D2D 101: An introduction to direct-to-device
D2D connectivity commonly refers to the use of standards-based handheld devices, such as smartphones, to operate directly with satellites. This contrasts with traditional satellite services, which require terminals and terrestrial networks to deliver connectivity to the end user.

While many feel that D2D is a replacement for traditional satellite, it is more of a complementary service. D2D connectivity cannot offer the same throughput and bandwidth as a traditional satellite service. However, it can deliver connectivity and access to remote locations and areas of the globe even when the necessary terrestrial hardware is unavailable. All the end user would require is a compatible smartphone or other mobile device.

The D2D service being built by Lynk will accomplish this using a constellation of satellites located in low Earth orbit (LEO), where strong signals generated very close to Earth will deliver connectivity directly to end-user devices. The O3b mPOWER, operated by SES, will enable necessary space data relay capabilities that effectively backhaul data from the Lynk LEO satellites at very high speeds with very low latency, allowing them to significantly reduce the ground segment required to support their D2D services.

Together, the Lynk and SES constellations will enable government users and military personnel to have end-user devices that simply work, even without a satellite terminal. That is a powerful capability with nearly limitless use cases for the government and military.

Immediate comms when and where they’re needed
In the aftermath of major natural disasters, those tasked with search and rescue missions and responding to emergencies often find themselves without cell service or any terrestrial forms of connectivity. That’s because the same natural disaster that impacted their region invariably destroyed the network infrastructure that powers cellular and terrestrial networks.

Communication and situational awareness capabilities are essential for an effective and collaborative response. They’re necessary to ensure those conducting search and rescue operations don’t wind up needing to be found and rescued, themselves. They’re essential to get alerts about danger, requests for assistance, and other mission-critical communications. But without cellular and terrestrial networks, these essential capabilities are often unavailable.

Historically, satellite providers have deployed Cell on Wheels (COWs) or Cell on Light Trucks (COLTs) to affected areas. These solutions effectively deliver the terrestrial equipment necessary to establish a satellite-enabled Wi-Fi or 5G network that first responders can use for basic communications and situational awareness. However, these solutions aren’t always in place when disaster strikes.

With D2D capabilities, first responders – from law enforcement personnel to wildland firefighters – could have immediate access to essential connectivity, even before COLTs and COWs are deployed to a region. This would immediately make mission-critical communications and situational awareness capabilities available following a natural disaster, putting first responders in a far better position to locate, rescue, and assist those in need.

This same ability to immediately access mission-critical communications, even without satellite terminals or ground infrastructure, can be leveraged for a variety of civilian government use cases. Government employees dispatched to remote locations could benefit from the ubiquitous communications delivered by D2D.

Military operations are often conducted in remote, off-grid locations where terrestrial infrastructure is unavailable. However, concerns about data and signal security could limit the use of commercial D2D solutions for combat applications. However, there is an opportunity to leverage D2D connectivity for non-combat missions and operations.

The post SES and Lynk Global Partner to Enable Game-Changing D2D Capabilities for the Government appeared first on SES Space and Defense.

Through the contract, end-users will also have the option to leverage commercial SATCOM as a managed service (SaaMS) capabilities through SES or sovereign network services created and operated independently by participating governments.

To learn more about the mGS contract—also known as LuxMEO— and the scope of SATCOM services it will provide to NATO, the Government Satellite Report sat down with Gus Anderson, SES Space & Defense’s VP of Strategic Business Development.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): What is LuxMEO and mGS? What is this program about?

Gus Anderson: LuxMEO is a U.S. government term for the mGS contract because the government understood this contract to be a partnership among long-time allies — the United States, Luxembourg, and NATO — to make secure, resilient, broadband O3b mPOWER MEO satellite capacity available to all NATO members. The contract has been many years in the making and was awarded to SES by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) on September 2nd.

“Because the constellation is in MEO, we need fewer satellites for continuous global coverage. We have already launched eight of these satellites, with an additional five satellites to be launched.” – Gus Anderson

The program is designed to provide bulk O3b mPOWER capacity to any NATO member. Currently, Luxembourg and the U.S. have signed up for a collective 10 gigabits per second which they can use to support national and multi-national defense and national security missions.

GSR: What satellite technologies, operational capabilities, and service agreements fall under the mGS contract?

Gus Anderson: MEO services under the contract can be activated anywhere globally between 48 degrees north and 48 degrees south. The satellite technology behind the contract is the O3b mPOWER constellation. Because the constellation is in MEO, we need fewer satellites for continuous global coverage. We have already launched eight of these satellites, with an additional five satellites to be launched.

There are two types of services available to mGS users: commercial managed services and sovereign services.

The commercial managed services make use of our existing commercial gateways for fast activation. These services use SES hubs at the SES commercial gateways and will need to use a particular set of SES-issued terminals and equipment that have been certified to be O3b mPOWER-ready on the remote end-user side of a network.

The other mGS terrestrial service available is sovereign services, which enable end-users to establish their own gateways at any location and utilize their own equipment – essentially creating their own wholly proprietary government networks using O3b mPOWER capacity. As a trusted provider to NATO and allied governments, SES Space & Defense can provide technical assistance to governments wanting to create such sovereign networks.

In addition, mGS offers a hybrid sovereign solution, whereby participating nations can deploy co-locate proprietary equipment at SES’s commercial gateways to create their own secure networks using the existing antenna infrastructure at SES’s commercial gateways.

The most important point of this is that the O3b mPOWER infrastructure is designed to be agnostic to equipment, meaning end-users, participating nations, and all the customers who are going to use the mGS contract can bring their own equipment to this network, subject to some basic certifications to ensure that their technology will be compatible with O3b mPOWER.

“NATO and the participating nations are pre-purchasing bandwidth capacity on O3b mPOWER that will then be used by their nations and the mission partners.” – Gus Anderson

To that end, we have our own government technology certification (GTC) program, and we are already running select equipment through this program. We’ve been approached by end-users, especially inside the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), who have modems and terminal equipment they’re interested in using with O3b mPOWER. We are working closely with the manufacturers to ensure the equipment is prepared for the GTC process.

GSR: How will this contract change SATCOM for NATO?

Gus Anderson: The most important piece of this contract is the bulk capacity purchase. NATO and the participating nations are pre-purchasing bandwidth capacity on O3b mPOWER that will then be used by their nations and the mission partners.

This contract construct allows an end-user to simply activate bandwidth already on a purchase order, accelerating the government’s access to O3b mPOWER. Everyone knows that the acquisition process could often take months, so we’re looking at being able to activate bandwidth initially in a matter of weeks. As we improve and automate the process, we expect bandwidth activation time to be reduced to days, even hours.

To learn more about the mGS contract, click HERE.

The post SES to Provide NATO with Bulk Capacity, Sovereign Services via MGS Contract appeared first on SES Space and Defense.

While the launch of these first two satellites will not immediately result in the SES O3b mPOWER satellite service becoming available to government users, it’s a massive first step in what will be a revolutionary introduction to the commercial satellite industry. And it’s a long time in the making. The SES O3b mPOWER satellite service was first announced in September 2017 and has been anxiously awaited by military and government satellite customers ever since.

