AST Spacemobile reported a successful organization of data exchange between Bluewalker 3 satellite and typical smartphones. The experiment was conducted in Hawaii, during the installation of communication, the load speed of 10 Mbps was reached. This opens a new milestone in using the Internet and adds a huge number of problems for astronomers.
The experiment was conducted using the American AT&T communication operator, but in addition to it, more and more companies in the United States are interested in the idea of a direct connection of a mobile phone to a companion for Internet access. Previously, specially modified phones were required for this, and the first successes with conventional devices were achieved precisely by AST Spacemobile this year. Now the exchange of data at acceptable speeds is available for ordinary phones, and at the next stage, the authors of the experiment want to achieve data transfer at the 5G standard level.
Bluewalker 3 is an experimental satellite created specifically for working out direct connection technology to low orbit phones. He has one of the largest antennas with an area of 65 square meters.m., why the object is very bright in the blackness of the cosmos. This is pretty interfering with astronomers, and it’s even difficult to imagine what will happen when the technology will become mass and many communication operators will launch similar satellites.
Source — AST