EXPLORINEER
en

US — TechCrunch

Google’s first data center satellite is online and writing poetry

Space1 min read

Google's prototype space data center satellite, called Suncatcher, is up in orbit and talking to ground stations. It is a test of whether computer chips can work in space.

The satellite is online

Google's Suncatcher prototype launched earlier this month on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, along with more than 100 other spacecraft. It is now working and talking to the ground. Engineers sent it a first request, asking the built-in AI model, Gemma 4, to write a haiku about being in space. The satellite's reply was a short poem.

Key facts

  • The satellite carries four Google Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), which are chips made for AI work.
  • It can make up to 1 kilowatt of electricity.
  • The TPUs can only run for about 20 minutes at a time because they use so much power.
  • Only one TPU can run at a time.
  • Commissioning, the set-up and testing phase, took about three weeks.

Why space is hard for computers

Space is full of radiation, which is high-energy particles from the sun and deep space. Radiation can cause "bit flips." A bit flip changes a stored value in memory, and this can corrupt data without normal monitoring tools noticing. Google has tested its TPUs with particle accelerators on Earth, but real space conditions can behave differently.

Why it matters

If space computers work, companies could run AI in orbit instead of on Earth. Google's tests will show how the chips handle heat and radiation in real space. The next step is launching two more satellites in 2027 with advanced chips, which would test more power and links between satellites. Google's plans also depend on SpaceX's Starship rocket becoming fully and quickly reusable.

What to watch

  • How the TPUs perform under heat and radiation over the coming tests.
  • Whether radiation causes bit flips in real space.
  • Launch of two more satellites in 2027 with more power and laser links between them.
  • Whether Starship becomes reusable enough to lower launch costs.

Glossary

Suncatcher
Google's project to test data centers that orbit in space.
TPU
Tensor Processing Unit, a computer chip Google designed to run AI tasks quickly.
Gemma 4
An AI model from Google DeepMind that was loaded onto the satellite.
Starship
SpaceX's large rocket, still in development, meant to be fully reusable.

Same story, different eyes

Ad

Add 150 words. Learn 10 a day.

Dicter word books send only the words you learn to your review notes.

More in this topic

SpaceThe Register

Voyager 1 gives controllers the silent treatment

Voyager 1 went silent for a few days in October 2026, when NASA's Deep Space Network could not detect its signal on October 18 or 19. The signal returned on October 20, and engineers believe a group of thrusters went offline and their backups were activated, possibly because onboard computers entered a safe mode. The team is still working to understand the cause as the spacecraft approaches its 50th anniversary next year.

SpaceThe Register

NASA ponders a Hubble servicing mission or a controlled deorbit

NASA has issued a request for information from commercial space companies that could service the Hubble Space Telescope, which has had no servicing mission since STS-125 in 2009. Without propulsion, Hubble would reenter uncontrolled, with NASA estimating a 10 percent chance of reentry by September 2032 and 50 percent by December 2033. Options under consideration include a controlled reentry vehicle, a boost to at least 600 km, or upgrades to extend the telescope's lifetime.

SpaceVnExpress

Rassvet - Russia's satellite network challenges Starlink

Russia is accelerating the build-out of Rassvet, a satellite internet network offering up to 1 gigabit per second for both civilian and military use, nicknamed "Russia's Starlink." Rassvet currently has 32 satellites in orbit, with plans to reach 292 by 2027 and 900 by 2035, developed by Moscow-based private firm Bureau 1440. The article notes the network also has military significance, as Russia has sought its own satellite system after losing access to some Starlink terminals in Ukraine.

SpaceVnExpress

US startup wants to sell nighttime sunlight

Reflect Orbital, a California startup, plans to place giant mirrors in low Earth orbit to redirect reflected sunlight to selected ground sites, with services ranging from extending solar farm operations after dark to supporting search and rescue. Its first test satellite, Eärendil-1, with an 18 x 18 m reflector, is slated to launch next year. A study cited in the article, based on modeling rather than real measurements, found that the light would scatter through the atmosphere and reach well beyond the target area, raising concerns from scientists, conservation groups and astronomers.