Editing Satellite Internet access (section)

==History==
Following the launch of the first satellite, [[Sputnik 1]], by the [[Soviet Union]] in October 1957, the US successfully launched the [[Explorer 1]] satellite in 1958. The first commercial communications satellite was [[Telstar|Telstar 1]], built by [[Bell Labs]] and launched in July 1962.

The idea of a [[geosynchronous satellite]]—one that could orbit the Earth above the equator and remain fixed by following the Earth's rotation—was first proposed by [[Herman Potočnik]] in 1928 and popularised by the [[science fiction author]] [[Arthur C. Clarke]] in a paper in ''[[Wireless World]]'' in 1945.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Arthur C. Clark |url=http://www.clarkefoundation.org/docs/ClarkeWirelessWorldArticle.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060715074807/http://www.clarkefoundation.org/docs/ClarkeWirelessWorldArticle.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2006-07-15 |title=Extra-Terrestrial Relays—Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage? |date=October 1945 |access-date=2009-03-04 }}</ref> The first satellite to successfully reach geostationary orbit was [[Syncom3]], built by [[Hughes Aircraft]] for [[NASA]] and launched on August 19, 1963. Succeeding generations of communications satellites featuring larger capacities and improved performance characteristics were adopted for use in television delivery, military applications and telecommunications purposes. Following the invention of the [[Internet]] and the World Wide Web, geostationary satellites attracted interest as a potential means of providing Internet access.

A significant enabler of satellite-delivered Internet has been the opening up of the {{Ka band}} for satellites. In December 1993, Hughes Aircraft Co. filed with the [[Federal Communications Commission]] for a license to launch the first K<sub>a</sub>-band satellite, [[Spaceway]]. In 1995, the FCC issued a call for more K<sub>a</sub>-band satellite applications, attracting applications from 15 companies. Among those were [[EchoStar]], [[Lockheed Martin]], [[SES Americom|GE-Americom]], [[Motorola]] and KaStar Satellite, which later became [[WildBlue]].

Among prominent aspirants in the early-stage satellite Internet sector was [[Teledesic]], an ambitious and ultimately failed project funded in part by [[Microsoft]] that ended up costing more than $9 billion. Teledesic's idea was to create a satellite Internet constellation of hundreds of low-orbiting satellites in the K<sub>a</sub>-band frequency, providing inexpensive Internet access with download speeds of up to 720&nbsp;Mbit/s. However, the project was abandoned in 2003. Teledesic's failure, coupled with the bankruptcy filings of the satellite communications providers [[Iridium Communications Inc.]] and [[Globalstar]], dampened marketplace enthusiasm for satellite Internet development. The first Internet-ready satellite for consumers was launched in September 2003.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spacedaily.com/news/satellite-biz-03zza.html |title=First Internet Ready Satellite Launched |publisher=Space Daily |date=2003-09-29 |access-date=2013-08-29}}</ref>

In 2004, with the launch of [[Anik (satellite)#Anik F2|Anik F2]], the first [[high-throughput satellite]], a class of next-generation satellites providing improved capacity and bandwidth became operational. More recently, high throughput satellites such as ViaSat's ViaSat-1 satellite in 2011 and HughesNet's Jupiter in 2012 have achieved further improvements, elevating downstream data rates from 1 to 3&nbsp;Mbit/s up to 12 to 15&nbsp;Mbit/s and beyond. Internet access services tied to these satellites are targeted largely to rural residents as an alternative to Internet service via dial-up, ADSL or classic [[Fixed Service Satellite|FSSes]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Fitchard |first=Kevin |url=http://gigaom.com/2012/10/01/with-new-satellite-tech-rural-dwellers-get-access-to-true-broadband/ |title=With new satellite tech, rural dwellers get access to true broadband |publisher=Gigaom |date=2012-10-01 |access-date=2013-08-29 |archive-date=2020-10-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027190133/https://gigaom.com/2012/10/01/with-new-satellite-tech-rural-dwellers-get-access-to-true-broadband/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2013, the first four satellites of the [[O3b]] constellation were launched into [[Medium Earth orbit|medium Earth orbit (MEO)]] to provide internet access to the "other three billion" people without stable internet access at that time. Over the next six years, 16 further satellites joined the constellation, now owned and operated by [[SES (company)|SES]].<ref>[https://www.ses.com/our-coverage/o3b-meo ''O3b MEO''] SES. Accessed 25 April 2021</ref>