With the launch right around the corner, the Government Satellite Report sat down with the CEO of SES Space and Defense, David Fields, to discuss the SES O3b mPOWER service. During our discussion, we asked why the service is considered revolutionary across the satellite industry, why government and military users are excited about its launch, and the technology trends that are making this new service necessary.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): The first O3b mPOWER satellites are tentatively slated to launch later this week. Why is this such an exciting milestone for SES Government Solutions? What about these new satellites is so revolutionary?

David Fields: It’s important to understand that the O3b mPOWER satellite service represents a truly transformational advancement in commercial satellite capability. The O3b mPOWER service is a massive breakthrough in the delivery of satellite capacity from non-geostationary orbit (NGSO).

Being positioned in MEO enables the O3b mPOWER satellites to deliver incredible capacity at extremely low latency. This higher throughput and lower latency are ideal for many of the advanced IT solutions and capabilities that are being implemented across the U.S. government and military today.

Our government and military customers need lower latency and higher throughput. They need a more simple and more flexible ground infrastructure that is more customizable and easier to secure. They need the ability to leverage sovereign gateways. O3b mPOWER delivers all of these things to our government and military users.

The service is not a closed system. It enables military and government users to leverage their own gateways. It enables them to bring their own waveforms. It’s compliant with all of their most rigid security requirements.

O3b mPOWER delivers all of these things because it was built with the needs of our government and military users in mind. It wasn’t designed to be a consumer solution that is also available to the government. SES built O3b mPOWER from the bottom up to meet government and military requirements.

GSR: If you were a government or military organization, why would O3b mPOWER be important for you? What trends are we seeing in the government that make the launch of O3b mPOWER an important development?

David Fields: That’s a great question, and it really comes down to data. Just look at the military – in particular. The amount of sensor data, the amount of video, and the amount of data – in general – that is being aggregated in theater and that needs to be transmitted back to senior military decision-makers is enormous now.

The amount of data that is being generated is staggering. And for that data to be useful for the military, it needs to be made available, analyzed for actionable insights, and shared in real time. That’s what will enable the military to make better, more data-driven decisions.

“We’re very excited to see these first satellites launched and get into orbit…There will be several additional launches after this initial launch. However, these first satellites that we’re launching will enable us to validate the service and capabilities.” – David Fields

The applications that the government and military leverage at the tactical edge will only continue to expand to fill the amount of bandwidth that these organizations can afford to buy. Our goal with O3b mPOWER is to deliver a cost-effective satellite service that delivers high-throughput, low-latency bandwidth when they need it, and where they need it.

GSR: When we talk to people about O3b mPOWER and the benefits that it will deliver, the capacity and low latency are usually the first things they mention. But there is more to O3b mPOWER than that – the satellites will also offer more flexibility. Why would the government care about that?

David Fields: These satellites are some of the most capable ever built. This enables them to deliver incredible flexibility for government users. O3b mPOWER gives government and military users the ability to define and steer beams. This is immensely important since it enables users to place a beam of satellite capacity where they need it and when they need it.

This means that government users are not locked into paying for an established amount of capacity or coverage that they don’t need. If they need capacity for a small group of naval vessels, or a small squad of warfighters, or even a single ISR aircraft, they can put a beam where they need it to meet that requirement.

Also, O3b mPOWER enables asymmetric capability. This means that the outbound and inbound capacity is not fixed. If more inbound capacity is needed, the inbound satellite capacity can be increased. If an ISR mission requires mostly outbound data so that HD video can be transmitted in real-time, that can also be accommodated. Government and military users will have the flexibility to tailor the capacity in either direction to meet their unique mission requirements.

GSR: Security is a major issue for the military today. How can O3b mPOWER protect military networks and data at a time when satellite is more essential, but the space and cyber domains are increasingly threatened?

David Fields: The nature of the O3b mPOWER satellites, themselves, make them more secure and more assured for government and military users. The ability to provision and steer a small beam of connectivity makes O3b mPOWER inherently more assured than wide beam satellite solutions.

The smaller beams that are utilized by O3b mPOWER are harder to locate for adversaries. They’re also harder to deny. As you know, satellite jamming needs to happen from within the beam, so a smaller beam is – by its nature – more difficult to jam for adversaries.

“The service is not a closed system. It enables military and government users to leverage their own gateways. It enables them to bring their own waveforms. It’s compliant with all of their most rigid security requirements.” – David Fields

But, jamming aside, security and assurance come down to the resiliency of the network.

Since the O3b mPOWER satellite service was designed with government and military users in mind, SES has ensured that they can bring their own waveform. This includes protected waveforms. Also, since the service was purpose-built for government and military users, it offers something that many commercial satellites can’t – bandwidth that is always available when and where they need it.

The O3b mPOWER satellite service offers capacity that is committed to government and military users, which ensures that they’re not competing with other authorized users. There won’t be a lack of capacity for government or military users because gamers, or consumers that are streaming entertainment content are dominating the capacity.

GSR: What advanced use cases and capabilities could you envision the government and military leveraging O3b mPOWER for in the immediate future?

David Fields: SES was one of the first companies to build an NGSO commercial capability. We have years of experience operating an NGSO constellation and truly understand the advantages and disadvantages of NGSO commercial satellite services.

O3b mPOWER leverages that experience and expands on our ability to deliver capabilities that government and military users have been asking for. That includes things like mobility and comms on the move for our military users.

“These satellites are some of the most capable ever built. This enables them to deliver incredible flexibility for government users.” – David Fields

Since O3b mPOWER provides smaller, more powerful beams, it can deliver capabilities to smaller antennas for use in ISR, land mobility, and other use cases that require small aperture terminals. These are capabilities that have not been served to date and are in high demand from our government and military users.

GSR: Obviously, when it comes to satellite services and solutions, the launch of a satellite doesn’t mean that the service is immediately available. What needs to happen in space after the satellites are launched? How long will it take for the satellites to come online? When will O3b mPOWER service be available for users?

David Fields: Every journey begins with a single step, and the O3b mPOWER journey begins this week with this launch. The current launch date is tentatively scheduled for December 16, 2022. That launch starts the process.

We’re very excited to see these first satellites launched and get into orbit. But, as with any NGSO satellite service, the satellites do not remain in a fixed point or location in the sky. This means that you need to have the full constellation launched for it to function.

There will be several additional launches after this initial launch. However, these first satellites that we’re launching will enable us to validate the service and capabilities. As the additional satellites are launched, SES will be building out the network and testing functionality to ensure that O3b mPOWER is ready for customers when it comes online.

We anticipate that this revolutionary service will be available for our users in Q3 of 2023.

For additional information about O3b mPOWER, click HERE.

The post Starting the Countdown to O3b mPOWER appeared first on SES Space and Defense.

It’s not unusual for the NDAA to feature a number of different directives and requests for the DoD and the disparate military services. They may be asked to research ways to increase readiness. Or they may be directed to identify new ways to deliver mental or physical wellness services to enlisted service members.

But this year’s NDAA had a very specific and somewhat unusual request related to satellite communications:

“Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretaries of the military departments and the heads of the Defense Agencies, shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on current commercial satellite communication initiatives, including with respect to new non-geostationary orbit satellite technologies that the Department of Defense has employed to increase satellite communication throughput to existing platforms of the military departments currently constrained by legacy capabilities.”

