Overview
ATelecommunication is a huge part of our daily lives, probably more important than a lot of people think. I've had my phone since I was 14. Although I don't like to admit it, but the phone has become a very important part of my life. Same as every one, I can't live without its communication purpose. It has always been a puzzle for me to think about before going to sleep of how this small device can transfer my voice and image to a device thousands of miles away in a fraction of a second. Luckily, my father has been working for China Unicom, one of the biggest telecommunication company in China. And he likes to tell me stories. The most interesting ones include a time when a glitch of the U.S. GPS satellite caused half of China to loose GPS service for days. That leads me all the way to choosing my major at college, Computer Science.
The three embodiments I chose represent a wide range of organizations. The first is Lockheed Martin, a private company that is heavily involved in defense and weapons. The second is SpaceIL, a non-profit organization based in Israel whose mission is to soft-land their spacecraft on the Moon. The third is China Unicom, the state-owned company that my dad works for. Through presenting those three companies, I hope to provide a comprehensive overview of what our current position is and where the space telecommunication is going to go.
Most of the telecommunication process will go through spacecrafts, such as satellites. A large portion of the related technologies were invented and developed for military purposes. But ever since we have realized how great those technologies can be used to serve for communication, space tech changed from what it was. For example, the developing BeiDou satellite system in China has extremely high accuracy in locating and timing, which aims to surpass the precision of GPS and Galileo Satellite System. On the other hand, since telecommunication always involves more than one party, being able to work between operators is vital. As I will discuss later, more collaborations has emerged to provide better service, stimulate technology development, and lower cost and increase efficiency. And the rapid grow and share of telecommunication technology will keep serving to maintain a good balance in space politics.
The three embodiments I chose represent a wide range of organizations. The first is Lockheed Martin, a private company that is heavily involved in defense and weapons. The second is SpaceIL, a non-profit organization based in Israel whose mission is to soft-land their spacecraft on the Moon. The third is China Unicom, the state-owned company that my dad works for. Through presenting those three companies, I hope to provide a comprehensive overview of what our current position is and where the space telecommunication is going to go.
Most of the telecommunication process will go through spacecrafts, such as satellites. A large portion of the related technologies were invented and developed for military purposes. But ever since we have realized how great those technologies can be used to serve for communication, space tech changed from what it was. For example, the developing BeiDou satellite system in China has extremely high accuracy in locating and timing, which aims to surpass the precision of GPS and Galileo Satellite System. On the other hand, since telecommunication always involves more than one party, being able to work between operators is vital. As I will discuss later, more collaborations has emerged to provide better service, stimulate technology development, and lower cost and increase efficiency. And the rapid grow and share of telecommunication technology will keep serving to maintain a good balance in space politics.
Lockheed MartinLockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. Its headquarter is in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington DC area, making its cooperation with the government easier. It is the world’s largest defense contractor based on revenue and the Pentagon is one of its most intimate partners.
The company is investing heavily on satellites for its aeronautics, missiles and fire control, and space systems. Lockheed Martin is currently developing the F-35 Lightning II and leads the international supply chain, leads the team for the development and implementation of technology solutions for the new USAF Space Fence (AFSSS replacement). Since its involvement in U.S government and military, Lockheed Martin plays a very important role in terms of space politics. As in for its place in space telecommunication, Lockheed Martin has been playing a very important role in developing protection for the communication system. The 4th Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) protected communication satellite, built by Lockheed Martin, was successfully launched on 17 October, 2018. The AEHF system provides global, survivable, highly secure and protected communications for strategic command and tactical warfighters operating on ground, sea and air platform. With four satellites in orbit, the AEHF constellation completes a geostationary ring and will be able to deliver global coverage. |
SpaceILSpaceIL is a non-profit Israeli organization, established in 2011, to compete in the Google Lunar X Prize to land an unmanned spacecraft on the moon. Regardless of the competition, SpaceIL is committed to continue and complete its mission, to land on the Moon and to the advancement of science and technology education in Israel. SpaceIL is committed to inspiring the next generation in Israel and around the world to choose to study STEM. Through cooperating with organizations like NASA and SpaceX, SpaceIL was able to launch the spacecraft at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Feb 22, 2019. Because of its start-up and non-profit features, from design of the project to successfully launch the spacecraft, SpaceIL did it in a short amount of time and limited resources. SpaceIL’s incentive to advance the discourse on science and engineering in Israel and to acquaint the young generation with the exciting opportunities in their future. It also shows us how important the international collaboration is for humans to explore the space.
