SpaceX wants to beam internet down to Earth

SpaceX is preparing to hit another orbital milestone with the launch of a pair of experimental satellites on Sunday that’s designed to beam an ultrafast, lag-free internet connection down to Earth.

The test satellites, dubbed Microsat-2a and Microsat-2b, are a part of a yearslong plan by CEO Elon Musk to create a fleet of orbiting devices that blankets the globe in wireless broadband connectivity. SpaceX ultimately intends to put some 12,000 broadband satellites in low Earth orbit. Sunday’s payload will mark the company’s first stab at realizing the dream. The initial satellites in the network are expected to come online next year.

Satellite broadband is already available. But it’s slow, expensive and not really accessible to the masses. The goal of SpaceX and almost a dozen other companies is to deliver fast, reliable internet access to virtually everyone.

Contemporary satellite broadband is mostly used by companies and organizations that require internet access in remote environments or extremely specific scenarios, not residential connectivity. Firstresponders to a natural disaster, for example, can spend hundreds of dollars a day for a 5 Mbps connection, which they use to coordinate relief efforts. The shipping and aviation industries have also been known to use conventional satellite data services.

But for consumers, companies such as SpaceX believe a different approach could help lower costs and increase reliability, making satellite broadband practical for everyday use. The idea involves placing satellites much lower in orbit, reducing the amount of time it takes for signals to travel from ground-based antennas up to space and back again — and broadening the potential user base to include the entire world.

To ensure consistent coverage, providers of next gen satellite broadband will need to put up many more satellites, as well as develop accurate tracking technology that lets devices on the ground communicate with them without missing a beat. And they’ll need to use radio frequencies that are known for their low-lag physical properties.