What are non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) commercial satellite services? They’re effectively any satellite communications service that are delivered via a satellite constellation that exists in an orbit closer to the Earth than geostationary orbit (GEO). And why is Congress so interested in NGSO satellite communications and its use by the DoD? There are a few good reasons for that.

The case for NGSO satellite
To truly oversimplify the operation of satellite networks, satellite communications function by a signal being sent into space, where it’s relayed by a satellite in orbit back to a physical location on Earth. The further the satellite is from Earth, the further that signal needs to travel – both in its initial journey to the satellite, and then in its return journey back to the Earth. The time that it takes to complete that journey is experienced by users as latency.

“Assurance is important when tools like satellite connectivity are mission-critical. The military needs to understand the risk that their satellite services face both on Earth and in space, and choose the solutions that will be available when they need them.”

By putting satellites in orbits closer to the Earth than GEO, commercial satellite providers have dramatically reduced the latency of satellite communications. When coupled with the next generation of high throughput satellite technologies, these satellites closer to Earth are capable of delivering incredibly high throughputs with incredibly low latency. This effectively results in a user experience not unlike a terrestrial fiberoptic network. But, unlike terrestrial networks, these NGSO satellite solutions are available practically anywhere on Earth – even in the most austere and geographically isolated of locations.

With the potential to deliver fiber-like connectivity to anywhere – from a military forward operating base in the middle of the desert, to a naval vessel afloat in the middle of the Pacific – it’s easy to see why Congress would be interested in the DoD investing in NGSO commercial satellite services. The use cases are almost limitless – ranging from traditional military operations, like intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), to the downright futurist, like delivering telemedicine services via video teleconference.

But “NGSO” is a relatively broad term that includes a number of different satellite constellations in orbits outside of GEO. There is a veritable alphabet soup of other orbits, including Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) and Lower Earth Orbit (LEO) where commercial SATCOM providers are operating constellations. As a result, there are a number of disparate satellite operators to choose from, and a wide variety of services to choose between.

Which NGSO satellite solution is the right one?
While NGSO satellite can deliver the connectivity that the military needs in an age where practically every platform and weapons system is network and software-enabled, there could be some confusion as to which NGSO satellite service meets the needs of the DoD. And that choice will only get harder, as a number of new satellite services are set to launch in the next half-decade.

Here are three considerations that DoD decision-makers should keep in mind as they evaluate NGSO satellite services and solutions to ensure they get one that will meet mission requirements:

Is it secure?
When Internet and other critical communications services were denied at the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a LEO satellite solution was rapidly made available to restore communications. Seemingly within hours, that LEO satellite service was degraded and denied, once again leaving the people of Ukraine without access to critical comms.

The provider of those services was heralded for its ability to quickly push updates to terminals and get that satellite service back online. But is that really what the military wants and needs?

As we discussed, today’s weapons systems and platforms work best when network enabled. The advanced AR, IoT, and other technology systems that the DoD is investing in for use on the battlefield are ultimately useless if they’re not connected. If today’s warfighters are trained on these systems, and are more effective with these capabilities, the military can’t have them denied – even if only temporarily.

“With the potential to deliver fiber-like connectivity to anywhere – from a military forward operating base in the middle of the desert, to a naval vessel afloat in the middle of the Pacific – it’s easy to see why Congress would be interested in the DoD investing in NGSO commercial satellite services.”

With the security of satellite communications so essential, the military should be looking for NGSO satellite solutions that have been cyber-hardened against the most pressing threats identified by the Office of Director of National Intelligence Space Threat Assessment. They should be looking for solutions that complicate an adversary’s targeting calculus by having no permanent paired linkage between U/L and D/L frequencies and polarities.

They should be looking for solutions that can quickly and easily adjust should attempts be made to jam or deny satellite service. For example, can a satellite solution rapidly adjust frequencies, polarities, power levels, bandwidth, handover timing, and beam location to avoid interference? And is there a GEO system available that can provide wide-area satellite capacity should the NGSO solution be denied?

Is it assured?
Not all of the threats to satellites are cyber and jamming threats. Sometimes there are threats to satellite communications that originate in orbit with the satellites. This includes the threat of interference and collision with other satellites in their orbit.

While GEO has traditionally been the home to most of the communications satellites in use throughout history, LEO is not exactly greenfield real estate. As of September 2021, there were 7,500 satellites in LEO. Compare that to the more than 550 satellites in GEO, and the approximately 140 satellites in MEO. Suddenly that orbit starts to sound incredibly congested. And that’s only going to get worse.

As smallsats and cubesats continue to become less expensive to purchase, and cheaper to launch, the number of them in LEO will increase exponentially. LEO is also considered by many to be the forerunner for the next generation of positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) satellites.

But, most importantly, since LEO satellites have an incredibly small Earth view, many satellites are needed in a LEO constellation to blanket the Earth in coverage. With numerous companies in a race to build LEO constellations with global coverage, LEO could see the addition of hundreds of new communications satellites in orbit just in the next few years.

Assurance is important when tools like satellite connectivity are mission-critical. The military needs to understand the risk that their satellite services face both on Earth and in space, and choose the solutions that will be available when they need them.

How much throughput is needed?
Satellite communications from GEO will play a role for the military into the future. It’s the most effective solution for covering a broad area in connectivity. NGSO satellite solutions will most likely play a more specialized role – providing incredibly high throughputs with miniscule latency for bandwidth-hungry modern IT solutions in the field.

“The advanced AR, IoT and other technology systems that the DoD is investing in for use in the battlefield are ultimately useless if they’re not connected. If today’s warfighters are trained on these systems, and are more effective with these capabilities, the military can’t have them denied – even if only temporarily.”

If the military needs to stream multiple, HD-quality ISR video streams from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or F-35s back to the military decision-makers that need the intelligence to make informed decisions, NGSO satellite is essential. Suppose the military wants to enable fiber-like connectivity for telehealth, or morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) capabilities onboard a Naval vessel in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. In that case, NGSO satellite is the correct choice.

But different NGSO satellite solutions offer different levels of capacity and bandwidth. If a large amount of bandwidth is needed, the DoD should be looking for a solution that can deliver multiple GBPS to each individual terminal – which should be more than enough capacity for even the most bandwidth-hungry of applications.

Considering the importance of fiber-like connectivity for the next generation of military platforms and weapons systems, it’s easy to understand why Congress specifically asked for a report on the military’s use of NGSO commercial satellite services in the most recent NDAA. But, if the DoD is going to begin to increase its reliance on NGSO solutions, it needs to ensure it’s choosing the right offering for its requirements. Security, assurance, and throughputs are just three of the many considerations they should keep in mind when evaluating solutions, but they’re quite possibly three of the most essential.

To learn more about how NGSO satellite services from MEO can deliver advanced capabilities to the warfighter, click HERE to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper, “A New Era of Connectivity.”

Featured image: U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Cameron J. Rider establishes satellite communication with the combat operations center. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Ulises Salgado). The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.

The post 3 Considerations for Choosing the Best NGSO Satellite Solution appeared first on SES Space and Defense.

