ABOUT US  |  CONTACT US  |  RSS  |  ARCHIVE  |  2024-12-09  |  UPDATED: 1403/06/01 - 19:53:2 FA | AR | PS | EN
Talibans new law bans womens voices and faces             Iranian police shut down two illegal centers affiliated with German government             All of President Pezeshkians ministerial picks win parliaments vote of confidence             Wheres Bangladesh Heading after Popular Uprising?            Western Kabul residents say Taliban has failed to ensure security after bombing             Algerian Boxer Khelif files complaint over online harassment after gender row             Federalism in Afghanistan: Opportunities and Challenges             Formation of the Federalist Assembly of Afghanistan             Israel launches missile attack on outskirts of Damascus, killing Syrian civilians             UK national scandal: 20,000 mental health patients raped, sexually assaulted in NHS care             Three US troops killed, dozens injured in drone attack in Syria             Trump says NATO will not come to rescue if US attacked             Ukraine beset by $40m fraud in arms procurement amid war with Russia            US approves sale of F-16 jets to Turkey after Ankara ratifies Swedens NATO membership             UNSC to meet to discuss ICJ ruling on Israeli genocide in Gaza            


DATE PUBLISHED: 1399/04/07 - 13:01:0
VISIT: 927
SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS

UK plan to invest in US satellite operator OneWeb nonsensical: UK experts


An American operator OneWeb satellite (Getty Images)

The British governments plan to invest hundreds of millions of pounds in US satellite operator OneWeb is "nonsensical," experts say, arguing the company does not even make the right type of satellite the UK needs after Brexit.

The decision to invest was taken after an extended meeting between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Wednesday.

The intent behind the investment in OneWeb, in which the UK will own a 20% stake once the deal goes through, has been to compensate for the loss of access to the EUs Galileo satellite navigation system post-Brexit.

Oddly enough, the company currently operates a completely different type of satellite network from that typically used to run such navigation systems.

Dominic Cummings, Johnsons chief adviser, was instrumental in pushing the case for the investment, which seeks to secure a frontline position for Britain in cutting-edge satellite navigation systems.

"The fundamental starting point is, yes, weve bought the wrong satellites," said Dr. Bleddyn Bowen, a space policy expert at the University of Leicester. "OneWeb is working on basically the same idea as Elon Musks Starlink: a mega-constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit, which are used to connect people on the ground to the internet.

"Whats happened is that the very talented lobbyists at OneWeb have convinced the government that we can completely redesign some of the satellites to piggyback a navigation payload on it. Its bolting an unproven technology on to a mega-constellation thats designed to do something else. Its a tech and business gamble."

Giles Thorne, a research analyst at Jeffries, concurred. "This situation is nonsensical to me," he said. "This situation looks like nationalism trumping solid industrial policy."

Every geo-positioning system currently in use -- Americas GPS, Russias Glonass, Chinas BeiDou, and Galileo, the EU project that the UK helped design before losing access to Brexit -- is in medium earth orbit at an altitude of 20,000km, according to Thorne.

OneWebs has already launched 74 satellites, which are in a low Earth orbit at around 1,200km.

Low-earth technology, for this application, is dismissed by critics as being unproven and full of risk.

It would appear that a deciding factor may have been support from US defense officials who have told the government they do not want the UK to develop a replica of the GPS system. A low-earth navigation service would complement the US system and offer an extra layer of resilience to US allies, say several parties close to the subject.

Bowen said, "If you want to replace GPS for military-grade systems, where you need encrypted, secure signals that are precise to centimetres, Im not sure you can do that on satellites as small as OneWebs."

Thorne suggested the investment was made to suit "a nationalist agenda" rather than being selected for the quality of the offering.

OneWeb is headquartered in London, United Kingdom and McLean, Virginia, United States with offices in California, as well as a satellite manufacturing facility in Florida.

"Lets give the government the benefit of the doubt: if the output the government wants is a UK-branded positioning system, a projection of UK power around the world and supporting the UK satellite industry base, then it is probably quicker and cheaper to smash the square peg of OneWeb into the round hole of a Galileo replacement than it is to do it from scratch," said Thorne.

On Friday evening, a government spokesperson said, "We have made clear our ambitions for space and are developing a new national space strategy to bring long-term strategic and commercial benefits to the UK. We are in regular discussions with the space industry as part of this work."

