{"id":35764,"date":"2022-05-18T17:36:43","date_gmt":"2022-05-18T17:36:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.techrepublic.com\/?p=3970541"},"modified":"2023-02-15T08:48:38","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T08:48:38","slug":"what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/?p=35764","title":{"rendered":"What is Microsoft\u2019s Azure Space, and who is it for?"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_3970535\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3970535\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-3970535 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for.jpg\" alt=\"Azure Space uses the power of cloud and space technology to help businesses solve some of the world\u2019s most challenging problems.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for.jpg 800w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-4.jpg 300w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-5.jpg 270w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-6.jpg 768w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-7.jpg 170w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-8.jpg 60w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-9.jpg 540w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-10.jpg 340w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-11.jpg 120w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-12.jpg 510w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-13.jpg 180w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-14.jpg 770w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-15.jpg 370w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-16.jpg 740w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3970535\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image: Microsoft. Azure Space uses the power of cloud and space technology to help businesses solve some of the world\u2019s most challenging problems.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Microsoft\u2019s move into space shouldn\u2019t be surprising; it\u2019s had an interest in providing connectivity to the whole world for a long time and has had a range of different products and services that aim to fill that need. <a href=\"https:\/\/news.microsoft.com\/azurespace\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Azure Space brings them all into one organization<\/a>, supporting everything from satellite operations, ground stations and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.techrepublic.com\/article\/data-visualization-tools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">data centers<\/a>, and even computer systems running on the International Space Station.<\/p>\n<p><strong>SEE: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.techrepublic.com\/resource-library\/whitepapers\/software-installation-policy-copy1\/\"><strong>Software Installation Policy<\/strong><\/a><strong> (TechRepublic Premium)<\/strong><\/p>\n<aside class=\"pinbox right\">\n<h3 class=\"heading\">More about Innovation<\/h3>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Space is, as Douglas Adams wrote, big. That means there\u2019s quite <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.microsoft.com\/blog\/2020\/10\/20\/azure-space-cloud-powered-innovation-on-and-off-the-planet\/\">a big business opportunity<\/a> with the current boom in space technologies thanks to low-cost launches and the increasing use of commercial off-the-shelf hardware and software in smallsats. Microsoft isn\u2019t alone in using its public cloud as a way to deliver space projects, with Amazon also offering satellite services.<\/p>\n<p>In the past Microsoft\u2019s space efforts have been relatively small consulting exercises, working with third parties and hardware vendors, to deliver something very specific, whether a piece of custom code or modifying existing software for use in space-ready hardware. That side of the space business isn\u2019t going away, but much of Azure Space\u2019s focus is on delivering larger projects, either outsourcing key functionality for existing operators, or providing compute capabilities that treat satellites as part of the ever-growing edge.<\/p>\n<p>With so many different services, there\u2019s no one Azure Space customer. Some of its early partnerships were an extension of Azure\u2019s ExpressRoute service that used satellite links for access to Azure data centers from remote locations. Using these links to geostationary satellites, Azure services could be used, albeit with some latency, from sites like fly-in, fly-out mines in Australia and Canada where fiber connectivity is unavailable.<\/p>\n<h2>Manage your missions<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3970538\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3970538\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3970538\" src=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1000\" height=\"563\" srcset=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-17.jpg 1000w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-18.jpg 300w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-19.jpg 768w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-20.jpg 770w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-21.jpg 370w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-22.jpg 270w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-23.jpg 740w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-24.jpg 540w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-25.jpg 810w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3970538\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image: Microsoft. Satellite diagram for Microsoft Azure Space.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Other tools include software for planning and managing space missions. If you\u2019re an operator planning to build a massive satellite constellation, like those used by OneWeb and SpaceX, you need software that can model the complexity of thousands of intersecting orbits, with satellite-to-ground and satellite-to-satellite communication links. Traditional satellite control systems aren\u2019t designed to manage the scale of these new systems, so Microsoft has developed a tool, Azure Orbital Emulator, that lets operators simulate these fast-changing networks, to test satellite-based applications before they\u2019re loaded onto the limited compute capability of small satellites.<\/p>\n<p>One important use for Azure\u2019s Orbital Emulator is the development and training of machine learning-based control systems for satellites. These can be trained in the emulator, using hyperscale cloud tools like Azure\u2019s machine learning platform, before being exported to run on satellite-hosted inference systems. Microsoft has built a set of pre-prepared environments for the system, so that different types of satellite operator can work with sample data, including providing sample imagery so that Earth resources operators can test out on-satellite image processing applications.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s hard to debug code running on a satellite, with latency, limited connectivity windows, and constrained compute resources. Being able to use Azure Space for this can be a big saver, as your code can be validated and tested in advance of an expensive upload, allowing you to get it right the first time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>SEE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.techrepublic.com\/article\/become-a-microsoft-azure-administrator-online-and-start-a-great-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Become a Microsoft Azure administrator online and start a great career<\/a>&nbsp;(TechRepublic Academy)<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Anywhere connectivity<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3970537\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3970537\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3970537\" src=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-2.jpg\" alt=\"Artist rendering of Azure Modular Datacenter, designed\u202ffor scenarios such as humanitarian aid, disaster response and other needs for high-intensity, secure cloud computing in challenging environments.