Cloud computing has transformed many commercial and office situations, but one of the industry's major players now expects it may assist speed the next great advances in space as well.
Clint Crosier, the business's director of aerospace and satellite, spoke at the recent AWS re:Invent 2022 event on how the company strongly supports the usage of cloud computing in space.
Crosier stated "what we at AWS call the making the world a better place from space mission" during a panel session with Peggy Whitson, astronaut and head of human space flight at Axiom.
Source:Google
The Race for Space
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos notably backed many space-bound initiatives through his firm Blue Origin, but his old company's cloud arm obviously views space as the next great frontier for technology.
AWS recently announced that it successfully tested its software suite on a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite for the first time earlier this year. The testing featured successful downlinks of satellite photography data, with the programme automatically evaluating photos to determine which ones were the most useful to send back to Earth.
Crosier argued that NASA's recent transfer of additional LEO operations to private businesses like Blue Origin might be beneficial to scientific research, with companies like Whitson's Axiom taking over "mundane" chores.
Crosier, who admitted to becoming a "cloud zealot" while at AWS, outlined how future space activities such as satellite repair, asteroid mining, and even space tourism and exploration will all require greater computing capabilities, as well as faster processing speed and power, which the cloud can help provide.
"What the cloud allows you to do is develop infrastructure, tweak with it to come up with optimal designs...and then upload it to the ISS with two or three clicks of a button - that's a game changer," he said.
"What excites me about the use of technology is that it seems like every year we discover a new method to use space capabilities that we didn't know about before that really improves and, in some cases, saves lives... I enjoy how the cloud's enhanced technical capabilities enable this goal to be completed faster and more successfully than ever before."
"Just as the terrestrial cloud has benefited the Earth...all of the new missions we see developing in space will require the same advanced cloud-based technology," he added, "therefore our objective at AWS is to extend it to wherever customers need it."
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