Google’s Project Suncatcher: Turning Space Into the Next AI Data Centre

According to the International Energy Agency, a data centre would require 100 to 200 megawatts or more (enough to power a small city). And Google said, 'We are first again.' It has started a new research project called "Project Suncatcher. This project would put data centres in space to run them entirely on solar energy (announced on November 4). Think of these data centres as a group of satellites (computers) orbiting the Earth to operate Google’s AI chips (called Tensor Processing Units or TPUs). But why space? Will it be any different from land-based data centres (utilising solar energy)? For all that, learn more.

How Does Google’s Project Suncatcher Work in Space?

Google is collaborating with Planet Labs to build satellites that support the project.

• It wants to create a “constellation” of satellites. These satellites will fly in close proximity to each other in low-Earth orbit, about 500–2,000 km above Earth.
• All these satellites will be solar-powered (meaning, the sunlight will be the direct source of power to run AI tasks).
• These satellites will be connected via laser or optical links (they are super-fast beams of light to help transfer data between satellites).
• These satellites will then connect back to Earth to communicate the data results.

Google Research suggests that if the launch costs drop to $200 per kilogram by the mid-2030s, it could be comparable to the cost of Earth-based ones.

Why Only Space for Project Suncatcher?

According to Google:

• To run an AI data centre on Earth would require a huge amount of electricity.
• Solar panels work best in space as they get more sunlight. It's 8 times more efficient than on Earth.
• It would reduce the need for batteries once the satellites are put in the right orbit. 

Why AI Data Centres Use So Much Power? 

Think of the data centres like huge computer farms. They eat up a lot of electricity to be productive. Because:

• Servers (meaning the computers) use about 60% of the energy.
• Storage systems (for saving data) use around 5%.
• Networking equipment (such as routers and switches) also accounts for about 5%.
• Cooling systems (used to stop overheating) take anywhere from 7% to 30% of the energy.
• Additionally, the power backup systems, lighting, and office needs would consume between 100 and 200 megawatts or more.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the consumption would double by 2030. It would be 945 terawatt-hours and about 3% of the world’s total electricity. Therefore, the space and sunlight are abundant, constant, and free.

The Big Challenges - Project Suncatcher

The idea is futuristic and exciting until the fact strikes that it's very difficult to pull off in space.

Keeping Satellites Close Together

Several satellites orbiting together form a data centre, meaning they must be positioned less than 1 km apart. This close proximity will enable the satellites to communicate at speeds of tens of terabits per second through laser links.

Google's tests only reached 1.6 terabytes/second with one optical link, which is good but not enough. 

Orbit Instability

Low-Earth orbit is a tough one, given that gravity changes and atmospheric drag can have a huge impact.

Radiation and Solar Storms

In space, electronics are exposed to radiation that can damage chips. Solar storms, on the other hand, can completely knock out satellite communications across large areas.

Heat and Reliability

Cooling, managing temperature and hardware reliability are quite a task (expensive and risky) in space.  

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StartupTalky- Business News, Insights and StoriesSakshi Jadhav