{"id":860393,"date":"2026-09-25T17:08:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T17:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/860393\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T17:08:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T17:08:10","slug":"an-imminent-google-satellite-test-is-another-step-toward-data-centers-in-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/860393\/","title":{"rendered":"An Imminent Google Satellite Test Is Another Step Toward Data Centers in Space"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Oct. 1, Google plans to hitch a ride on a SpaceX Transporter 18 rideshare flight<\/a>, entrusting the mission with a test satellite it hopes will prove durable enough to start doing some light AI work while orbiting in space.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t exactly putting a data center in space \u2014 a much-hyped concept that AI entrepreneurs like Elon Musk have been touting over the last year<\/a> \u2014but it\u2019s not not doing that. The satellite, which The New York Times reports<\/a> is called \u201cMWP\u201d and which it describes as about the size of a refrigerator, won\u2019t be running any huge medical research studies or beaming back streaming data. It will be low-powered, running off solar power, and designed just to test the concept of AI computation in space. Google is running the test in partnership with the satellite imaging company Planet<\/a> and as part of Google\u2019s Project Suncatcher initiative, which was announced late last year<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a blog post that includes videos<\/a> showing some of the preparation Google\u2019s research teams have done \u2014 such as making sure that TPUs (a type of AI chip) can withstand the vibration of launching into space \u2014 the company characterizes this test as a small early step in a long-term moonshot: \u201cexploring whether space could one day host scalable machine learning infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a post on X<\/a>, Google CEO asked, \u201cCan our TPUs survive and operate in space? Well, we\u2019re going to find out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Can our TPUs survive and operate in space? Well, we’re going to find out.<\/p>\n

Project Suncatcher is hitching a ride aboard @SpaceX<\/a>‘s Transporter-18 mission, testing a prototype satellite built in partnership with @planet<\/a><\/p>\n

One small step for TPUs\u2026. pic.twitter.com\/FuZoj7c0Hl<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) September 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Finding energy for AI in space<\/p>\n

Google explained in the post that one reason it\u2019s going to try crunching AI data in space involves energy. Satellites can access eight times more solar power than earthbound structures, providing a potentially huge energy resource for space data centers, which could bypass the backlash facing data centers across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cEventually,\u201d writes Travis Beals, Google\u2019s senior director for Paradigms of Intelligence, \u201cit could be possible to link together multiple constellations of satellites, allowing them to manage larger AI workloads while in orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n

But that could be easier said than done. Companies like Google, SpaceXAI and Nvidia are all\u00a0looking<\/a> to deploy<\/a> their AI technology beyond the Earth\u2019s surface, but face some basic physical challenges: Any data center satellites would need to be built to withstand radiation, extreme temperatures and the physical stress of getting there. They\u2019d also need to avoid dangers from an increasingly crowded orbital sky<\/a> filled with other satellites and debris.<\/p>\n

Google seems to be moving fast, with plans to continue advancing Project Suncatcher with some tangible results in the next few years; that\u2019s assuming its October test is successful, and things keep moving forward. One of its next milestone goals, for 2027, would be to start testing high-bandwidth laser links after launching two more AI satellites with Planet. Communicating with lasers, Beals said in his Google post, is a lot harder than it sounds. \u201cMaintaining the necessary connection requires extraordinary precision, similar to hitting a coin-size target from miles away while both points are in motion,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A data center backlash solution?<\/p>\n

One reason space data centers sound so attractive to tech companies is a massive public backlash against building new data centers or completing ones that are in the process of being built. A pro-data center PR campaign<\/a> backed by tech giants may not be enough to counter negative sentiment and protests aimed at<\/a> data centers that help enable data-hungry AI technology.<\/p>\n

Protests have sprung up across the country over energy and water use, pollution and the potential physical effects on those who live near data centers, among other issues. It could also be a point of voter discontent heading into this year\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n

Putting data centers in space, presumably, could sidestep the issue of communities not wanting data centers nearby. But it will be costly, and there\u2019s no guarantee that the business model of data centers in space will pay off enough for tech companies to make it viable, said Mahdi Eslamimehr, executive vice president at Quandary Peak Research<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cProving that chips work in orbit is not proving a business model,\u201d Eslamimehr said, and it won\u2019t lower anyone\u2019s electricity or water bills anytime soon or replace current data center projects, even if the business of data in space proves workable. \u201cI welcome the experiments, but I expect everyday AI services to remain overwhelmingly dependent on terrestrial facilities in 2027 and 2028,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cA promise about 2035 does not pay an electricity bill in 2026,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Omar\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOmar Gallaga has covered technology, digital culture and other topics for outlets including CNET, NPR, WIRED, Texas Monthly, MSNBC, Consumer Reports, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic and the Austin American-Statesman, where he was a longtime tech reporter, editor and podcaster. He lives in the Texas Hill Country.
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSee full bio\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n