Space-Based Voice Calls On The Horizon: ISRO To Deploy US Communications Satellite

In what could be a major upgrade for how users communicate, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is preparing to deploy an American communications satellite that would enable direct link from space for voice calls via smartphones. 

This will reportedly be the first time a US company will launch a large communications satellite from India on a rocket. India has only launched small satellites made by American companies thus far.

According to a report, India's Science Minister Jitendra Singh has said that, “in February or March we will be launching a US satellite for mobile communication, this satellite will enable voice communication on mobile phones. It will be an interesting mission.”

Satellite communication technology has the potential to reduce the dependency on mobile towers for calling, etc. In places like islands, deserts, and isolated locations that are hard for cell towers to reach, satellites can offer wider and much better coverage.

It can also enable users to stay connected while roaming globally, and even boost emergency services in times of natural disasters or calamities when regular cellphone services are disrupted.

While the American company that will produce the satellite has not been formally confirmed, those with knowledge of the matter expect that it will be launched by ISRO from Sriharikota for the Texas-based AST SpaceMobile. According to the report, AST SpaceMobile has contracted to launch the Bluebird satellite using either ISRO's Launch Vehicle Mark-3 or Bahuballi rocket.

ISRO's rocket will launch the satellite into low Earth orbit, and it will weigh close to 6,000 kg. The antennas on each Bluebird satellite will reportedly measure 64 square metres, or roughly half the area of a football field. 

According to American media, AST SpaceMobile CEO Abel Avellan had announced last year that the company would launch one Block 2 of the Bluebird satellite using the Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle.

Avellan had earlier also said that the company “invented a technology that connects satellites directly to ordinary cell phones and provides broadband internet through the largest ever commercial phase array in low Earth orbit.” The mission is to bring “affordable 5G broadband service from space to billions of people worldwide, direct to everyday smartphones,” he had said.

As per the US company, its services can be used to make voice calls from any smartphone. The majority of other contemporary satellite-based Internet and phone providers need users to purchase specialised satellite phones or have specialised terminals.

The new satellite-based mobile connectivity will directly rival current carriers such as Oneweb and Starlink, which employ large satellite networks to deliver broadband Internet.