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by sandworm101 551 days ago
>> it gets even worse for satellite, because (until starlink) communications satellites are in geosynchronous orbit

No. There were and are other communication satellites in lower orbits. SpaceX did not invent the concept of low-orbit communications satellites. The first satellites of the 90+ Iridium constellation were launched in the late 90s. That system is still online in low orbit today. Before that there were various military/state-owned satellites. The Soviet Union and Russia were big on providing coms to areas where the geo-stationary relays could not, specifically the north, as far back as the 60s. See the Molnya program.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molniya_(satellite)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridium_satellite_constellatio...

1 comments

Iridium existed but how much backhaul did it actually carry? it was meant for very low-bandwidth applications.