If recent events in Eastern Europe have shown us anything, it’s that there really was cause for concern among military and satellite industry thought leaders. Satellite networks and communications have been an early target for adversaries as a way to deny mission-critical communications and capabilities. And with modern militaries relying heavily on network and software-enabled platforms, those satellite networks need to be resilient, because they’re now mission-critical.

One of the best ways to make satellite communications more assured is to enable the military to quickly and seamlessly move their signals to overcome the adversary’s attempts to deny them. If signals can be switched between commercial satellite networks and military satellite networks, the adversary’s targeting calculus becomes more difficult, and the military can more rapidly restore communications that were degraded or denied.

But even better would be the ability to seamlessly move signals from MILSATCOM assets in geostationary orbit (GEO) to commercial satellites in any orbit – including GEO, medium earth orbit (MEO), and low earth orbit (LEO). Not only would this make the targeting of satellite networks nearly impossible for the adversary, but it would also give the military access to an ecosystem of thousands of satellites with which to operate.

Interoperability between terminals and terrestrial networks has long been the stumbling block to enabling this kind of seamless switching between satellites. But recent tests being conducted for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) have illustrated that the obstacle of interoperability could soon be eliminated.

In December of last year, SES Space and Defense announced that it worked in close cooperation with Lite Coms to update the legacy U.S. Army Phoenix Terminal to be MEO capable for the U.S. Army. The upgraded terminal could operate with traditional commercial and military GEO satellites, as well as with commercial Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) constellations.

To learn more about this test and what it means for the U.S. Army, we sat down with the President and CEO of Lite Coms, Robert Jacobson.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): Can you tell our readers a bit about Lite Coms and its solutions? What solutions does the company design and manufacture? Who are they intended for?

Robert Jacobson: Lite Coms LLC is a three-year-old company in Victor, NY, comprised of a team of engineers, operations professionals, and programs professionals that have worked together for more than 20 years, building and delivering more than 11,000 VSAT terminals to defense customers in the U.S. and around the globe.

We create the most feature-rich and highest-performing products in the market. Our parabolic Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT) and Electronically Steerable Array (ESA) flat panel terminals are the most capable products available to the U.S. military and its coalition partners.

In the past three years, we have introduced more than a dozen products – each one more capable and more advanced than anything our competitors have on the market.  Military customers seek us out because of the performance of our product, our dedication to customer support, and our high attention to detail.

GSR: Why are terminals that are rugged, light, and easy to use essential for today’s military?

Robert Jacobson: The increase in advance technology on the battlefield can be taxing on an operator. And we don’t want to add to that stress. That’s why we believe the focus of the soldier, sailor, airman, or marine should not be on how to make their terminal function.

We are committed to using the latest in technology and industry standards to make their job easier through software, automation, miniaturization, and advanced packaging technologies for survivability. And we work to balance that with low size, weight, and power requirements (SWaP) to minimize the impact on the warfighter.

“SES and Lite Coms conducted testing in support of the U.S. Army…with the Phoenix E terminal delivering communications via the SES O3b MEO satellite constellation…The results were excellent. In fact, we became the de facto primary means of communications when other legacy hardware and new LEO-only systems were having difficulties.” – Robert Jacobson

As advanced technologies increasingly make their way into the battlefield and become critical to virtually every military mission, it’s essential that terminals can be operated by untrained users, and that they can be stored and transported in a rucksack instead of multiple transit cases.

GSR: Lite Comms recently worked with SES to make its Phoenix E terminal work with MEO. Why is MEO satellite connectivity desirable to the military? What advanced capabilities can MEO enable?

Robert Jacobson: We believe the Phoenix E MEO certification is a major milestone for the satellite communications community. This is the first time there is a WGS-certified and MEO-certified terminal available to the DOD. This also marks the first time that a low PIM, multi-carrier X-band terminal is available to them, as well.

The data rates offered through the MEO enhancement are truly game-changing. The Phoenix E on WGS has been tested to deliver data rates of 50 Mbps. The O3B network from SES will support data rates of up to 600Mbps on the same Phoenix E terminal.

GSR: Can the Phoenix terminals work with both GEO and MEO? How can these terminals enable multi-domain operations?

Robert Jacobson: We are striving to ensure all Lite Coms terminals are “Constellation Agnostic.” We believe that allowing the Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced to have single terminal – like Phoenix E – that can be used with constellations in both MEO and GEO brings a whole new paradigm of mission planning and options to our warfighter.

“We believe the Phoenix E MEO certification is a major milestone…This is the first time there is a WGS-certified and MEO-certified terminal available to the DOD. This also marks the first time that a low PIM, multi-carrier X-band terminal is available to them, as well.” – Robert Jacobson

Depending on the mission, they can use standard WGS on X-band or military Ka-band, or commercial Ku-band, traditional C-band, or the game-changing MEO O3b from SES.

GSR: Why would the military be interested in accessing satellite communications from different orbits utilizing the same terminals and hardware? What benefits could this deliver?

Robert Jacobson: Tailoring your communications to meet your mission requirements is of critical importance to the mission planners. Having the ability to expand your data throughput from 50Mbps to 600Mbps using the same organic products is of great interest to the military leadership.

Also, cost savings in hardware and in transport is staggering when you get data rates like this through a terminal typically capable of 50Mbps. The days of needing to bring 3.9 meter or larger terminals will be a thing of the past. We will drastically reduce the amount of equipment being transported via aircraft with this technology.

GSR: SES Space and Defense recently announced that they were doing some multiple orbit testing for the U.S. Army. How is Lite Coms involved in these tests? What do the tests entail, and what is the Army looking to determine with these tests?

Robert Jacobson: Last fall, SES and Lite Coms conducted testing in support of the U.S. Army. The testing took place over a number of months, with the Phoenix E terminal delivering communications via the SES O3b MEO satellite constellation for Army users in Fort Lewis and Yuma. The results were excellent.  We tracked the MEO satellites consistently and had no failures or breaks in communication for the duration of the exercise.

“The increase in advanced technology on the battlefield can be taxing on an operator. And we don’t want to add to that stress.” – Robert Jacobson

In fact, we became the de facto primary means of communications when other legacy hardware and new LEO-only systems were having difficulties. Our new Phoenix E terminals delivered resilient, high-throughput communications, and proved that MEO upgrades to the Phoenix are a worthwhile investment for the U.S. Army.

Lite Coms is very excited to continue working with SES and the U.S. Department of Defense to field constellation agnostic solutions for our users now and into the future.

To learn more about the recent testing conducted by SES Space and Defense and Lite Coms on behalf of the U.S. Army, click HERE.

The post Terminal Tests Show Multi-Orbit, Integrated Satellite Architecture is Well Within Reach appeared first on SES Space and Defense.

Since the Viasat attack, commercial satellite operators across the globe have been on high alert for potential cyberattacks and breaches that could potentially compromise or disable their critical systems. In fact, the Viasat attack led President Biden to issue an official statement imploring the commercial industry to prepare for what may come next.

“Most of America’s critical infrastructure is owned and operated by the private sector and critical infrastructure owners and operators must accelerate efforts to lock their digital doors,” read the President’s statement. “If you have not already done so, I urge our private sector partners to harden your cyber defenses immediately.”

