# The Great Ongoing Space Exploration Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** science-math\ **Created:** [November 16, 2020, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703 "2020-11-16T12:18:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 49
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/962 "2023-10-12T02:47:58Z")
It’s a lot, certainly, but it’s less than what they need to grow the network as they have been doing. They could stop today if they wanted, and just maintain the current fleet at a lower cost than growing it. They’d probably retain their current revenue, or even grow it somewhat into new areas that don’t require more bandwidth, and end up fairly profitable. But instead they’re continuing to grow. Starship should change the economics as well, though even with Falcon 9 they’re doing ok. And Falcon 9 keeps getting cheaper as time goes on (the high cadence just naturally makes things cheaper, plus they have been incrementally increasing the reuse count for the boosters). ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/963 "2023-10-13T18:37:16Z")
Falcon Heavy launches NASA probe toward mysterious asteroid: [NASA’s Psyche Spacecraft, Optical Comms Demo En Route to Asteroid - NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasas-psyche-spacecraft-optical-comms-demo-en-route-to-asteroid/) ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/964 "2023-10-13T18:55:24Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Texting and other low-bandwidth applications, using your existing cell phone, anywhere on the planet. They announced this a while back, but it looks like it’s actually coming soon now. Would _anywhere_ on the planet include planes? Will Starlink finally break the airline’s monopoly on in-flight internet? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/965 "2023-10-13T20:41:17Z")
Starlink has a product especially for aviation: > **[Starlink](https://www.starlink.com/business/aviation)** > > SpaceX is developing a low latency, broadband internet system to meet the needs of consumers across the globe. Enabled by a constellation of low Earth orbit satellites, Starlink will provide fast, reliable internet to populations with little or no... Only $25,000 per month, along with $150,000 for the hardware. This is being targeted at the largest of the bizjets - Gulfstreams and Bombardier Global Express aircraft to start with. Compared to the alternatives, it’s not bad. And much better bandwidth and speed. Business execs can attend zoom calls and such in flight. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/966 "2023-10-13T21:11:52Z")
They have every model of airliner, both current production and out of production but still in use, on the list of airframes they’re trying to get aviation regulator approval for. This will get its market foothold on fatcats and executives, but it’s aimed at the airline biz because that’s where the volume is. Thousands and thousands of airplanes. At first glance it seems to be a lower profile antenna than the vast majority of current Ku band antennas. That means a lot less fuel burn; the antennas in use now add a surprising amount of drag. I have no idea what airlines pay now for their inflight satellite connectivity. But Starlink’s prices don’t sound wacky to me. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/967 "2023-10-13T22:19:12Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Would _anywhere_ on the planet include planes? Will Starlink finally break the airline’s monopoly on in-flight internet? To be clear, Starlink has several different product lines now. As **Sam\_Stone** and **LSLGuy** noted, they have a specific aviation product for in-flight use. This won’t break any monopoly, but it will make in-flight WiFi much better. Current products are basically enough for web surfing; Starlink gives you a connection that supports streaming, gaming, etc. How this shows up in the end-user pricing remains to be seen, but if the prices go up it’ll be due to the airlines, not Starlink. As for the new service–it’s not intended to replace a “normal” connection, whether WiFi, 5G, or otherwise. I’d almost say emergency use only, but it’s not quite that–but it is for situations where even a very limited connection is better than nothing. If you’re way in the backcountry, or on top of a mountain, or whatever, just having support for texting is a huge win. There are devices today that have similar capabilities (like Iridium), but they require custom hardware. This works with any LTE phone. They plan on improving the bandwidth over time, and adding more services, but it’ll never be _great_. It’ll give something like a few megabits/second total per cell, which is a couple hundred square miles. For texting, that’s plenty. For phone calls, you might support a few hundred at a time–which is clearly useless in a dense area like a city, but might be ok in very rural areas. If you want a video call, you’d better be in Antactica or something and have a full cell all to yourself. Unfortunately, physics proves to be a limiter here (though one of their competitors, AST SpaceMobile, is tyring to overcome this with absolutely gigantic antennas in space). As for your first question–if you press your phone against the window, you might just be able to send a text. It depends on if you can get line of sight to a satellite. Not impossible; I’ve seen my phone GPS work this way. But deeper in a plane, there’s not much chance. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/968 "2023-10-13T22:30:01Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > At first glance it seems to be a lower profile antenna than the vast majority of current Ku band antennas. That means a lot less fuel burn; the antennas in use now add a surprising amount of drag. Yeah, my understanding is that satellite internet on a plane requires the installation of a radome with a tracking antenna that can stay fixed on a satellite. Starlink uses a flat phased-array antenna, and should be almost flush to the skin of the aircraft. Ther are now unique Starlink products for ships, aircraft, and land vehicles like RVs. Cruise wifi is a out to get a lot better, and cruise lines are signing up for Starlink rapidly. I saw a picture of a cruise liner with a line of Starlink antennas along the stern. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/969 "2023-10-13T22:45:41Z")
