 2016, with C-band SAR offering ~5 m resolution in high-resolution modes and 250–400 km swaths, and a 12-day revisit. RADARSAT-2 (Canada) launched in 2007, followed by the RADARSAT Constellation Mission (RCM) in

7 June 2025

Earth Observation · NYSE:MAXR · SAR Imaging · Satellites · Space Science · Technology

Eyes in the Sky: How Satellites Are Revealing Our Changing Climate

Radar altimeters on TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, Jason-2, Jason-3, and Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich have provided a global mean sea level record since 1992, showing a rise of about 3.3 millimeters per year and roughly 10 centimeters over 30 years. Arctic summer sea ice extent has declined by about 12% per decade since the 1980s, with the Arctic minimum shrinking from about 7.5 million km² in 1980 to 4.4 million km² in 2023. GRACE and GRACE-FO gravity missions have revealed that Greenland and Antarctica are losing hundreds of billions of tons of ice each year, contributing to sea level rise. NASA’s PACE mission,

6 June 2025

Climate Change · Environment · Satellites · Science · Technology

Global Navigation Showdown: How GPS III, Galileo, BeiDou & GLONASS Upgrades Will Change How You Navigate

GPS III, first launched in 2018, delivers three times the accuracy and eight times the anti-jamming performance of previous GPS generations, with a GPS III satellite named Katherine Johnson launched by SpaceX in 2025. GPS modernization includes the L1C common civil signal for interoperability with Galileo and a Next Generation OCX ground system to handle new signals and security. Galileo is planned as a 30-satellite constellation, with 27 in orbit by late 2024 and the full 30-satellite fleet expected by the end of 2025. Galileo’s HAS began in 2023, delivering about 20 cm horizontal and 40 cm vertical accuracy, while

6 June 2025

GPS · Innovation · Navigation · Satellites · Technology

The Space Race for the Internet: Inside the Billion-Dollar Satellite Mega-Constellation Boom

As of mid-2025, Starlink operates about 7,500 active satellites, the largest fleet in history, accounting for more than 60% of all active satellites. Starlink’s next-generation satellites (v2) weigh about 800 kg each, vs 260 kg for v1, and use inter-satellite laser links to route data across continents. Amazon’s Project Kuiper plans 3,236 LEO satellites at roughly 600 km altitude, with more than $10 billion invested, the first 27 operational satellites launched in April 2025, and a target to deploy half the constellation by July 2026. OneWeb completed its Gen1 constellation with 618 of 648 satellites in 1,200 km polar orbits

5 June 2025

Innovation · Internet · NASDAQ:AMZN · Satellites · Space · Technology

Mega-Constellations Exposed: How Swarms of Tiny Satellites Are Taking Over Low Earth Orbit

By 2024, small satellites accounted for over 95% of all satellites launched annually. SpaceX’s Starlink operates the world’s largest constellation with over 7,000 active satellites in orbit as of late 2024. Starlink’s initial shell consisted of about 4,400 satellites at roughly 550 km altitude and 53° inclination, with FCC approval for about 12,000 satellites and potential expansion to 42,000. Iridium uses 86.4° near-polar orbits in six planes at ~780 km to achieve global coverage including polar regions. OneWeb’s Gen1 network aimed for ~1,200 km orbit with ~86–87° inclination and had deployed 618 satellites by March 2023, before merging with Eutelsat

5 June 2025

Low Earth Orbit · Mega-Constellations · NASDAQ:AMZN · NASDAQ:IRDM · Satellites · Space · Technology

Why Starlink Keeps Hitting Red Tape Around the World

In May 2023 the U.S. FCC sided with Starlink over proposed uses of the 12.2–12.7 GHz band, preserving it for satellite services and preventing two-way 5G interference. In August 2022 the FCC denied Starlink’s $885 million Rural Digital Opportunity Fund subsidy due to performance concerns and high equipment costs, including a roughly $600 dish. By late 2024 Starlink had deployed about 7,000 satellites and controlled nearly two-thirds of all active satellites in orbit, signaling its regulatory and market prominence. France’s Conseil d’État annulled Arcep’s Starlink frequency license in April 2022 for lack of a required public consultation, leading to a

3 June 2025

Global Policy · Internet · NYSE:BHARTIARTL · Regulation · Satellites · Starlink

No Signal? No Problem – Starlink’s Direct-to-Cell Satellites Are Eliminating Dead Zones

August 2022: SpaceX and T-Mobile announced a partnership to provide direct-to-cell connectivity via Starlink satellites, with texting expected in 2023–24 and voice/data thereafter. January 2024: SpaceX achieved the first SMS directly via satellite, enabling a two-way text conversation between ordinary smartphones relayed entirely through space after the first batch of D2C-equipped satellites launched. Gen2 Starlink satellites carry the Direct-to-Cell payload, and the smaller V2 Mini satellites launched on Falcon 9 in 2023–24 were equipped to support these tests. By late 2024, more than 400 Starlink satellites had Direct-to-Cell capability, enabling voice calls, video calls, and IoT tests such as Cat-1

3 June 2025

Connectivity · Innovation · Mobile Technology · Satellites · Starlink

Starlink’s Sky Grab: How SpaceX Is Quietly Rewiring the Global Internet Game

Starlink launched its first batch of 60 satellites in 2019, and by late 2024 the constellation numbered nearly 7,000 satellites in low-Earth orbit. In 2022 Starlink introduced laser inter-satellite links, enabling data to hop between satellites and extending coverage to oceans, polar regions, and remote locales. By mid-2023 Starlink declared global coverage aside from regulatory holdouts, with service reaching Arctic areas and mid-ocean shipping lanes. By early 2024 Starlink was legally available in about 70 countries. Starlink’s user base grew from 1 million by end-2022 to over 4.6 million by end-2024, with more than 5 million users expected by early

3 June 2025

Global Connectivity · Internet · Satellites · SpaceX · Starlink

Inside Burundi’s Digital Struggle: The Truth About Internet Access and the Satellite Solution

As of January 2025, Burundi had about 1.78 million internet users, roughly 12.5% of ~14 million people, leaving about 88–90% offline. About 99.6% of internet subscriptions are mobile broadband, while fixed broadband is virtually nonexistent with ~0.3% of homes wired and only about 3,000 fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023. 4G coverage reached about 32% of the population in 2023, 3G about 53%, while 2G covers around 97%, leaving many rural areas without true internet. The rural population accounts for about 84% of Burundians, and the government’s Universal Service Fund is rolling out 4G to 178 rural communities, aiming to reach

2 June 2025

Africa · Digital Access · Internet · Satellites · Technology

Satellites News 2 June 2025 - 8 June 2025