Seagate SSD will be tested in open space – this is necessary for orbital data storage and AI

Everything is heading towards the fact that in order to quickly deliver content to users and to access artificial intelligence from anywhere on Earth, Internet satellites will begin to be equipped with data storage facilities. As part of the development of this concept, Seagate, together with BAE Systems, assembled a platform for testing in orbit under vacuum conditions and limited thermal management of a subsystem based on a 2 TB SSD. The tests will last a year and will outline the path for further development.

SSD prototype for space use. Image source: Seagate

The Seagate drive, along with other payloads, including experimental infrared and radio remote sensing systems, were delivered aboard the ISS. The equipment will be located outside the station. The company wants to evaluate how reliable its solid-state drives are when operating in vacuum conditions, with limited heat dissipation and in the absence of traditional cooling systems. The thermal conductivity of a vacuum is zero and an intensively working SSD can simply overheat.

In addition to the hardware, an AI framework is installed on the SSD. AI on low-Earth orbit satellites is expected to be a last-mile solution for providing artificial intelligence services in places where there are no optical communications links and, in general, broadband Internet service is difficult or non-existent. In the coming years, massive use of AI is expected to manage various kinds of applications, which can be achieved by placing huge data warehouses on satellites.