Satellites are not just machines in space; they are the backbone of today’s digital infrastructure. Acting as accelerators of operations, decision-making, and global communication, they enable services that terrestrial networks alone cannot deliver. From providing high-speed satellite connectivity in remote or underserved areas to supporting Earth observation for climate monitoring, agriculture, and disaster response,

Satellites accelerate time by providing faster communication, monitoring, and decision-making. They deliver near-real-time data and connectivity, helping businesses, governments, and emergency services act quickly and efficiently. Satellites can reach remote areas instantly and provide information to multiple locations at once, which means critical data is delivered faster and more reliably. High-cadence Earth observation constellations reduce the time between data captures from days to minutes, enabling rapid insights and timely action.

Key ways satellites accelerate time:

• Near-instant communication: Satellites can send and received data quickly and organisations can respond rapidly to emergencies and make faster decisions.
• Rapid monitoring: Frequent satellite revisits allow real-time observation of weather, disasters, or critical infrastructure.
• Faster decision-making: Immediate access to information supports quick and informed actions.
• Global reach: Satellites connect regions where terrestrial networks are slow, unavailable, or costly.
• Efficient operations: Businesses and services can act faster, saving time and resources.

• Propagation latency: In Low Earth Orbit (160–2,000 km), signals make the round trip in just 20–80 ms.Medium Earth Orbit (2,000–20,000 km) stretches this to 80–200 ms. Geostationary Orbit (35,786 km) pushes delays up to 240–600 ms.
• Revisit cadence: A single LEO imaging satellite may only revisit every few days or even weeks. With a full constellation, revisit times drop to minutes or hours. GEO platforms, by contrast, maintain a continuous watch over one hemisphere.

• Throughput: End users can see tens to hundreds of Mbps.In aggregate, mega-constellations scale to multi-terabit per second capacity.
• Deployment Speed: This makes satellites ideal for emergencies and rapid network expansion.

Altitude: 160-2,000km

Latency: 20-80 ms uound-trip, comparable to some fibre networks

Coverage: Narrow footprint per satellite (1,000 km diameter), requiring constellations of hundreds to thousands of satellites for global coverage

Revisit: Minutes with large constellations; ideal for rapid monitoring

Best suited for: Broadband internet (Starlink, One Web), loT networks, high-cadence Earth observation, mobility (aviation, maritime)

Altitude: 2,000-20,000 km (GNSS ~ 20,OO km)

Latency: 80-200 ms round – trip

Coverage: Larger footprint than  LEO (~ 10,000 km diameter), fewer satellites needed for global or regional coverage (tens vs thousands)

Revisit: Hours with smaller constellations, suitable for navigatiion and regional services

Altitude: 35,786 km

Latency: 240-600 ms round – tripp (half-ssecond delay noticeables in voice/video)

Coverage: A single satellite covers~1/3 of Earth’s surface; three provide near – global coverage (excluding poles)

Revisit: Continuous coverage of the same region (stationary in sky)

Best suited for:

Broadcast television and radio

Weather monitoring and Earth observation

Fixed broadband (VSAT, rural connectivity)

Government and defence communications

Advantages:

Always-on coverage without handovers

Fewer satellites needed for global reach

Long operational life (~15+ years)

Limitations:

High latency unsuitable for real-time interaction

Large, power-hungry satellites and expensive launches

Poor performance at high latitudes (low elevation angles)

Time advantage:

Persistent, uninterrupted connectivity for entire regions