Re:A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has exploded at Cape Canaveral
by tarsinge on Thursday September 01, 2016 @11:45AM
(#12406220)
> provide internet access in parts of Africa
If you mean internet.org wheter it's a loss or not is debatable
Re:A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has exploded at Cape Canaveral
by dandelany on Thursday September 01, 2016 @12:44PM
(#12406786)
Internet.org was only a part of AMOS-6's planned internet bandwidth. Per Wikipedia "36 regional spotbeams with a throughput of about 18 Gbit/s — on Amos-6 to provide service for Facebook’s Internet.org and a new Eutelsat subsidiary focusing on African businesses. Costs would be divided in approximately equal shares between Eutelsat and Facebook."
Re:A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has exploded at Cape Canaveral
by tankenmate on Thursday September 01, 2016 @11:19AM
(#12405939)
It's a real bummer, also don't forget that now that SpaceX has had two payload losses in two years will mean that their insurance is very likely to go up.
This payload, AMOS-6, was a replacement for the soon to fail AMOS-2 which among other things is part of a Facebook initiative to provide internet access in parts of Africa.
I am not aware of any replacement in the works for it, so that service may just shut down, and who knows if it will ever start back up.
So while this might be "nothing" to you, it has actual repercussions for people.
Not to mention the effects on the Israeli company that made the payload. Insurance may or may not pay for the satellite itself (I don't know), but even if they do, they were also relying on income generated from running it.
Actual humans working for that company may now be impacted.