Today, broadband internet is so common that no one realizes its importance until it becomes unusable. From work to entertainment to staying in touch with family and friends, everything these days runs on a high-speed internet backbone delivered via cable or wireless. This uninterrupted connection can take a big hit when a natural or artificial emergency occurs. In recent history, volcanic eruptions in Tonga, Russian attacks in Ukraine and Israeli attacks on Gaza demonstrate the importance of this communication.
Can meet urgent communication needs
While the research team states that the relevant CubeSat satellite can be made longer-lasting by supporting photovoltaic cells, they also state that the system has a scalable structure. However, the researchers note that they chose CubeSats because of their small size and ease of deployment and retrieval. Additionally, the launch route of the CubeSat, which uses a hot air balloon, can be mapped using computer simulations, taking into account the weather conditions in the region.
The team now aims to further shorten deployment times and increase the number of situations where this approach can be used. In fact, such simple and fast solutions provide a way to restore interrupted communication, especially in a war environment. At the same time, the dependence on Elon Musk’s Starlink can also be reduced.