During last month’s SATELLITE 2022 conference, the Viasat incident was top-of-mind as conversations about the attack buzzed throughout the halls and session rooms of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

In one SATELLITE session entitled, “Securing Commercial Systems for Government Use,” the Viasat cyberattack set the table for the panel discussion, as experts from SES Space and Defense, Inmarsat Government, Eutelsat, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), and the U.S. Army examined how both the U.S. government and the commercial satellite industry can work together to bolster the security of our nation’s commercial systems in space.

Here are a couple key takeaways on securing commercial satellite systems from the adversary and assuring the resiliency of satellite services and connectivity for the future battlefield:

GEO, MEO, LEO…and switching in between

It is imperative that the U.S. military have access to the satellite technologies and services that facilitate assured communications for the warfighter. But just as important as providing those services is the security, resiliency, and speed of those critical systems.

The importance of high-throughput and low latency satellite services provided by Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO) and Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites was a major discussion point during the session. U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Robert Collins shared with the panel that the Army’s focus on its next capability set will be expanding its capacity for MEO and LEO connectivity at the edge, pointing to the orbits’ proven track records on delivering high-throughput, low latency connectivity.

He continued to say how PACE (Primary, Alternate, Contingent, and Emergency) communications plans on-orbit could also strengthen resiliency of critical space systems. “I think this SATCOM layer just adds an additional ability for us to do that,” said Maj. Gen. Collins. “We want to leverage it…This is certainly something that we can tap into, and really thickens our communications structure.”

Pete Hoene, President and CEO of SES Space and Defense, also agreed that connectivity provided by MEO satellites will provide the warfighter with high-speed connection that they require on the ground. Referring to the SES O3b MEO satellite service, Hoene explained that it can deliver, “fiber-like latency that is very high-throughput,” and that the next-generation constellation – O3b mPOWER – will build upon those capabilities even further.

Though the latency and throughput provided by MEO satellites solves the issue for warfighters on the ground, they do not necessarily solve security issues on-orbit. But in a recent, successful test by SES and Hughes, the satellite providers were able to demonstrate their ability to switch signals across satellites in Geostationary (GEO) and MEO.

This new signal-switching capability solves a massive amount of on-orbit security issues. By being able to switch signals across orbits, the U.S. can assure the resiliency and security of the satellite systems and services that are available to the military.

Deploying a rapid beam switching capability on an integrated COMSATCOM and MILSATCOM architecture can enable the U.S. military to seamlessly roll-over applications and systems to other satellites inter- or intra-orbit, stopping adversaries in their tracks if they attempt to jam or execute kinetic attacks on commercial satellites leveraged by the U.S. government.

Agile Acquisition

Another key takeaway from the session was the important role agile acquisition of satellite capabilities and services play in securing commercial space assets that the military utilizes. Implementing an agile framework would facilitate faster military adoption of commercial capabilities that are modified and tailored specifically for the warfighter.

According to Maj. Gen. Collins, implementing an agile acquisition framework will allow the military to adopt new commercial capabilities quicker, enabling operators to be ahead of the adversary, which in turn would make space systems more secure. “We can bring in these technologies faster, and we can keep pace with the threat,” said Maj. Gen. Collins.

For Hoene, stronger partnerships between industry and the U.S. government procurement agencies are needed in order for the commercial industry to properly invest in the new capabilities that the U.S. government wants and needs.

To learn more about the recent cross-orbit signal test by SES and Hughes, click HERE.

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Understanding that cloud customers will rely on satellite to access their cloud services and cloud-native applications in geographically remote and isolated areas, Microsoft recently launched Azure Space, and announced a number of innovative partnerships with satellite providers, such as SES Space and Defense. They also introduced Azure Orbital and the Azure Modular Data Center, which are designed to help make cloud connectivity at the tactical edge easier for government cloud users.

In the second part of our illuminating interview with Steve, we set out to learn more about these exciting announcements from Azure Space. We also discussed how innovations in the space and satellite industry are opening the door for the ubiquitous, global connectivity necessary to power government cloud and digital transformation initiatives.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): While our readers are undoubtedly familiar with Microsoft Azure, they may not be as familiar with Azure Space, which I understand is a relatively new entity. Can you tell our readers a bit more about Azure Space and its mission?

Steve Kitay: Microsoft publicly launched Azure Space a year ago, although we’ve been working on standing it up for more than two years. The mission of Azure Space is bringing the cloud and space together to empower our customers both on and off the planet.

Our approach to Azure Space is through partnerships and enabling an ecosystem. Microsoft isn’t building and launching its own satellites, but rather partnering with others that do to provide connectivity solutions both to space systems, and anywhere on earth.

We also have cutting-edge AI and machine learning (ML) algorithms to drive insights from the data coming from space. We are also supporting the developer community with unique simulation and digital engineering capabilities. And lastly, while we’re not building or launching our own satellites, we’re bringing our innovation into space.

For example, HP has a computer on the ISS called the Spaceborne computer that we’ve connected to the hyperscale cloud to enable researchers and astronauts to do more. There are a variety of innovation areas that we’re exploring and working on both on and off the planet.

GSR: What is Microsoft Azure Orbital? What does it enable government cloud users to do?

Steve Kitay: Azure Orbital is a fully managed, cloud-based ground station as a service that allows users to communicate with their satellite constellation. This allows them to download data, uplink commands, and process data in the cloud. It also enables Azure services to be deployed to generate products for their customers.

“Governments worldwide are looking for these kinds of connectivity solutions to meet their needs. What we’re doing with SES is bringing the connectivity and compute together so that they’re not just moving the data, but they’re deriving insights and understanding from that data.” – Steve Kitay

Ultimately, it provides modern ground segment technologies, allowing satellite operators to focus on their space mission and product, offloading the responsibility of deployment and maintenance of ground station assets.

The system that we’ve built out is on top of Azure’s global infrastructure and low-latency global fiber networks. The capability of Azure Orbital is building upon a partner ecosystem that includes KSAT, ViaSat, Kratos, Emergent Space Technologies, and several others.

GSR: What about the Microsoft Modular Data Center (MDC)? What is the MDC and what does it do? How is it different from other data centers? What can it enable for government cloud users?

Steve Kitay: We have a suite of edge capabilities, and the MDC is one of them. The MDC and our other edge devices enable the use of Azure from anywhere in the world.

MDC gives customers the capability to deploy a modular data center to remote locations, or to augment existing infrastructure. A major differentiator for the MDC is that customers can run the unit with full network connectivity, or in situations where it’s occasionally connected or even fully disconnected.

“Microsoft isn’t building and launching its own satellites, but rather partnering with others that do to provide connectivity solutions both to space systems, and anywhere on earth.” – Steve Kitay

We have also built in an ability to have satellite connectivity with SES, and other providers, to enable the data center to be connected back to the hyperscale cloud.

GSR: In a recent press release, it was announced that Microsoft would leverage the SES multi-orbit satellite system to give government entities to cloud resources practically anywhere on the globe. Why is a multi-orbit satellite solution ideal for this? What advantages does a multi-orbit constellation or service have over one that is in a single, dedicated orbit?

Steve Kitay: SES is a close partner of Microsoft, and their multi-orbit satellite constellation allows us to better service our customers.

By enabling our customers to access different satellite services at different orbits, we’re giving them the choice and flexibility to choose the right satellite service for their needs and requirements.

