In may this year, detectives from IEEE Spectrum found something exciting: apparently, Facebook has been secretly working on an experimental satellite that could broadcast the Internet to the Ground by using radio signals of millimeter range. Today Facebook has confirmed to Wired and CNET that the satellite “Athena” (Athena) is really the project of Facebook, and that the company believes in satellite Internet technology.
“Although we currently can’t say anything specific about this project, we believe that satellite technology will be an important factor in the development of infrastructure of broadband next generation access and ensure broadband connectivity in rural regions, where there is no Internet connection”, said the representative of Facebook in an interview with CNET and Wired.
Wired dug up more information about the Athena. Using the law on freedom of information, the resource received e-mails from the FCC, which showed Facebook plans to launch Athena in early 2019. From a space point of view this is very fast.
However, Athena does not provide significant access to broadband. Companies like OneWeb and SpaceX — which launched the first online satellite in February — hope to achieve their goals at the expense of printing thousands of small satellites into low earth orbit to form a whole “constellation”, sending the Internet to the ground.
Very interesting is the fact that Facebook chose companions for the withdrawal of the Internet in the world. The company had ambitious plans for distribution of the Internet with high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles, but the project was closed in June.
Official: Facebook is building its own Internet-satellite “Athena”
Ilya Hel