Since 2014, a rising number of companies announced working on internet access using [[satellite constellation]]s in [[low Earth orbit]]. [[Starlink|SpaceX]], [[OneWeb satellite constellation|OneWeb]] and [[Project Kuiper|Amazon]] <!--and [[Boeing satellite constellation|Boeing]]--> all planned to launch more than 1000 satellites each. OneWeb alone raised $1.7 billion by February 2017 for the project,<ref>{{cite web|title=OneWeb weighing 2,000 more satellites - SpaceNews.com|url=http://spacenews.com/oneweb-weighing-2000-more-satellites/|website=SpaceNews.com|access-date=15 April 2018|date=24 February 2017}}</ref> and SpaceX raised over one billion in the first half of 2019 for their service called [[Starlink]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/24/spacex-raised-over-1-billion-this-year-as-starlink-and-starship-ramp-up.html|title=Elon Musk's SpaceX raises over $1 billion this year as internet satellite production ramps up|website=[[CNBC]]|date=May 24, 2019}}</ref> They expected more than $30 billion in revenue by 2025 from its satellite constellation.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/exclusive-peek-at-spacex-data-shows-loss-in-2015-heavy-expectations-for-nascent-internet-service-1484316455|title=Exclusive Peek at SpaceX Data Shows Loss in 2015, Heavy Expectations for Nascent Internet Service|last1=Winkler|first1=Rolfe|date=2017-01-13|work=Wall Street Journal|access-date=2018-02-09|last2=Pasztor|first2=Andy|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/13/spacex-hopes-satellite-internet-business-will-pad-thin-rocket-launch-margins/|title=SpaceX hopes satellite Internet business will pad thin rocket launch margins|last=Etherington|first=Darrell|work=TechCrunch|access-date=2018-02-09|language=en}}</ref> Starlink, as of February 2024, has 5,402 operational satellites in orbit.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Howell |first=Elizabeth |title=Starlink satellites: Everything you need to know about the controversial internet megaconstellation |url=https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-satellites.html#section-how-to-see-starlink-satellites |website=Space.com|date=14 April 2022 }}</ref>

Many planned constellations employ [[laser communication in space|laser communication]] for inter-satellite links to effectively create a space-based [[internet backbone]].{{cn|date=January 2025}}

As of 2017, airlines such as [[Delta Airlines|Delta]] and [[American Airlines|American]] have been introducing satellite internet as a means of combating limited bandwidth on airplanes and offering passengers usable internet speeds.<ref name="veconomist" >{{cite news|author=A.W.|title=More airlines are offering free Wi-Fi for messaging services|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2017/10/net-setting|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|date=17 October 2017}}</ref>

In September 2017, [[SES (company)|SES]] announced the next generation of O3b satellites and service, named [[O3b mPOWER]], a constellation of seven [[medium Earth orbit|MEO]] satellites to deliver 10 terabits of capacity globally through 30,000 spot beams for broadband internet services.<ref>[http://spacenews.com/ses-building-a-10-terabit-o3b-mpower-constellation/ ''SES building a 10-terabit O3b "mPOWER" constellation''] Space News 11 September 2017. Accessed 25 April 2021</ref> The number of O3b mPOWER satellites ordered was subsequently increased to 11 and then 13, and on 16 December 2022, the first two [[O3b mPOWER]] satellites were successfully launched, with four more in 2023, and the service began operations alongside the existing O3b constellation in April 2024.<ref>[https://spacenews.com/spacex-launches-first-pair-of-o3b-mpower-satellites/ ''SpaceX launches first pair of O3b mPower satellites''] SpaceNews. 16 December 2022. Accessed 31 December 2022</ref><ref>[https://spacenews.com/spacex-launches-final-pair-of-o3b-mpower-satellites-needed-for-commercial-services/ ''SpaceX launches final pair of O3b mPower satellites needed for commercial services''] SpaceNews 12 November 2023. Accessed 18 December 2024</ref><ref>[https://www.satellitetoday.com/connectivity/2024/04/24/ses-o3b-mpower-meo-system-is-now-operational-service-rollout-to-follow/ ''SES’ O3b mPOWER MEO System is Now Operational, Service Rollout to Follow''] Via Satellite. 24 April 2024. Accessed 18 December 2024</ref> Two further satellites have since joined the constellation, launched in 2024<ref>[https://spacenews.com/boeing-ships-first-two-redesigned-o3b-mpower-satellites/ ''Boeing ships first two redesigned O3b mPower satellites''] SpaceNews 13 November 2024. Accessed 27 February 2025</ref><ref>[https://spacenews.com/spacex-launches-redesigned-o3b-mpower-satellites/ ''SpaceX launches redesigned O3b mPower satellites''] SpaceNews 18 December 2024. Accessed 20 January 2025</ref>