Research: “LEOs will change the way we work”
July 5, 2022
Bill Ray, VP/analyst at Gartner Research, says that he expects low Earth orbiting [LEO] satellites to dramatically change the way we work. He says that 5G has not yet lived up to its expectations, but “the LEO constellation market has, in many ways exceeded its early expectations, driven in part by launch technology, phased array, or self-configuring antennas and significant government and private investment.”
Ray, in a report issued by Gartner, admits that phased array antennas have some disadvantages compared to dish antenna i.e.: limited scanning range, low frequency agility and a complex structure, the fact that you can just take them out, sit them on a flat surface and then instantly log onto the satellite remains a big plus.
Gartner says as the LEO technology evolves, so too does space investment strategy, which continues to grow, but in different directions. Rather than investment being concentrated in satellite and launch technology, it is becoming more focused on industry verticals. Investment is drifting to the companies that analyse and exploit the data, much to the benefit of their clients and shifting away from hardware and towards services that extract value from space.
Ray adds that the real “killer” app will be asset tracking – being able to know where everything is, railway carriages, generators or combine harvesters all over the US. “The ability to manage your assets, to be able to move them where needed can really enhance efficiency.