A big latency improvement will be coming from these inter-satellite links (ISL) now launching for the Starlink broadband network. My favorite physics fact regarding this: the speed of light is 1.5x faster in space than in ordinary glass fiber (refractive index n=1.5). It also affords a straighter point-to-point connection in many places, like Africa. Those advantages are hard to beat on the ground (without replacing current infrastructure).
The only thing better: Orbital cats with lasers… see below. It’s the back of the shirt designed by and for the engineers.
On top is an interesting piece of optics technology, a retro-reflector. It reflects incoming light back to where it came from, over a range of angles. So, the crosshairs are centered on the camera lens and it has a spooky effect when looking at it with the naked eye: as you move it around, the crosshairs stay centered on your pupil. I just took a video demo
Cats have only flown suborbitally (with the French space program). As we all know, suborbital flight is just a tease. Cats want to be real astronauts one day, like the dogs. Heck, even turtles have been around the moon and back (with the Russians).
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