Satellite services from different orbits have different advantages, and different satellite services may be optimal for a particular customer’s needs and requirements. By enabling access to multiple options, Microsoft ensures that they have different options they need to meet their needs in regard to pricing, bandwidth, capacity, latency and other factors.

“Azure Orbital is a fully managed, cloud-based ground station as a service that allows users to communicate with their satellite constellation. This allows them to download data, uplink commands, and process data in the cloud.” – Steve Kitay

Our approach brings together partnerships and products to create a comprehensive and resilient satellite tool and solutions that meet the needs of our customers.

GSR: SES is on the precipice of launching a new satellite service – SES O3b mPOWER. What will this new service mean for government and military cloud users? How can it change what is currently possible at the tactical edge?

Steve Kitay: O3b mPOWER is a satellite constellation that we’re specifically partnering with and that they’re leveraging Azure Orbital for ground infrastructure. It’s a Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite service that delivers a tremendous increase in flexibility and throughput speed, and cloud-scale capacity to Azure locations across the Earth. And, ultimately, what that means for customers is that fiber-equivalent connectivity will now be available wherever users are located – including in the air, at sea, or on the ground in remote sites in geographically-isolated regions.

O3b mPOWER is delivering secure and resilient network architecture for robust connectivity whether the mission is establishing a secure network at a tactical edge or deploying a UAV for live HD video along a border. Governments worldwide are looking for these kinds of connectivity solutions to meet their needs. What we’re doing with SES is bringing the connectivity and compute together so that they’re not just moving the data, but they’re deriving insights and understanding from that data.

For additional information about how Ob3 mPOWER can enable next-generation technologies on the battlefield, click HERE to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper, “High Throughput Satellites for U.S. Government Applications.”

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This digital transformation was arguably kickstarted by the widespread adoption of the cloud and cloud resources across the government. And it’s being driven forward by cloud-native applications that are being developed, deployed, and hosted in the cloud, where they can be accessed by government and military personnel whenever and wherever the mission requires.

While this digital transformation will only result in the government becoming more effective and efficient, it can only succeed if connectivity and access to cloud resources are ubiquitous across the globe.

The connectivity required for government and military organizations to access and utilize cloud services at the tactical edge is most effectively delivered by satellite. This is creating new collaborations and partnerships between those that operate satellite networks, and the organizations that provide cutting-edge cloud services.

One of the cloud providers leading the pack in embracing satellite connectivity is Microsoft Azure, which recently launched Azure Space, and announced a number of innovative partnerships with satellite providers, such as SES Space and Defense.

We recently sat down with Steve Kitay, the Senior Director of Azure Space at Microsoft, to discuss the trends driving the need for satellite and cloud partnerships, and how cloud services delivered via satellite could revolutionize how governments operate.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): Transitioning to the cloud has been a major initiative for the government over the course of the last few years. What types of cloud use cases are we seeing in the government? What different types of applications and workloads are being moved to the cloud by government agencies? Are mission-critical workloads making their way into the cloud?

Steve Kitay: Government agencies want to benefit from commercial cloud innovation. They want to take advantage of its speed, its scale, and its agility. Transitioning to the cloud reduces costs, provides access to the latest technologies, and diminishes the burden of having to maintain their own legacy infrastructure.

We see government agencies moving a range of workloads to the cloud to rapidly grow their mission capabilities. At the start of the COVID pandemic, we saw a rapid shift to cloud services to enable secure remote work environments through Azure Commercial and Government Clouds, and through the Office 365 productivity suites.

We’re seeing this shift to the cloud across a range of agencies. We’re working with a number of agencies, in particular, to help them use the cloud to solve their mission problems. The Department of Agriculture has leveraged a project called Farm Beats that accesses Azure’s repositories of analytics tools to understand data, and uses AI to help farmers cut costs, increase yields and sustainably grow crops that are more resilient to threats like climate change.

“When we bring (IoT and hybrid infrastructure) together, with AI running across these systems, we enter into an era of Intelligent Edge – a continually expanding set of connected systems and devices that gather and analyze information close to the physical world where the data resides and is harvested.” – Steve Kitay

The Department of Defense (DoD) is working on building out its enterprise cloud capabilities. Branches within the DoD, such as the Air Force, have deployed their own instances. Air Force Cloud One is a good example of a military branch using the cloud to provide foundational cloud capabilities, including networking, monitoring, access control, and identity management.

GSR: Are we seeing the need across different levels and organizations within the government for access to cloud solutions in the field, off-grid, and at the tactical edge? What is driving this requirement? What types of capabilities and applications are they looking to access?

Steve Kitay: The U.S. Government has been clear that they are trying to tap into commercial innovation to unlock new mission scenarios that were simply not possible before. There are two trends that we’re seeing in the government that really illustrate that.

The first trend is the Internet of Things (IoT), which utilizes smart sensors, connected devices, and other network-enabled endpoints to change the way that agencies approach problems. From equipment maintenance, to measuring air quality, to smart cities, and even military outposts, they’re implementing devices that are cloud-connected by default.

The other trend is movement towards hybrid infrastructure – or the integration of traditional datacenter infrastructure, edge devices, and the public cloud. This gives the government access to more compute capabilities in even the world’s most remote locations.

When we bring these two technology trends together, with AI running across these systems, we enter into an era of Intelligent Edge – a continually expanding set of connected systems and devices that gather and analyze information close to the physical world where the data resides and is harvested. This enables them to get real-time insights and immersive experiences that are highly responsive and contextually aware.

There is a space program that is a great example of the Intelligent Edge called the Casino Program, which was done with the Defense Innovation Unit in support of the U.S. Space Force. The rising number of satellites proliferating in low earth orbit (LEO) presents a new data challenge for the ground segment of missions—a segment that is often overlooked.

The Casino Program Office demonstrated fast, flexible, and extensible cloud commercial capabilities for ground processing in support of defense missions.  In this project, the joint Ball Aerospace and Microsoft team demonstrated the ability to transmit overhead, persistent infrared data through commercial satellites to the ground and then be processed both in the hyperscale Azure data center, as well as directly to a tactical vehicle in the field that was equipped with an Azure stack edge device.

“The need for bandwidth and cloud services in remote locations is a large and growing global challenge. The alignment and integration of the Azure cloud with satellites and terrestrial networks further enables the connected, Intelligent Edge…” – Steve Kitay

In this scenario, the overhead satellites transmitted the images of the environment, and that data was then pushed to both Azure and the Azure stack edge device where machine learning algorithms processed the images and detected certain activities and features. This machine learning identification generated insights which were converted into messages and disseminated to multiple endpoints.

This project represents a huge leap forward in reducing the time to actionable insight—if users are on the ground in a tactical edge vehicle or located at a command center, users can obtain necessary information accurately, quickly, and securely.

GSR: How else could access to cloud resources at the tactical edge or on the battlefield impact our warfighters? What could it enable them to do? What services/capabilities could it make possible for them?

Steve Kitay: Well, another great example is the Army’s IVAS program, which is bringing state-of-the-art cloud and mixed reality capability to soldiers at the tactical edge.

The IVAS headset, which is based on HoloLens and augmented by Azure cloud services, delivers a platform that keeps soldiers safer and makes them more effective. The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing, and decision making for a variety of scenarios.

