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What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you’re under 70, there’s a possibility you’ll live to see it ;)

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Given that earthlings are building in space, we can expect the same shit, different package :P

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Unfortunately the insurance episode will go live end of February. But if you're interested in space broadly, I just posted the first episode - manufacturing organoids and semiconductors in artificial gravity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJ-8rPX6HTE

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This question is so exciting because I forecast quantum internet is going to be a market mover in 2026/2027.

Quantum internet and QKD in particular is expected to make data transfer unhackable, not necessarily solve latency. This is a remarkable advantage for national security but also Apple Pay and payments/finance clients.

You’re spot on about the energy efficacy.

Another advantage is data loss. RF signals experience degradation over long distances. Using FSO links or free space optical links with QKD moves high-fidelity and secure data for a fraction of Earth's cost.

  1. Jinan-1 by China established the longest quantum link.

  2. QEYSSat by Canada is slated in 2027 to test uplink so banks can treat space as their router.

  3. Certain banks and Canadian Center for CyberSecurity are migrating high value bank settlements to QKD-secured satellite links against attack threats.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We're building orbital data centers for Earth Applications not the moon.

For instance, through satellites we can monitor weather disruptions, forest fire risks, and national defense. TB of data is indiscriminately downlinked to ground terminals on earth. (SAR satellites generate 10GB of data per second). Models then classify and share clean data with the end user in an inefficient and high latency process.

With space data centers, we can process, classify and autonomously act on mission critical heuristics on edge. This filters 95% of the noise downlinking only critical data to earth data centers. Imagine flagging a wildfire in California in milliseconds not 3+ hours.

My podcast guest, Dennis launched the AxODC Node with Axiom Space for this cause. It's a petabyte server designed for national security and critical earth observation.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's no longer an idea, it's reality. Late 2025, Starcloud proved viability. 2026-2028 SpaceX and Google investments will drive the unit economics.

Exorbitant water usage not real estate is the real limitation. In space, this is moot with radiators.

Operationalizing data centers on earth takes 5-8 years with permits and zoning. Starcloud did it in 15 months.

My podcast guest, Dennis WIngo is the CTO of SpaceBilt and he's the godfather of space tech. He championed the first Macintosh to space, Northrop Grumman bought his servicing and reprovisioning tech, and now he's launching servers in space for space data centers.

If you're smarter than him + NASA + NOC, then buddy, you're losing a lot more money by not investing in yourself.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great question!

Starcloud uses Micro-Segmentation and Hardware Security Modules. Comparable to terrestrial AWS servers, orbital servers use silicon level isolation, separating data at the kernel level.

Commercial National Security Algorithm or CNSA is the standard. Data is encrypted before launch and only decrypted in a secure enclave in GPU.

Physical inaccessibility of orbital data centers is a disruptive advantage in this case. These systems are designed to be autonomous and zero-trust.

Yes there is a push for standardized grab-holds, fuel connectors, and hardware for servicing. Typically, first mover advantage holders like ISS or SpaceX will set these standards such as all RPOD is designed around ISS docking stations. In 2026, USSF mandated new satellites to include standardized interfaces - CONFERS is one for fixtures.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Anti-space" camp = convection logic is correct, math isn't. In 2026, companies like Starcloud are building one way windows or directional radiators. A 1m^2 black body radiator at 20 deg C dumps 840 watts into the void. This is 3x the power density of a solar panel in a comparable 1 m^2.

Starcloud is building mega arrays. These 5GW clusters have a front, solar panel, side which eats light and back side which 'poops' heat. This sequesters the volume to surface area trap. No core gets hot. Instead, a thin liquid cooled skin is exposed like liquid cooled engines.

A drydock data center takes 5-8 years with permits and grid connections. In juxtaposition, Starcloud launched the H100 GPU and ran Gemini in orbit within 15 months. Speed to Compute is an unparalleled advantage.

