SAS completes first phone calls via nano-sats
Sky and Space Global Ltd (SAS) today announced a world first for the aerospace, satellite and telecommunications industries, as the first ever voice call has been successfully conducted using its 3 Diamonds nano-satellite technology, a standard smartphone and SAS proprietary hardware and application.
Above:
The 3 Diamonds nano-satellites launched into space by Sky and Space Global in late June 2017.
Courtesy SAS
Performing the first ever phone call facilitated by nano-satellites marks a major milestone for the telecoms and satellite communications industries. This technology will enable the delivery of low cost satellite connectivity in remote locations and emerging markets that have no access to a communications network infrastructure. An important step towards realising the SAS vision.
Until recently, nano-satellites have been predominantly used for earth observation and imagery but with advancements in miniature space technology their capabilities have become increasingly sophisticated in recent years.
Sky and Space Global is the first company to successfully use narrowband connectivity provided by nano-satellites to deliver a voice call. What is unique about the Sky and Space Global service offering is that it delivers phone call, text and data services at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellite communications providers.
Along with enabling a voice call, the 3 Diamonds nano-satellites, which Sky and Space Global launched into space in late June 2017, have also demonstrated their capability to facilitate the exchange of text messages, voice recordings and images between different users. As part of this process, SAS has successfully tested the 'store and forward' capability of its technology, which includes sending a message to the satellite, keeping it in satellite memory and downloading it to a receiver.
The company has also demonstrated that its services can provide indoor connectivity, by enabling users to install a Radio Frequency (RF) section on a rooftop or another outdoor area and connecting it to an indoor Wi-Fi hot-spot to add multiple users to the network.
This achievement represents the completion of the most critical technical and operational milestone for the company, and validates Sky and Space Global’s technology and its ability to deliver affordable satellite communication services to Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime. The company will continue testing for advanced capabilities in preparation for the commercial deployments of its nano-satellites. This milestone completed by the SAS founders and team is a watershed moment for the company, and the satellite and telecommunications industries.
Now that the technology is proven, the validation of SAS’ narrowband communication services allows the company to focus on building its constellation of 200 satellites, which is the main business of the company and the road to commercial success and realisation of the SAS vision for a better world.
Sky and Space Global recently signed its first binding commercial contract with Sat-Space Africa, a pan-African communications company. SAS is now rapidly working towards concluding further binding commercial contracts with other wholesale data operators, some of which have initial agreements in place with SAS, and potential new customers with whom discussions are underway.
The company is working towards building a constellation of 200 nano-satellites to cover the equatorial belt by 2020. The quantum of bandwidth generated by the full constellation has the potential to generate gross revenues of circa US$600 million to US$1 billion per annum.
Sky and Space Global’s CEO and Managing Director, Mr. Meir Moalem said: “Today we fulfil our promise to our shareholders, made 18 months ago. This is a great achievement for Sky and Space Global and we are very pleased to be announcing this news and setting a precedent in the satellite communications industry. After months of hard work we are starting to put our vision into practice. Our technology works.
Demonstrating that our nano-satellites are capable of facilitating services such as sending a text message and conducting a voice call at a very low cost is an important step forward on our route to providing affordable communication services to Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime. Now we have passed this critical technical milestone we can turn our full attention to our constellation, to be fully deployed by 2020.”
Sky and Space Global Ltd owns Sky and Space Global (UK) Limited, a UK incorporated company with European and Israeli centres of aerospace, satellite and software industry experts. It plans to deploy nano-satellites constellations in orbit to provide global communication infrastructure and services to the telecommunications and international transport industries.