GSR: Microsoft has been working with satellite providers – including SES – to enable remote, off-grid access to cloud resources. Why is satellite the right choice for this?

Steve Kitay: Satellite is the right choice because space provides is a global perspective. It enables us to connect people anywhere, whether they’re in the middle of the ocean, the desert, or anywhere else on the Earth.

What is changing now with satellite communications is the type of services being offered. New services are now available with higher bandwidth and lower latencies. And space-generated data is growing exponentially, which requires expanded ground control capabilities, as well as data processing, storage, and analytics to turn that data into knowledge and actionable insights.

The need for bandwidth and cloud services in remote locations is a large and growing global challenge. The alignment and integration of the Azure cloud with satellites and terrestrial networks further enables the connected, Intelligent Edge that I referenced earlier.

For additional information about how Ob3 mPOWER can enable next-generation technologies on the battlefield, click HERE to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper, “High Throughput Satellites for U.S. Government Applications.”

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Both SES and Boeing have touted the satellites that will comprise the O3b mPOWER service as revolutionary in their capacity, flexibility, latency, and automation. Those features are among the reasons why many companies – including Microsoft and four of the top five major cruise companies– have contracted for service on the system before it’s even launched.

In the second part of our conversation with Ryan, we explore what makes the O3b mPOWER service so automated, what that automation means for users, and how the flexibility and scalability of O3b mPOWER could open the door for advanced capabilities specifically for government and military users.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): In addition to the drastically increased throughputs, SES has often touted mPOWER as a more scalable and automated solution that can give users more control over their satellite service, while also making satellite easier to use. How is this being accomplished? What advancements are making these satellites more scalable and automated?

Ryan Reid: With a new generation of software defined satellites, there is an inherent complexity involved. With this satellite infrastructure, we’ve worked to bake in the necessary automation of that complexity – management of that complexity – onto the satellite. This means that we’re not driving the complexity down to the ground systems and end-users.

SES is able to manage the asset like a network switch. And the end-users that have access to the network don’t have to worry about that complexity. They can engage at the network edge as a network guest. This simplifies the end user’s ability to get the resources that they need when they need them. It doesn’t push complexity onto the user. It makes their lives easier – not harder.

With the systems and automation that we’re building into the satellites and system, an end-user can have an iPad out in the field and simply increase the bandwidth that’s available, direct service to different geographic regions, or move capacity around, all through control of the network.

When it comes to the military, planning resources is a huge endeavor that involves coordinating across multiple offices. We’ve taken a lot of work away by making the allocation of resources much easier and much more agile – enabling scalability as missions requirements change. That’s where the automation comes in – resource management through the SES ARC system that is complemented by the avionics and intelligence in the spacecraft, itself.

“By enabling the command and control function to get the data they need to make better decisions in the field, government and military users can increase the speed of decision-making. That can be a real game-changer.” – Ryan Reid, Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems

Here’s an example of how this might look in the field. If a military customer needs to backhaul data from a special operations mission or ISR platform, they could almost instantaneously allocate a large swath of bandwidth to the location, exfiltrate data, and then move that bandwidth somewhere else where it’s needed just a few minutes later. And all of that is possible without having to go through weeks-long coordination within the government.

GSR: Why is automation and scalability like this useful for government and military users? What would this mean for the actual “boots on the ground” users of satellite and applications delivered via satellite?

Ryan Reid: What that means is that their experience of getting data and connectivity looks and feels like they’re at home. If we need situational awareness, weather reports, or access to reporting, they can simply log in and get that. It’s available.

It means that they don’t need special radio or satellite operators radioing back and getting that information. They have their ruggedized devices that they can log into, connect and get the information that they need when they need it. It’s connectivity in the field on par with what they have back in headquarters or back at home.

“[O3b mPOWER] simplifies the end user’s ability to get the resources that they need when they need them. It doesn’t push complexity onto the user. It makes their lives easier – not harder.” – Ryan Reid, Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems

This means more access, more coordination, and better communications. This means command and control in real-time from the tactical front line. Real-time data for more informed decision-making. And better access to MWR services and capabilities because there is no longer a need to choose between MWR capabilities and mission-critical applications.

GSR: mPOWER has been touted for its ability to give users control over the size and allocation of forward and return beams. Why would this be useful for government or military users? What could this enable them to do?

Ryan Reid: The symmetry of forward and return beams can enable military and government users to push decision-making out to the tactical edge. By enabling the command and control function to get the data they need to make better decisions in the field, government and military users can increase the speed of decision-making. That can be a real game-changer.

Ultimately, the government and military don’t want tactical operators sitting around waiting for data or intelligence. They also want the data and intelligence that is available to them to be as up-to-date and real-time as possible. A symmetric forward and return beam – enabling data to be pushed and received in real-time – can enable that.

O3b mPOWER eliminates the return link restraints that government and military users faced with previous systems, including other, traditional HTS (high-throughput satellite) systems. Typically, these systems were designed with an asymmetric forward and return. Most of the data was pushed out, and very little is received.

“…the need for ubiquitous connectivity is only becoming more essential. O3b mPOWER is going to be a major player in enabling the government to embrace modern applications, cloud services, and other next-generation solutions at the tactical edge.” – Ryan Reid, Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems

O3b mPOWER enables symmetric forward and return, if necessary, but it also delivers the flexibility and agility to change that based on the mission requirements. If the user needs a full 2.5 GHZ return beam over an ISR platform to quickly and efficiently pull data off of that platform, they can enable that. If they need to push 2.5 GHZ to a vehicle to push a software update, they can enable that. If they need to direct a number of return beams into an area to locate a lost unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), they can do that, too.

GSR: When it comes to government users – especially the military – resiliency and security are of paramount importance. What has been implemented in the O3b mPOWER satellites to make them more resilient and secure? What is inherent in these satellites and their orbit that makes them more assured for government and military users?

Ryan Reid: Boeing has several decades of experience in the development of commercial and government platforms. There are a great number of best practices and lessons learned from decades of designing and building military satellites that we’ve leveraged in the design and construction of the O3b mPOWER satellites.

While the 702X platform employs a lot of new technologies and the software defined payload is revolutionary, the backbone of the satellite is based on the 702 platform that has a long history of performance, mission assurance and reliability. We want to build satellites that exceed their mission lives. We don’t want to fix what’s not broken, but we also want to innovate. So, we innovated on a highly reliable, highly proven platform in the 702 platform.

The constellation’s operation in the MEO orbit delivers inherent resiliency. There are multiple satellites moving overhead at high velocity. If an asset is compromised, another is coming by shortly thereafter, which delivers inherent resiliency. There are typically multiple satellites in a field of view, which creates a resilient system through asset diversity and redundancy.

“If a military customer needs to backhaul data from a special operations mission or ISR platform, they could almost instantaneously allocate a large swath of bandwidth to the location, exfiltrate data, and then move that bandwidth somewhere else where it’s needed just a few minutes later.” – Ryan Reid, Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems

From a security standpoint, we have employed CNSSP-12 security, including command and telemetry links have been encrypted to the highest standard for non-government-owned assets. There are multiple layers of security, resiliency and reliability that all work together to make this a highly available, secure, and reliable system for the military.

