Can data centers be moved into orbit? (Symbol image, photo: Freepik)
Cambridge – Domenico Vicinanza from the Anglia Ruskin University wants to move data centers into space and thus save the climate on Earth. At suitable locations, they could be supplied with solar power around the clock. In the shade, on the other hand, it is so cold there that cooling the servers would be possible without using a lot of energy.
Space solutions in the works
“This is why U.S. companies operate like Lumen Orbit and the EU with that Project Ascend already working on such solutions,” said Vicinanza in an article for “The Conversation.” Lumen recently raised $11 million in seed capital to build a prototype this year.
This is intended to receive huge amounts of raw data from other satellites and use artificial intelligence (AI) to compress it for transmission to Earth, requiring much less bandwidth than usual, it is said.
Increase in computing needs
According to new forecasts, global demand for computing capacity is expected to increase by around 20 percent per year over the next few years. In the UK alone, Google, Microsoft and other US companies are spending £20 billion (€24 billion) to increase AI computing capacity.
However, according to experts, data centers built for high-performance computing and AI require much more electricity than standard systems. This creates a lot more heat, which leads to a further significant increase in the electricity requirement for liquid cooling systems.
As part of Ascend – the aerospace companies Ariane, Airbus and Thales Alenia as well as the German Aerospace Center are involved – a study was completed in the summer of 2024 according to which data centers in space are economically and ecologically feasible, provided that Launch vehicle emissions could be reduced by about 10 times.
Source: www.pressetext.com
(pte004/08.01.2025/06:15)