In terms of telecommunication, SpaceIL has located ground stations all over the world, to enable communication with the spacecraft. |
China UnicomChina Unicom is a Chinese state-owned telecommunication operator of China. China Unicom is the world's fourth-largest mobile service provider by subscriber base. It currently provides a wide range of services including nationwide mobile network, long-distance, local calling, data communication, Internet services, and IP telephony in mainland China, and has operated in Macau since October 18, 2006. It has been working closely with the Chinese Academy of Sciences to develop faster and more stable satellite communication. Recently, they have been focusing on bringing 5G to the mainland.
One of the biggest project of China Unicom is their partnership with Spain’s Telephónica. In January 2011, the two partners agreed a further US$500 million tie-up in each other, which following completion in late 2011, Telefonica will hold a 9.7% shares in China Unicom (H.K.), while the red chip company will own 1.4% shares of the Spanish firm(Wikipedia). The companies also agreed to deepen their cooperation in areas such as procurement, mobile service platforms, roaming, technology, among others, where both companies have been cooperating since the signature of their strategic alliance agreement. In 2016, China Unicom and Telephónica announce that they have established a joint venture called “Smart Steps Digital Technology Company Limited” to provide big data services in China, leveraging on China Unicom’s stable and extensive basic telecommunication network and rich market experience, as well as Telefónica’s mature technology in big data services such as Smart Steps. China Unicom and Telephónica is a great example of how telecommunication operators can work across borders. |
Interview
The followings are the questions I asked to Yumin Hua, the Regional Mobile Operator Director of Xi'an, China Unicom
How does space system play a role in ground communication?
The satellite communication, first invented in America, is how our electronic devices communicate with each other. Our everyday life, admitted or not, is more dependent on satellite day by day. GPS, phone calls, internet, are all examples of information processed and transmitted through space.
What types of technologies are involved in space telecommunication?
We mainly uses satellites and GPS for our services. There are two kinds of signals being used for transmission, positioning signal and time signal. The service is provided by the U.S and its free.
What political concerns are present?
What are some problems for improving telecommunication technologies?
The satellite communication, first invented in America, is how our electronic devices communicate with each other. Our everyday life, admitted or not, is more dependent on satellite day by day. GPS, phone calls, internet, are all examples of information processed and transmitted through space.
What types of technologies are involved in space telecommunication?
We mainly uses satellites and GPS for our services. There are two kinds of signals being used for transmission, positioning signal and time signal. The service is provided by the U.S and its free.
What political concerns are present?
- Liability issues
- Most of the non-military telecommunication devices share access to American Satellite System. The U.S. only provides access but does not take responsibility in malfunctions and breakdowns. There was a time when the GPS was disabled in the Northern part of China and it took China Unicom days to figure out there was something wrong with the satellite from the U.S. end.
- Reliability issues
- The satellite service may cause a time accuracy problem and there's no way for some countries to calibrate.
- International Laws
- It's hard to oversee countries' behavior in space
- Security issues
- For example, GPS is only controlled by the U.S while many countries are using its service.
What are some problems for improving telecommunication technologies?
- The satellite orbits are mainly used by the U.S., Russia, and European Union.
- The cost for developing satellite is extremely high.
- Concerns for national security and privacy
- Monopoly and lack of collaborations