旧金山新一代卫星初创公司正竞相利用近期在天基数据采集与通信领域取得的技术突破。

A new generation of satellite startups in San Francisco is racing to capitalize on recent technological breakthroughs in space-based data collection and communications.

玄武岩公司（Basalt）是新一代初创企业中的一员，旨在扩大卫星成像、导航与通信服务的可靠且安全的可及性。按其设想，全球将有更大范围持续被拍摄，更多物品将被实时追踪，客户亦无需担忧星链（Starlink）等“守门人”切断其传输链路。“我创立公司时向自己提出的问题是：‘我们能在航空航天产业中做出最根本的改变是什么？’”巴蒂（Bhatti）表示，“我认为，这一根本性改变在于终端用户应能直接向整个星座下达任务指令，而不仅限于单颗卫星。”然而，玄武岩公司及其他新兴企业正面临质疑：客户是否真能如预期般大规模涌现？几年前，一些卫星初创企业曾押注市场对气候变化数据的迫切需求，结果证明判断失误——如今其服务主要面向军方。随着行业迅猛扩张，针对太空垃圾、光污染及其他卫星环境影响的公众反弹可能加剧。此外，天基监视能力增强所引发的侵入式监控风险，也可能促使民权活动人士加入相关争议。 目前，约15,000颗卫星正在地球轨道运行。各类预测显示，到2030年，这一数字或将增至当前的四至五倍以上，军方与商业机构正加速推进其太空计划。卫星制造商亦在精密筛选更具成本效益的元器件方面日益娴熟，这些元器件经适当加固后足以承受太空特有的严苛环境（包括高辐射）。他们发现，地面服务器及其他通用设备中使用的元器件，可通过加装屏蔽层、喷涂化学防护涂层以及部署冗余系统等方式实现充分加固。此类元器件体积更小，使卫星整体重量减轻；而更轻的卫星意味着同等发射成本下可部署更多数量。

Basalt is part of a generation of startups aiming to broaden reliable and secure access to satellite imaging, navigation, and communication services. As they envision it, more of the world will be continually photographed, more items will be tracked, and customers won’t have to fear gatekeepers like Starlink cutting off their transmissions. “The question that I posed to myself when I started the company was like, ‘What's the most fundamental thing that we could change about the aerospace industry?’” Bhatti says. “And I think it's the idea that the end user should just be able to directly task a constellation, not even just one satellite.” But Basalt and other new companies face questions over whether customers will materialize at the volume they expect. Satellite startups that a few years ago bet on eagerness for climate change data turned out to be wrong, with their services now largely serving militaries. Backlash against space junk, light pollution, and other environmental impacts of satellites could grow as the industry booms. The increased opportunity for intrusive surveillance from space also could draw civil liberties activists into a fight. Roughly 15,000 satellites are orbiting Earth today. Various forecasts estimate more than four or five times that number by 2030 as both militaries and companies accelerate their space endeavors. Satellite makers also became more skilled at carefully selecting cheaper components that could withstand the unique elements of space, including high radiation. They found that parts used in servers and other common gear on Earth could be sufficiently hardened with shields, chemical sprays, and redundant systems. These components are also smaller than traditional gear, allowing for lighter satellites, which in turn, means companies can launch more of them for the same price.