Hubble Satellite Network

Why it matters

Bluetooth chips cost very little and run for years on small batteries, but normally only reach a few meters. Picking them up from orbit could make it cheap to track shipments, pallets and equipment in places with no phone network.

How the technology works

Devices broadcast short Bluetooth Low Energy messages. Hubble's satellites carry sensitive antennas that pick up those faint signals from low Earth orbit and pass the data to customers.

Hubble says it has six satellites in orbit, plans 60 by 2030, and is building its next generation on Muon Space's MuSat XL platform. On the ground, Hubble says more than 100 million gateways relay the same signals.