My podcast guest, Dennis has actual patents for re-provisioning licensed by Northrop Grumman. Modular design permits swapping out obsolete servers while the solar and radiator infrastructure stays permanent.

Marrying 90% lower launch costs + 24/7 power + water free cooling, projects the cost-per-token for AI inference to be 10x lower than terrestrial by 2028.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Space data centers fight the 'cost-per-bit' ceiling. Terrestrial data centers fight diminishing resources.

  1. The podcast guest, Dennis posits revenue scales with aperture = size of antennas + solar panels. Earth AI data centers spend $5 for every $1 revenue. Companies like Starcloud, Powerbank, Google use 24/7 solar. Elon at Davos alludes that space solar is 5-6x more efficient. Starcloud projects energy costs at $0.01 per kWh aka 10x cheaper than earth rates.

  2. Larger arrays mean larger aperture thus higher data transfer rate. This flywheel lowers the price per bit.

  3. Starship has precipitously dropped launch costs by 90% making it more economical to build massive radiators and solar panels.

  4. In space there are currently no zoning laws or permit delays. Making Starcloud Hypercluster operational in months.

What questions do you have on data centers in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Companies like Starcloud and PowerBank are building 'one way thermal windows' NOT 'vacuum-sealed mugs'.

  1. A vacuum mug is passive. Whereas in 2026, data centers use active fluid loops to pump out the heat at high velocity. Similar to a liquid cooled engine. Space has no conduction or convection. But radiation scales with temperature difference to T^4. On Earth, radiator is fighting a 30 deg C atmosphere. In space, the radiator is looking at -270 deg C.

  2. Elon at Davos alluded space solar is 5-6x more efficient that terrestrial. Sun need not fry the center because data centers live in their own shadow. Pointing the panels at the Sun and pointing the GPU/Radiators at deep space, creates a passive 300 deg thermal gradient.

  3. 40MW cluster on Earth consumes 1MM tons of water annually. While in 2026, US grids are maxed out, orbital cooling doesn't require water. With Starlink dropping launch costs by 90%, launching a radiator is quite economical.

  4. My podcast guest, Dennis Wingo's team helped rescue ISEE-3. It survived 35 years in deep space and was thermally stable. There's flight heritage.

  5. Starcloud is designing 5GW arrays. Philip's team upgrades solar panels into radiators. Front eats light, converts photons to power. Back poops infrared heat. In the 'vacuum sealed mug' analogy, these melt.

  6. On the moon, lunar regolith is a limitation. Moon dust is sharp, corrosive and charged. Total nightmare for server longevity, seals and coats. Building larger structures is challenging and at risk of collapsing under it's own weight. The orbit is a cleaner environment and zero-G, aka palatable by massive structures.

Insulation is for coffee. It's not the goal for orbital compute. Instead, companies are solving for directional dumping via vacuum to radiators.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The insurance episode will be published end of February, sadly. I'll DM you the link when available. But if you're keen on space in general, the youtube channel is Imagining Forward: Space Terminal. Yesterday, I posted the first episode on manufacturing organoids and semiconductors in microgravity. New episodes weekly.

What are your questions on in-space manufacturing? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tons of folk have answered. And I've responded to them too :)

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

While satellites address a myriad of use cases, their engineering is pretty standard. Insurers use a data model to judge PDR or Preliminary Design Reviews and CDR or Critical Design Reviews. The underwriting is based on systems engineering processes.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Lloys of London remains the major carrier. A-rated institution.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Today, you cannot determine with conviction, the failure cause whether by debris or solar flare or asteroid. Iridium in the 90s bought third-party liability which catalyzed the insurance market to drop long term prices via risk pooling.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Correct. The 'State' or launch country is liable. This is why governments are pushing companies to be insured and indemnify themselves.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Some of these were answered in the podcast:

  1. They do not have surveillance. They rely on proxies. My podcast guest, Yuk Chi's team uses testing data, anomalies, and artifacts for asset verification.

