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Delivering ubiquitous connectivity around the world is one of satellite’s greatest capabilities.However, due to the sparse population at the polar regions, these areas have been largelyunderserved throughout the history of satellite. All that is changing as Kepler Communicationsreadies its next-generation satellite service, as Jeffrey Osborne, VP of Strategy and BusinessDevelopment, highlights.

Communications atextreme latitudes

The Poles remain one of the most remote and leastpopulated regions on the Earth, yet have untoldpotential. Sparsely populated but resource-rich, theArctic is increasingly being utilized by researchorganizations, enterprise, and a burgeoning tourismindustry. As the sea ice extent of the Arctic Ocean beginsto wane due to the effects of climate change, there isan increasing interest in shipping activity. Routes like theNorthern Sea route are becoming navigable for longerperiods of the year, and the Northwest Passage is setto open to cargo and passenger shipping.

On the other side of the world, the Antarctic has nopermanent inhabitants, but does contain a large numberof active civilian research stations. As well, tourism onthe continent has been steadily growing since the 1970s,with semi-permanent tourism camps now scatteredacross the continent and a slew of vessels makingvisitations each year.

With the growth of human activity in the poles and

an insatiable need for data, shortcomings incommunications infrastructure in the region arebecoming more evident.

The problemThere are considerable challenges for deployingterrestrial communication systems in the poles. Wiredcommunication, such as fibre or copper lines, andmicrowave backhaul equipment are economicallyimpractical, given the low user density, the geography,climate extremes, and the large service area. Satellitesystems that typically fill in the voids where terrestrialconnectivity have yet to penetrate do not operate at highlatitudes, as these regions are outside the visibility ofthe geostationary arc where most satellite systemsreside.

In short, the communities, researchers, andbusinesses operating in these regions lack access toreliable, and affordable communications.

Kepler Communications satellite

Image: Kepler Communications

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Multiple solutionsNo single technology will address all of the difficultiesin bringing connectivity to Earth’s polar extremes.Improvements in existing wired installations andterrestrial microwave will certainly play a role, but a keycomponent of the solution will be next-generationsatellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) that do not suffer fromthe same line-of-sight limitation as geostationary (GEO)satellites.

Canada’s Kepler Communications is launching aconstellation of LEO nanosatellites that will provideunparalleled connectivity for the Poles. Nanosatellitesoffer unique capabilities over their large satellitecounterparts both in terms of cost as well as in theirability to rapidly incorporate new technologies.

Traditional satellites have a three to five-yeardevelopment period, and a useful life of 10 or moreyears. “Imagine your cellphone from 10-15 years ago –that is the age of the infrastructure providing satelliteservices today,” said Kepler CEO Mina Mitry. Kepler’snanosatellite platform is disrupting the status quo bybeing able to refresh the technology on orbit every three

years at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellites.Kepler’s next-gen satellites are already being

deployed. Each satellite is approximately the size of ashoebox, and orbit at 575km above the Earth’s surface.The satellites operate in a special type of polar orbitcalled a Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO). This orbit allowsthe satellite to pass directly over the poles every 90minutes rather than having no visibility line like GEOsatellites. When an individual satellite passes overhead,a window of connectivity opens for up to 10 minutes,providing ample time to transmit large volumes of data.

Kepler’s roleBefore Kepler’s services, the only LEO alternatives werethose providing low bandwidth services predominantlyfor voice applications. Kepler’s store-and-forward dataservice offers a high bandwidth alternative for movinglarge chunks of delay-tolerant data; essentially a ‘dropbox’ for data that connects polar operations with the restof the world. The capabilities of the service are easy toscale as demand increases; every satellite added to thenetwork will simultaneously decrease latency andincrease capacity.

In January of 2018, Kepler launched their firstspacecraft, KIPP, which is currently being tested withcustomers. With one satellite, Kepler has become theworld’s only provider of pole-to-pole high capacity Ku-band satellite services. In the coming weeks, a secondsatellite, CASE, will join KIPP on orbit, improving thecompany’s low-Earth orbit communication system. Inmid-2019,

Kepler’s third satellite, TARS, will be launched toaugment the capabilities of KIPP and CASE, while also

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The communities, researchers andbusinesses operating in these

regions lack access to reliable andaffordable communications

Kepler Communications satellite

Image: Kepler Communications

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#KEPLERCOMMUNICATIONS #POLES #LEO

delivering narrowband connectivity for Internet of Things(IoT) devices. All of Kepler’s nanosatellites are based onthe standardized CubeSat form factor, which means thatthey can be launched by any rocket, allowing forflexibility and cost control. Often nanosatellites makeup a secondary payload on a traditional launch or canbe launched as a group, further reducing costs. Thereare currently two established gateways operated byKepler, one in Inuvik, Canada and one in Svalbard,Norway. Norway handles most of the telemetry andhousekeeping for the satellites, and Inuvik deals withdata.

Customer applicationsWith a single satellite, Kepler is capable of movingupwards of 5GB in a single 10 minute ‘pass.’ Data is storedonboard the satellite until it passes over one of Kepler’sgateways. This system of data movement, with onesatellite, has minutes-to-hours delay before theinformation is accessible, but continues to improve asmore satellites are added to the constellation. GIS data,CCTV logs, environmental data, and media files don’trequire instant communication, so can be served by asingle LEO satellite. Kepler’s expandable model meansthat they are ‘live’ right out of the gate, with KIPPshouldering all of the workload. As satellites are added,total bandwidth increases, and the time-to-access willdecrease. This scalable infrastructure model means thatthe company will be able to meet customer needs withunprecedented agility.

Maritime usageThe gradual reduction in sea ice coverage in theNorthern polar region means that there are newopportunities for cargo and passenger traffic. LEOsatellites will be providing high-bandwidth data servicesfor ships at sea to communicate route, weather, and iceinformation.

Science and researchExisting demand for data transfer services far outstripscapacity. It is difficult to send data collected in the course

of research back to processing centers for analysis. Manytimes, data collected is physically transferred by air orwater, which can result in long delays before data isused, slowing research and adding the burden ofincreased operating costs to projects.

TourismMore and more tour operators are servicing the poles.Most tours are on vessels where the limited connectivitycan reduce passenger enjoyment and comfort. Store-and-forward services would offer the ability to movelarge media files, like video and photos, for tourists.

Medical useSmall communities or research outposts and ships havevery limited medical facilities, often with only one careprofessional available. A high-capacity data service willhelp overcome difficulties in sharing large patient filesand other data and complement existing broadbandservices when available by reducing strain on networksthat provide real-time communication.

DefenseRobust connectivity is paramount for the ability ofnations to enforce their Arctic sovereignty. Highbandwidth and reliable communications are neededboth for vessels for coast guard operations, as well asreconnaissance aircraft. Moreover, vessels are routinelyput into service for search and rescue operations in thepoles, where poor connectivity can be life-threatening.

SummaryAccess to affordable and reliable connectivity is crucialin enabling polar communities and businesses toflourish. Greater demand for bandwidth will requirerapidly deployable and cost-effective infrastructure tosupport, sustain, and encourage growth in the comingyears. Research, resource exploration, and tourism areon the rise, and the increased demand for rapidlydeployable technologies like high-bandwidth LEOsatellites will significantly improve operations andpeoples’ lives in the Earth’s extremes.

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