According to the latest report, Astranis has purchased a dedicated Falcon 9 launch unit from SpaceX for the launch of four tiny geosynchronous communication satellites in the summer of 2023.
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Dubbing these relatively small satellites as MicroGEOs, Astranis aims to offer potential customers an alternative to the expensive geostationary (GEO) communications that dominate modern times.
Moreover, these large satellites tend to weigh between 3 and 7 metric tons when they lift off, while MicroGEO satellites weigh about 400 kilograms – at least an order of magnitude lighter. Each microsatellite can provide 10 Gbps of bandwidth, so their performance is actually comparable to larger satellites, Astranis said.
Furthermore, Astranis’ first satellite, called Arcturus, will launch on a shared mission on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket sometime this summer. Astranis said it would triple the satellite bandwidth currently available in Alaska while providing cheaper and more reliable broadband service.
