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Surprised me that that an article about LEO satellites offering commercial services doesn't include Iridium (which may still even have two networks, the origina
by apercu 2y ago
Surprised me that that an article about LEO satellites offering commercial services doesn't include Iridium (which may still even have two networks, the original Motorola satellites and the (Thales) NEXT satellites (that were launched by Spacex, starting in something like 2017, if they haven't run out of fuel by now).
Maybe 60-70 satellites is too small to qualify?
- jpm_sd 2y agoStarlink is offering 100x-1000x higher bit rates, depending on which Iridium service we're talking about. It's not really a direct competition.
- lxgr 2y agoThe original Iridium fleet was deorbited once the NEXT one became operational. And Iridium is in a very different market segment than OneWeb, Starlink (currently anyway), O3B etc. – they're in the L-band, which allows handheld terminals or very small (i.e. low drag), non-steered/beamformed (i.e. cheap) vehicle antennas, but also severely limits bandwidth. Starlink might shake up that space a bit with their direct-to-cell plans, but they don't have the global spectrum, nor the international landing rights or safety-of-life certifications required to be a viable competitor to somebody like Iridium or even Inmarsat in that space.