GSR: Big picture, how do you see O3b mPOWER changing the way global governments operate off-grid and at the tactical edge? How will it revolutionize how they operate in the field?

Ryan Reid: Having broadband network access at the edge allows access to information and communication for decision making, training exercises, remote medicine, remote connectivity and other capabilities at a scale that isn’t currently available.

This is an important supplement to the assets the military currently uses. There are a lot of different choices for government comms over commercial and the flexibility and scale that O3b mPOWER delivers has the potential to be revolutionary.

As the government continues to embrace digital transformation and embraces network-enabled services and applications across all of its operations, the need for ubiquitous connectivity is only becoming more essential. O3b mPOWER is going to be a major player in enabling the government to embrace modern applications, cloud services, and other next-generation solutions at the tactical edge.

For additional information about how Ob3 mPOWER can enable next-generation technologies on the battlefield, click HERE to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper, “High Throughput Satellites for U.S. Government Applications.”

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Since the procurement of the O3b mPOWER constellation was first announced in 2017, SES has touted it as a revolutionary advancement in connectivity and communications from space. But what makes the system – and the spacecraft that powers it – different from other high throughput satellite (HTS) constellations? What technological advancements does it offer from its O3b successor? And what services or capabilities will military and government users gain access to when this new service launches?

To get the answers to these questions, we sat down with Ryan Reid, the President of Boeing Commercial Satellite Systems, International.

Government Satellite Report (GSR): Last month, Boeing invited press and space experts to sneak a peek at the new O3b mPOWER satellites. At a high level, what makes these satellites so different from traditional HTS satellites in geostationary orbit (GEO)?

Ryan Reid: There are technological differences between the mPOWER satellites and a traditional HTS satellite. The O3b mPOWER satellites are based on our 702X platform. The core difference between traditional HTS satellites – such as those built with our 702 platform – and the 702X platform is full software-defined flexibility.

With traditional high throughput satellites (HTS) there is a digital payload that allows you to flexibly allocate the satellite’s resources. However, there are limits to how much flexibility the user has. With the 702X platform being used on O3b mPOWER, it is much more flexible and manageable, even while it’s in orbit.

For example, with SES’s O3b mPOWER satellites, users can control satellite resources while on orbit completely through software. The beams can be allocated to one location or can be spread out and shaped however the user wants purely by software control.

And that gives users a new level of flexibility, scale, and control that is generally unmatched by the traditional HTS architecture.

GSR: How are they different from the existing SES O3b satellite constellation in MEO? What advancements do these satellites offer that those did not?

Ryan Reid: When we had our media event last month, the CEO of SES, Steve Collar, referred to the introduction of these satellites as going from an iPhone One to an iPhone 12. I personally think the example should be going from a push-button telephone to an iPhone 12 or the newly introduced iPhone 13. It introduces a new level of functionality, capacity, and flexibility that is fundamentally different.

If we look at the current O3b satellites, they are very traditional satellites. The constellation includes 20 satellites, each with 10 individually steerable spot beams that connect to steerable gateway beams. SES, as the network service provider, has constraints on how they provide that connectivity to their users because of this architecture. It’s similar to what exists in traditional GEO HTS. There are users and you have gateways, and you have to connect them, which limits service providers to a certain number of set network topographies.

Looking at the O3b mPOWER satellites, the entire construct of the user and the gateway is eliminated. Instead of ten beams to connect with users and two beams for gateways, you have 5,000 beams that you can do anything with. So, there is no longer a concept of a “user” and a “gateway.”

As we began this journey with SES, we started with a more traditional network structure with users and gateways. But then, it became apparent that what they really needed was a network switch in the sky. And that caused Boeing and SES to do a hard pivot, bring in new technologies that we were developing for some time, and create something that is truly software-defined and flexible, and that functions as a layer two network switch in orbit. This gives users complete flexibility into how the network is designed and implemented, and even allows you to change it over the life of the system.

“Instead of ten beams to connect with users and two beams for gateways, you have 5,000 beams that you can do anything with. So, there is no longer a concept of a user and a gateway.” – Ryan Reid

From a hardware perspective, it’s almost like the evolution from a console television – for those of your readers older enough to remember those – to a flat panel television. You have the same functionality as the console television, but you have so much more flexibility and capability in a much smaller package.

The 702X architecture is analogous to going from that console television to the flat panel. It mimics that evolution.

GSR: What types of advanced services, capabilities, and applications could mPOWER enable for the military and government? What use cases do these organizations have for high throughput, low latency connectivity at the tactical edge?

Ryan Reid: Having the satellite constellation at MEO significantly reduces the latency. And that lower latency provides a network and connectivity that operates much like a terrestrial network. So, operating at MEO is a key enabler of many technologies and applications that require high throughputs and low latencies, even at the tactical edge.

The O3b mPOWER satellites have access to the complete 2.5 GHZ of commercial Ka-band spectrum. So, to a military or government user, these satellites can be used to deliver resilient backhaul for a localized network that is accessible to deployed forces or tactical operators. This gives them incredible flexibility to enable connectivity and access to advanced capabilities for mobile users that may not have access to terrestrial networks. It’s also flexible, so it can deliver agility on the fly for tactical requirements. They can allow users to quickly meet shifting connectivity requirements for missions, even if those missions didn’t have well-forecasted locations.

What can military and government users do with that connectivity? They certainly can use it for ISR platforms and missions.

“O3b mPOWER could enable a localized network that could enable that data to be exfiltrated in real-time and pushed to forward operating forces to ensure they have the most up-to-date data.” – Ryan Reid

One of the notable features of the O3b mPOWER design is that it has symmetric forward and return links. That gives it a great ability to backhaul data off of ISR platforms, even if those ISR platforms are highly mobile because it gives the user the ability to create coverage over a large geographic area on the fly, utilizing software.

This is something similar to what we see with the cruise ship market. Think of cruise ships as very large, easy-target ISR platforms. When cruise passengers get back on the ship from their excursions, they want to upload photos, share videos, and communicate with friends and loved ones. That creates a large return link demand which is not typically seen in networks, which are usually very forward-link driven – getting information out to people. The symmetry of the forward and return link that’s inherent in O3b mPOWER can be exploited to empower a bubble of data exfiltration.

The military may not be looking to upload tourism photos, but they would be looking to transmit large intelligence files – including HD videos and images. O3b mPOWER could enable a localized network that could enable that data to be exfiltrated in real-time and pushed to forward operating forces to ensure they have the most up-to-date data.

Another example would be morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) services. Currently, with limited bandwidth available to them, the military has to make difficult, strategic decisions about what travels across their satellite networks. MWR data and capabilities that could enable a higher quality of life for the warfighter – such as entertainment and communications services – often need to be sacrificed for more mission-critical systems.

The scale of communication that O3b mPOWER enables opens the door for new use cases that the military may never have considered delivering at the tactical edge in their traditional, connectivity-constrained environment. O3b mPOWER is enabling ubiquitous broadband connectivity in theater, and the use cases for that are almost limitless.

For additional information about how Ob3 mPOWER can enable next-generation technologies on the battlefield, click HERE to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper, “High Throughput Satellites for U.S. Government Applications.”

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