\" width=\"1000\" height=\"563\" srcset=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-26.jpg 1000w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-27.jpg 300w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-28.jpg 768w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-29.jpg 770w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-30.jpg 370w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-31.jpg 270w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-32.jpg 740w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-33.jpg 540w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-34.jpg 810w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3970537\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image: Microsoft. Artist rendering of Azure Modular Datacenter, designed\u202ffor scenarios such as humanitarian aid, disaster response and other needs for high-intensity, secure cloud computing in challenging environments.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>However, connectivity remains a key driver for the service, building on <a href=\"https:\/\/azure.microsoft.com\/en-us\/services\/orbital\/#overview\">the original Azure Orbital product<\/a>. Microsoft describes it as \u201cground station as a service,\u201d using partnerships with SpaceX Starlink and SES to connect the Azure cloud to its containerized Mobile Data Center. With access from low earth orbit and medium earth orbit, as well as to the familiar geostationary satellites, Microsoft is aiming to ensure global coverage for satellite communications.<\/p>\n<p>The Mobile Data Center is intended to bring computers to remote locations, using a satellite uplink where connectivity is poor. By running applications in the mobile data center, you can process and upload data without worrying about the latency of a satellite connection. Microsoft is working on its own <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/microsoft\/azure-software-radio\/blob\/main\/pages\/devvm.md\">Azure-hosted software-defined radio platform<\/a> based on Ubuntu, which will allow you to build your own receiver software to work with satellite (and other ground-based) radio systems<\/p>\n<p>Using Azure Orbital, you can bring your own ground station or take data from one of Microsoft\u2019s, located in its own Azure data centers, connecting your existing infrastructure to satellite. This approach works well for all types of mission, not just communications. For example, if you\u2019re working with your own smallsat Earth resources spacecraft, you can use Azure Orbital to download imagery from your satellite, before processing it in Azure. The intent is to make the satellite an extension of your Azure application, much like working with data from an Azure Stack hybrid cloud system where data is initially processed on the edge before being uploaded to Azure for further work.<\/p>\n<h2>Running Azure in space!<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3970540\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3970540\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3970540\" src=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-3.jpg\" alt=\"Satellite communications, coupled with Azure, open many new opportunities for both public- and private-sector organizations.\" width=\"1000\" height=\"563\" srcset=\"http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-35.jpg 1000w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-36.jpg 300w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-37.jpg 768w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-38.jpg 770w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-39.jpg 370w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-40.jpg 270w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-41.jpg 740w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-42.jpg 540w, http:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/what-is-microsofts-azure-space-and-who-is-it-for-43.jpg 810w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3970540\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image: Microsoft. Satellite communications, coupled with Azure, open many new opportunities for both public- and private-sector organizations.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Azure Space gives Microsoft a way to deliver one-off projects for big commercial and government clients. One interesting example of this is a project for NASA, working with Hewlett Packard Enterprise to run Azure workloads on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.issnationallab.org\/iss360\/hpe-sbc-2-launching-ng15\/\">its second generation Spaceborne Computer<\/a>, built around HPE\u2019s ruggedized Edgeline systems. This uses off-the-shelf hardware with custom software to provide high-power computers to the International Space Station. The SBC-2 project is investigating whether standard computer equipment can work in space without needing significant radiation hardening, saving NASA money.<\/p>\n<p>Microsoft will be delivering Azure workloads to the SBC-2 hardware, <a href=\"https:\/\/azure.microsoft.com\/en-gb\/blog\/empowering-space-development-off-the-planet-with-azure\/\">running machine learning<\/a> and other pre-processing applications, before delivering data to Azure for further work. It\u2019s not quite clear how this will work, whether Microsoft is providing a version of Azure Stack HCI or if it\u2019s using containers to host edge workloads via tools like Azure Arc. However, it\u2019s an interesting example of how Azure Space intends to work with its satellite customers, providing software in space and on the ground. Other Azure Space projects involve Microsoft technologies like HoloLens augmented reality and the FarmBeats precision agriculture platform.<\/p>\n<p>While Azure Space may seem a little disjointed at present, with a mix of services that at first sight might not obviously connect, it\u2019s clear that there\u2019s a vision here. Microsoft sees space as an extension of Azure, a more distant intelligent edge, to paraphrase Satya Nadella\u2019s catchphrase.<\/p>\n<p>With Azure Space it\u2019s providing two parts of that edge, connectivity with the ground-based cloud and a way to run Azure applications in space. At the same time, it gives Azure a way to operate where traditional connectivity isn\u2019t available, filling a big gap in bringing compute at scale to where it\u2019s desperately needed. What we see today is a scaffolding, with Microsoft filling out the gaps to make space a seamless part of the modern cloud.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Image: Microsoft. Azure Space uses the power of cloud and space technology to help businesses solve some of the world\u2019s most challenging problems. Microsoft\u2019s move into space shouldn\u2019t be surprising; it\u2019s had an interest in providing connectivity to the whole world for a long time and has had a range of different products and services [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35765,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77,40,783,152],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-artificial-intelligence","category-cloud","category-cloudsync","category-microsoft"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35764"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35784,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35764\/revisions\/35784"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/35765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cloudnewshub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}