Very Hard to Reach premises: alpha trials
Case studies about sites part of the Very Hard to Reach premises alpha trials.
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Alpha trials case studies updated (22 February 2024)
5 new sites have been added to the alpha trials case studies page following an announcement on 22 February 2024.
The Very Hard to Reach premises alpha trials aim to assess the extent to which low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites can be used to deliver high-speed low latency broadband connections to more than a dozen ‘very hard to reach’ locations.
These premises are amongst the less than one percent of sites which may be too difficult to upgrade via physical cables, typically in more extreme locations such as mountainous areas or small islands. The trials also test the capabilities of suppliers, distributors and project partner stakeholders.
LEO satellites are positioned around 550 - 1,000km above the earth’s surface and, in contrast to larger geostationary satellites, travel along their own orbit. The fact they are closer to earth than previous generations of satellites makes more applications possible, including video calls and real-time collaboration while also making activities like web browsing much smoother. The limited ground infrastructure required means they can provide additional resilience to critical networks in remote, often dangerous, environments.
We have found from the trial that in these locations, satellites can deliver speeds of up to 200 megabits per second, well above the speeds capable via copper cables commonly used in hard-to-reach areas today. We are using this trial to form further policy work.
Last updated 22 February 2024 + show all updates
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5 new sites have been added to the alpha trials case studies page following an announcement on 22 February 2024.
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First published.