SES, K2 Space Plan meoSpace MEO Constellation Evolution

A new generation MEO constellation is in the works for SES. The company will deploy meoSpace, targeting activation in 2030, as the follow-on to its O3b and mPower services. The first phase of meoSpace aims to deliver full global coverage via four orbital planes, each with seven active satellites.

[W]e’re building meoSphere as essential infrastructure—constructed faster, designed to handle massive data demands globally, and built to support the secure, resilient sovereign networks that our global government allies depend on. – Adel Al-Saleh, CEO of SES

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SES will develop its own payloads for the new constellation while partnering with K2 Space to build the underlying satellite bus. This approach allows each party to focus on its internal strengths. The high-power K2 Space satellite bus will handle power, propulsion, flight control, and other foundational platform systems. The SES payload will carry mission equipment, including radios, processors, and antennas, to connect users and networks on the ground.

The pair also share intention to launch a series of MEO “pathfinder” to test and validate the components. This includes progressively more complex satellite and payload developments, allowing for refinement of the project as it evolves, with real-(out-of-this)-world testing in orbit

Each satellite is spec’d to 20 kW of power, enabling significantly more complex processing on board and greater bandwidth capacity across the payloads. SES anticipates delivering up to 1Gbps to a standard sized ESA terminal (25x25cm and 50x50cm sizes are suggested in that context).

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Boosting Multi-Orbit IFC

The company specifically calls out mobility use cases, including “combination of high throughput and low latency built to perform at scale” for the commercial aviation market. SES partners, leveraging the SES Open Orbits program, are working to activate airlines on the O3b/mPower satellites. Gaining access to that lower latency, along with the increased capacity and pole-to-pole coverage meoSpace promises would be a nice improvement. And it would make the SES offering much more compelling in a world where airlines are, more than ever, demanding multi-orbit capabilities (often at a price point that might not match the flexibility of the network they want).

It is also at least four years away, a tough timeline even in the aero industry where things often move slowly. Airlines have shown a willingness to get aggressive in migrating to alternate IFC providers under certain circumstances, something SES must pay acute attention to.

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• SES, K2 Space Plan meoSpace MEO Constellation Evolution