Russia’s Skif Satellites to Provide North Pole With Broadband in 2026

 / Go to the mediabankOpening the North Pole 2015 drifting station in the Arctic Ocean / Go to the mediabankInternationalIndiaAfricaMOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian Skif-D satellites, the first orbital spacecraft of the Sfera (Sphere) multi-satellite orbital constellation, will provide the North Pole with broadband connection from 2026, Russia’s information and navigation systems operator Glonass said. “Starting in 2026, Russian residents will be able to use the internet at the North Pole. As part of the Sphere project, [Russian] state [space] corporation Roscosmos will provide broadband Internet access in the Arctic zone,” the operator told reporters in a statement. To do so, satellites will be put into orbit at an altitude of 8,070 kilometers (5,014 miles) above the Earth. They will be used to provide broadband internet access, telephony and the internet of things to the region, the statement read. RussiaRussian Space Agency Planning to Deploy Glonass Station in Venezuela24 July 2022, 10:52 GMTCurrently, the North Pole has almost no internet access. A US system allows users only to speak on the phone and send short text messages, the statement said, adding that this works only with a special satellite phone. If several such devices are combined, it will be possible to connect to the expensive and very slow version of the internet, according to the statement. Specialists and experts plan to discuss possible ways to work with internet providers using the Sphere multi-satellite constellation at a congress in Moscow on April 13. In October 2022, the Skif-D satellite was successfully launched into orbit with the help of a Soyuz-2.1b rocket. Eight full-fledged satellites are planned to be put into orbit in the future, as part of the Sphere multi-satellite orbital constellation.

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