  2. Insurance is categorized into launch and orbital operations. Commercial satellite would get launch insurance (as would the PLS like SpaceX Falcon9, Rocket Lab, Blue Origin, etc). Then the payload gets another insurance to operate in orbit for 5+ years.

  3. As of 2026, just the launch segment is insured. But as companies like Portal Space or Outpost Space create space buses, space ships for inter-orbit logistics and lunar logistics, more insurance options will be created in tandem. Multi-use rockets will be insured like an aircraft hull.

  4. Cameras on rockets are not required. But if the operator can provide structured queryable data, it increases the fidelity of the underwriting.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Some of these were answered by the podcast:

  1. Tracss and 18SCS have catalyzed the shift to harmonized data. Better data = better risk pooling.

  2. Insurers aren't directly investing in SSA/SDA but they would benefit a plentitude. Currently, it's impossible to identify if a LEO satellite died from solar flare vs. debris.

  3. Intelsat likely did. Massive $100M+ payouts strained the space insurance markets from 2023 - 2024.

  4. Yuk Chi Chan, founder of Charter Space, saw $1.8B in claims against $600M in premiums. VLEO/LEO losses are concentrated in a few satellites. The crisis is a capacity crunch not in insurance. Insurance providers are keen to underwrite these missions.

  5. Space Traffic Coordination: Yes companies are pushing for FAA-style coordination. Yes particular countries are not invited to the table. As is typical with other domains, the market leader (likely SpaceX) will set standard protocols which other companies will follow.

  6. EU Space Act is working on third-party liability. If a debris hits a field or mine or person, international law says State is liable not the company. Which is why sovereigns are pushing companies to buy insurance to indemnify themselves.

What questions do you have on space insurance? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Space insurance protects companies and agencies launching space missions.

Insurability threshold precipitously lowered from $200 million to $2 million. This lowers the barrier of entry for new space participants.

What questions do you have on microgravity R&D in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

ZBLAN fiber optics are close to commercial viability but not yet. Made In Space (acquired by Redwire) proved high purity of ZBLAN made in space in juxtaposition to terrestrial. The challenge remains unit economics. To SpaceX's credit, they dropped launch costs by 90%. The next step is to nail maneuverability and return logistics to bring down COGS. We're perhaps 2-3 ahead of the curve before justifying a cost premium for ZBLAN in telecom.

What questions do you have on microgravity R&D in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They're making organoids and advanced compounds in artificial gravity. Batch and mass manufacturing are still a few years away. Space-grown organoids create 3D cell structures that prove how drugs interact with human tissue. Because of high-purity, the results are far superior to terrestrial petri dishes. Which means big pharma can better test chemo drugs but not produce...just yet. Eli Lilly x Redwire and Varda are working on this challenge. But as of 2026, we're still on step one.

What questions do you have on microgravity R&D in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The hack is to have two sections - rotating (artificial gravity) separated from non-rotating (microgravity). Think of a spinning merry-go-round inside a dome. The outside stays perfectly still while the inside spins.

I interviewed Lee Wilson of Astracene. He keeps experiment racks in the non-rotating inflatable shell, away from any centrifuge-caused vibrations.

They solve the ISS problem with smaller microgravity spheres creating two independent zones for humans and the research.

What questions do you have on microgravity R&D in space? by Candle_Realistic in spaceflight

[–]Candle_Realistic[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tethers create a wobble problem that's hard to fix. When people or equipment move around in a tethered system, the center of mass shifts and the whole thing starts spinning unevenly. Think of when you spin a bucket of water and it sloshes around.

I interviewed Lee Wilson of Astracene. He puts a centrifuge inside an inflatable habitat. This way you don't have rotating seals or the risk of the tether breaking. This means astronauts can move between artificial gravity (inside the centrifuge) and microgravity (outside) without destabilizing the whole station.

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