In March, OneWeb filed for bankruptcy having failed to secure new funding for its continued operation. Then in April they approached the British government with a request for a £500m loan as part of a wider $2.2bn financing from private investors.

The UK had previously intended to build its own global navigation satellite system, which independent experts estimated at the time would cost £3bn-£4bn.

In December 2018, Theresa May, the then prime minister, said the UK hoped to work with the US and other "Five Eyes" partners to do so. But in May this year that project was paused just weeks before a feasibility study into the scheme was due to be published, as its estimated cost ballooned to £5bn.

 

SOURCE: PRESS TV

LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/18895


TAGS:






*
*

*



SEE ALSO

European support for Israel damaging energy security on the continent, report says


US needs to lift sanctions on Irans oil for JCPOA to resume: UN chief


Shipping giants suspend journeys through Red Sea as Saudis voice concern


WFP launches emergency program to assist 600,000 Palestinians


US bans trade with 42 Chinese firms


Sanctions made Russias economy stronger: Putin


Germanys economy headed for recession amid support for Ukraine


Saudi Arabia faces budget deficit after expectations of surplus


Billionaire investor Ray Dalio says Americas growth is at risk of falling to zero


UK recession risk grows with cost-of-living crisis hitting businesses





VIEWED
MOST DISCUSSED




POLL

Modi, Merkel Discuss Afghanistan, Radicalisation And Terrorism

SEE RESULT


LAST NEWS

Sudan: The Forgotten War

Talibans new law bans womens voices and faces

Iranian police shut down two illegal centers affiliated with German government

All of President Pezeshkians ministerial picks win parliaments vote of confidence

Wheres Bangladesh Heading after Popular Uprising?

Western Kabul residents say Taliban has failed to ensure security after bombing

Algerian Boxer Khelif files complaint over online harassment after gender row

Federalism in Afghanistan: Opportunities and Challenges

Formation of the Federalist Assembly of Afghanistan

Israel launches missile attack on outskirts of Damascus, killing Syrian civilians

UK national scandal: 20,000 mental health patients raped, sexually assaulted in NHS care

Three US troops killed, dozens injured in drone attack in Syria

Trump says NATO will not come to rescue if US attacked

Ukraine beset by $40m fraud in arms procurement amid war with Russia

US approves sale of F-16 jets to Turkey after Ankara ratifies Swedens NATO membership

UNSC to meet to discuss ICJ ruling on Israeli genocide in Gaza

Taliban: Afghanistan Does Not Have Formal Border With Pakistan

Gazas major health facility collapses amid Israeli attacks: MSF

Americans to redeploy nuclear weapons in UK amid fears of WW3

Biden makes history: 1st sitting US president sued for complicity in genocide

Trump walks out of courtroom during closing arguments of Carrolls attorney

US: 3 dead in shooting at Texas apartment complex

US-UK aggression against Yemen risks expansion of war: Iran

Yemen directly hits US warship with ballistic missile

Hamas has self-reliantly opposed the three giant intelligence agencies of the world!

President Raeisi calls for UN reform, says body unable to end Gaza genocide

Pedram: The Abduction of Hazara and Tajik Women Recalls the Crimes of Abdur Rahman

Special envoys from G7 countries discuss Afghanistan in London meeting

Turkish lawmakers open debate over Swedens NATO membership

UN agency says over half a million Palestinians face catastrophic hunger in Gaza

Palestinian Islamic Jihad: Al-Maghazi operation proved defeat of Israeli regime in Gaza war

European support for Israel damaging energy security on the continent, report says

Pakistan Army Kills Seven Terrorists Near Afghan Border

Israel kills at least 190 people in Khan Younis in 24 hours

UNAMA report: 49 Hazara community members killed in Afghanistan in three months

Indias Modi inaugurates Hindu temple on site of razed mosque ahead of elections

US 2024 election: DeSantis drops out of Republican presidential race, backs Trump

Survivors of Russian charter flight crash transferred to Kabul

Irans anti-terror strikes clear message to certain recipients: Foreign Ministry

Ethnic mass killings in one Sudan city last year left up to 15,000 dead: UN report


MEDICAL NEWS


ANSAR PRESS  |  ABOUT US  |  CONTACT US  |  MOBILE VERSION  |  LINKS  |  DESIGN: Negah Network Co.
All right reserved. Use this website by mentioning the source (link) is allowed. Ԑ یی