Canada desperately needs a national strategic internet constellation.

Edit to fix link.

  • Kichae@lemmy.ca
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    12 hours ago

    We do not need a constellation. We do not need more space junk.

    We need fibre everywhere.

      • dumblederp@aussie.zone
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        7 hours ago

        Similar problems with fibre to all of Australia. It’s just not feasible for small remote communities.

        • buddascrayon@lemmy.world
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          7 hours ago

          Microwave towers? They don’t bridge enormous distances but can bypass areas that it would be inadvisable to lay cable

          • RaskolnikovsAxe@lemmy.caOP
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            7 hours ago

            Terrestrial solutions for remote areas typically have excessive build out and maintenance costs.

            Engineers will do a tradeoff and select the most suitable solution given the criteria. It’s very easy to underestimate costs, particularly over the entire lifetime of the system.

      • Kichae@lemmy.ca
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        8 hours ago

        There are solutions for the far arctic that aren’t high density mesh networks polluting low earth orbit.

        • RaskolnikovsAxe@lemmy.caOP
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          7 hours ago

          Yes there are such solutions, but for remote regions without infrastructure and with high build out and operating/maintenance costs for terrestrial technology, I suspect that the most cost effective solution that we can achieve in a timely fashion is probably LEO, like Lightspeed or Starlink. Particularly since Canada has half a century of experience building satellite systems.

          Managing LEO debris and congestion is not an insurmountable challenge.

          • merc@sh.itjust.works
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            7 hours ago

            There are lots of ways to get satellites in polar orbits.

            Of course there are, but the customers are mostly not at the poles, so any times the satellites spend at the poles is wasted.

            • RaskolnikovsAxe@lemmy.caOP
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              6 hours ago

              I suggest you look up the solution that Telesat will use. I’m not involved in that project, but a quick glance shows me that the engineers involved have probably done their homework and have considered the customer base and their needs, including the need to service all regions of the country.

      • merc@sh.itjust.works
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        9 hours ago

        Geostationary satellites orbit at a height of 35,000 km. That means there’s a huge lag, making the satellites unsuitable for interactive Internet, and it also means they’re far away, so you need a big directional antenna to send data to them.

        Starlink is awful, but you definitely don’t want geostationary satellites for Internet.