Most of the satellite antennas on current airliners are a very flat dish that is mechanically steered to point generally towards the target satellite. The whole housing with antenna inside is 6-8" tall, 4-5 feet long and 2-3 feet wide. It only looks kinda small because it’s bolted to something really big. I have read adverts for phased array non-moving antennas for the same mission. Which are much lower profile, like 2" tall. At that time (a few months ago) the ads had that “coming soon” vibe. If they’re gonna succeed they better hurry. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/970 "2023-10-13T22:56:26Z")
An example: [![](https://www.sabenatechnics.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Sabena-technics-receives-EASA-STC-approval-for-Ka-band-system-installation_Header-1024x576.jpg) ](https://www.sabenatechnics.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Sabena-technics-receives-EASA-STC-approval-for-Ka-band-system-installation_Header-1024x576.jpg) It’s not that small, and in particular not all that flat. Starlink will be way flatter. And possibly even conformal (i.e., it can follow the curve of the fuselage). ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2023, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/971 "2023-10-13T23:00:25Z")
Thanks for the very informative post! That cleared up my confusion. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2023, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/972 "2023-10-15T13:40:11Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > If you’re way in the backcountry, or on top of a mountain, or whatever, just having support for texting is a huge win let alone real-time-position-sharing in case of an emergency in the boonies ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2023, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/973 "2023-10-16T14:02:13Z")
By coincidence I saw an ad today for satellite broadband antennas for bizjets. This is intended to mount on top of a tailfin, where tall is OK, but narrow is required. unlike the fuselage-top antennas where tall is bad and broad is OK. Amidst the body text they also talk about a flat panel phased array antenna in the works. For scale I think the antennas in the pic are about 8" in diameter. > **[SD Plane Simple® Antenna Systems | Aviation Products | Satcom Direct](https://marketplace.aviationweek.com/product/sd-plane-simple-antenna-systems)** > > Learn about SD Plane Simple® Antenna Systems, an aviation Original Equipment, -Cabin Interiors/InFlight Entertainment, Technology, -Hardware product by Satcom Direct I’m assuming their dedicated advertising isn’t paywalled. Let me know if it is. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2023, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/974 "2023-10-21T18:20:52Z")
More turmoil over here: > **[Bezos' Blue Origin sees third executive departure amid restructuring](https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/bezos-blue-origin-sees-third-executive-departure-amid-internal-restructuring-2023-10-20/)** > > Blue Origin's senior vice president of operations is leaving "for personal reasons," according to an internal email seen by Reuters, the third executive departure to be disclosed in less than a month at Jeff Bezos' space company as it aims to sharpen... ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2023, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/975 "2023-10-21T20:45:22Z")
Seems like a good start. Bob Smith undoubtedly filled the ranks with like-minded individuals (or oldspace cronies, depending on your viewpoint–this Mike Eilola spent 12 years at Honeywell, which is where Smith came from), and Limp will need to do some housecleaning. Whether Limp can succeed remains to be seen, but he’ll _definitely_ fail if he doesn’t replace a significant chunk of upper management. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/976 "2023-10-23T00:05:28Z")
> [@Al128](#): > > > [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > > > If you’re way in the backcountry, or on top of a mountain, or whatever, just having support for texting is a huge win > > let alone real-time-position-sharing in case of an emergency in the boonies But what about all the horror movies with attractive but doomed young people looking at their phones and seeing NO SIGNAL? ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/977 "2023-10-23T00:11:57Z")
A wizard did it ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/978 "2023-10-23T01:17:24Z")
As someone who worked in cellular communications for years, I am all too familiar with the redundancies high financial penalties can inspire. A wizard who can neutralize the phone system over a significant area would be scary. On the other hand, a dense pine forest on a rainy day can do it easily. 🤦 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2023, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/979 "2023-11-01T06:51:31Z")
Crewed Chinese capsule returning to Earth: > Oof. The dust cloud is expected, and the result of some small solid rocket motors firing to cushion the landing. The capsule rolling away at fairly high speed is _not_ nominal. The main chute had a tear in it, possibly causing the lateral motion: [![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/F9widLfWgAApEKK?format=jpg&name=large) ](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/F9widLfWgAApEKK?format=jpg&name=large) Hopefully the taikonauts are fine. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/980 "2023-11-02T20:52:04Z")
Flyby of an asteroid. It has a moon. > **[NASA’s Lucy Spacecraft Discovers 2nd Asteroid During Dinkinesh Flyby - NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/nasas-lucy-spacecraft-discovers-2nd-asteroid-during-dinkinesh-flyby/)** > > On Nov. 1, NASA’s Lucy spacecraft flew by not just its first asteroid, but its first two. The first images returned by Lucy reveal that the small main belt asteroid Dinkinesh is actually a binary pair. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2023, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703/981 "2023-11-03T01:54:44Z")
Don’t talk to me or my son ever again. (sorry, [meme joke](https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1080407-dont-talk-to-me-or-my-son-ever-again)). I’m really surprised that the “moon” hasn’t flown off into space or smashed into the main body from the irregular gravitational field. That has to be a fairly chaotic system. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703.md?page=48) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-space-exploration-thread/925703.md?page=50)