https://arstechnica.com/google/2025/11/meet-project-suncatcher-googles-plan-to-put-ai-data-centers-in-space/
Google has announced a research initiative called Project Suncatcher to explore the feasibility of building artificial intelligence data centers in space, powered by solar energy. The project aims to address the growing energy demands of AI by leveraging the abundant solar power available in low-Earth orbit, with the first prototype satellites planned for launch by early 2027.
Google’s plan involves deploying a constellation of solar-powered satellites equipped with its custom AI chips, known as Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), in low-Earth orbit at an altitude of approximately 650 kilometers.
The satellites would operate in a dawn–dusk sun-synchronous orbit, allowing them to receive nearly continuous sunlight, which could make solar panels up to eight times more productive than on Earth.
The project is described as a “moonshot” and is being developed in partnership with satellite maker Planet Labs, with the initial launch of two prototype satellites scheduled for early 2027 to test hardware performance and inter-satellite communication.
Google’s research suggests that as launch costs decrease, space-based AI infrastructure could become cost-competitive with terrestrial data centers by the mid-2030s.
Key technical challenges include thermal management, radiation tolerance for computing hardware, maintaining high-bandwidth communication with the ground, and ensuring on-orbit system reliability.
The initiative is also motivated by environmental concerns, as terrestrial data centers consume vast amounts of electricity and water for cooling, while space-based centers could minimize this impact.
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