Block Stream launches Bitcoin satellites to broadcast Bitcoin transactions from space! @BlockRush
Perhaps its time Bitcoin got interplanetary status as BlockStream takes Bitcoin into space.
Do you remember Bit Fury? Bit Fury is one of the innovative companies that wants to put Bitcoin mining chips in the most abstract of places such as lighting bulbs and blenders.
Well another Bitcoin company is up with another innovation and its even more exciting. BlockStream, a Bitcoin Core development company wants to broadcast Bitcoin nodes from space! Actually; they are already doing it!!!
BlockStream's Bitcoin satellite network
While Bitcoin was designed to be autonomous, decentralized and transparent, it needs the internet as a medium to operate. This limitation means that Bitcoin faces censorship in nations where there is little internet infrastructure or government censorship.
The BlockStream Bitcoin satellite project hopes to truly make Bitcoin decentralized by allowing anyone in the world to setup and operate a Bitcoin node without internet access. The project is in a pilot phrase yet its satellites already broadcasts to two-thirds of the earth and would be expanded to provide full world coverage by the end of this year.
According to Block Stream co-founder and CEO Dr Adam Back, the cost of building a specialized satellite and as well as the launch costs would be very high hence they decided to simply rent space on existing broadcast satellites. The satellite system is already live in beta mode and can already be used to download a complete copy of the Bitcoin client and data.
Three geosynchronous satellite cover Africa, Europe, North America and South America and will be feed live Bitcoin Blockchain data by ground stations to spread across the globe. The satellite will then broadcast the data back to satellite dishes on earth for free.
Satellite dish setup would cost less than $100 as regular TV satellite dishes could be used, also there would be no bandwidth subscription costs. Costs is cut by using GNU Radio, an open source software development toolkit which eliminates the need for specialised hardware. Performance is enhanced with Fast Internet Bitcoin Relay Engine (FIBRE).
A user or a local business can run a full node, receive all the data and then when they go to send a transaction, they can pay the bandwidth cost for that. A Bitcoin transaction is pretty small, like 250 bytes. - Dr. Adam Back on IBTimes.
Cheap Bidirectional satellite equipment on eBay, local Wi-Fi, mesh networks, SMS gateways, dial up, or other kinds of low bandwidth, high distance radio equipment could be used to transmit transactions back to the satellite and the global Bitcoin network.
The system reduces the number of hardware needed to run a full node to a simply satellite dish, a simple computer as a Rasberry Pi to processed the received data and a wifi hotspot, satellite radio, SMS Gateway or internet to transmit it back.
How does the system work?
According to Block Stream, the satellite system works in 5 simple steps:
- Blockstream Satellite ground stations, known as "teleports", participate in the bitcoin network and transmit blocks to geosynchronous satellites.
- Geosynchronous satellites, orbiting at an altitude of 35,786km (22,236mi), receive the signal from the Blockstream Satellite teleport and broadcast it across a wide portion of the Earth.
- Anyone in the coverage area with a small satellite antenna and an inexpensive USB receiver can receive these blocks and ensure that their node is always in sync.
- Additionally Blockstream Satellite teleports also receive blocks from the other Blockstream teleports throughout the world to ensure the teleports themselves do not become partitioned.
- The entire satellite network forms a ring around the planet to ensure the bitcoin network is stable throughout the world.
What are the implications of this initiative?
1. Bitcoin will be further entrenched
Having a record of the entire Bitcoin Blockchain stored in space is one way to truly make it secure and "untouchable". Investors will troop to Bitcoin as these are the type of developments that hype investors into swallowing the hooker, line and sinker!
2. Bitcoin will become truly border-less
While Bitcoin was design to be border-less, it run on the internet and the internet is not border-less. However broadcasting Bitcoin fro space will truly make it border-less as there are no barriers or borders in space.
Bitcoin will become decentralized
While this may be extreme, technically its a major step to actually decentralizing the Bitcoin Blockchain! Currently almost all Bitcoin nodes are based on land. There are no nodes under the sea, on the sea or in space.
4. Bitcoin will be autonomous
Until now, Bitcoin has not been fully autonomous as it can only operate on the internet and the internet could be censored. While governments can censor information on the internet, they cannot censor data broadcasted by satellite.
5. Will unleash a "space cryptocurrency race"
This initiative would inspire other crypto currencies and blockchain networks to host their nodes in spaces as well. It should not be long before we have satellites broadcasting Steem, Ether, EOS, Ripple, Lisk, DASH, and more!
What do you think of this bold initiative? Let your imagination run wild!
- Will fascists governments try to shot down Bitcoin nodes in space?
- Will aliens tamper with our Bitcoin transactions?
- Will this move make Bitcoin immortal?
Let's keep the conversations ongoing in the comment section. Upvote, resteem and follow @BlockRush to receive more Bitcoin and Blockchain reports!
BlockStream satellite image credit: BlockStream.com.
Very interesting! Upvoted, Resteemed and followed! This initiative of truly censorship free blockchain and internet in general is great and all, but there still are costs/risks. For instance, solar flares do happen regularly and the maintenance/upkeep on those satellites may become quite expensive. Also, conflicts between global powers for the control over the signal distributing satellites may cause even more damage. Whoever controls the satellites/cables will control the blockchains and the internet.
I am all about space-based Cryptocurrency. Eve Online never felt so close haha
How cool is this!? Wondering about the centralised ownership and the costs of the space 'vehicles' though. Very expensive operation to get them into space and to maintain them. Google and Facebook are experimenting with balloons in the stratosphere to provide communication to areas where in ground systems are in place. Sri Lanka for instance has several Google balloons to allow for extension of the internet to remote areas without ground radio communication. That would be lesser expensive to maintain. Having said that, great idea and hopefully they can execute.
wow
this is super news for the bitcoin community and users +++++
that is awesome
anything that promotes bitcoin and enhances its prominence, is a step toward the world embracing digital currencies. And I'm all for that.
upped & resteemed :)
Ground Satellites bouncing data off the firmament glass ceiling that surrounds us all?
That means we could literally 'swish swish' the air to update our accounts. Very cool.
The aliens you spoke about are bi-dimensional, from their world to ours. They live among us, walk with us, influence us and feed upon us. Not in space. God abodes above. Hell on earth, and HELL below.
I hope Block Stream achieve their goals to enable all, easier and cheaper, market rate access to cryptos.
They want to broadcast Bitcoin nodes from space, but they never will. As you said above, they will broadcast Bitcoin nodes like they broadcast radio and satellite television. Godspeed!
Amazing blog. This could be the game changer technology we were looking for. Sky should be the limit now for bitcoin. Cheers !!!