Talking to Mars with Commercial Orbiting Satellites

This week on WDD’s HotSpot:

• When your profession requires you to work on a boat out on the sea, I can imagine not communicating with family or friends could weigh heavy on the heart and mind. So Martime Broadband developed the C-Bird, a new standard for global broadband in the maritime industry offering uninterrupted, unlimited data at a fraction of the cost. According to Martime, C-Bird delivers global online connectivity that works for the client. The antenna is assembled and commissioned by the crew onboard with no cranes or scheduling considerations. An entire fleet can be deployed in the time is takes to deliver the equipment to the vessels. With C-Bird’s proprietary algorithm, embedded artificial intelligence, and unique mechanical design, the “green light” is always on.
• Customers can now get industrial enclosures with custom printing from Altech Corporation. In response to growing demand, Altech offers its industrial enclosure customers with a one-stop shopping experience to purchase customized enclosures, avoiding the need to seek out printers, engravers and legend plates on their own. Altech’s enclosures provide component and device protection in a functional and creative way, while custom print labeling enhances the value of the enclosure. There are three types of printing available: high-performance overlay, digital printing, and screen printing; and the benefits of these customized industrial enclosures include: professional appearance, branding, competitive pricing, elimination of legend plates, and reduction of label waste.
• Researchers from Aalborg University in collaboration with the U.S. universities the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and California Institute of Technology (Caltech) a new mathematically-based technique that can make Internet communication via computer, mobile phone or satellite many times faster and more secure than today. Frank Fitzek, Professor in the Department of Electronic Systems and one of the pioneers in the development of network coding claims the new technology has the potential to change the entire market, and can be used in satellite communication, mobile communication and regular Internet communication from computers.
• NASA has issued a Request for Information (RFI) to investigate the possibility of using commercial Mars-orbiting satellites to provide telecommunications capabilities for future robotic missions to Mars. By developing new business models for commercial and government partnerships, NASA is hoping to broaden the participation in exploring Mars by contracting to purchase services from a commercial service provider, which would own and operate one or more communication relay orbiters. The solicitation is open to all types of organizations including U.S. industry, universities, nonprofits, NASA centers, and federally funded research and development centers, in addition to U.S. government and international organizations.

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