中国发射了首批12颗卫星，旨在构建一个由2800颗卫星组成的轨道超级计算卫星网络。这些卫星由ADA Space、之江实验室和内江高新技术开发区联合打造，能够在太空中自行处理收集到的数据，无需依赖地面站。该网络是ADA Space“星算”计划的一部分，被称为“三体计算星座”。每颗卫星都配备了80亿参数的AI模型，每秒可进行744万亿次运算，12颗卫星的总算力达到每秒5千万亿次运算。该项目旨在构建一个算力达到每秒1000千万亿次运算的卫星网络。

🚀 中国发射了首批12颗卫星，这是计划中的2800颗卫星轨道超级计算网络的一部分，由ADA Space、之江实验室和内江高新技术开发区联合创建。

💡 这些卫星是ADA Space“星算”计划的一部分，被称为“三体计算星座”。每颗卫星都配备了80亿参数的AI模型，每秒可进行744万亿次运算，12颗卫星的总算力达到每秒5千万亿次运算。

📡 卫星之间通过激光以高达100Gbps的速度通信，共享30TB的存储空间。它们携带科学载荷，包括用于探测伽马射线暴等宇宙现象的X射线偏振探测器。

🌍 这种太空超级计算机的优势在于节省通信时间。传统卫星传输速度慢，并且由于带宽和地面站可用性等因素，只有“不到10%”的卫星数据能够到达地球。

China has launched the first 12 satellites of a planned 2,800-strong orbital supercomputer satellite network, reports Space News. The satellites, created by the company ADA Space, Zhijiang Laboratory, and Neijang High-Tech Zone, will be able to process the data they collect themselves, rather than relying on terrestrial stations to do it for them, according to ADA Space’s announcement (machine-translated).

The satellites are part of ADA Space’s “Star Compute” program and the first of what it calls the “Three-Body Computing Constellation,” the company writes. Each of the 12 satellites has an onboard 8-billion parameter AI model and is capable of 744 tera operations per second (TOPS) — a measure of their AI processing grunt — and, collectively, ADA Space says they can manage 5 peta operations per second, or POPS. That’s quite a bit more than, say, the 40 TOPS required for a Microsoft Copilot PC. The eventual goal is to have a network of thousands of satellites that achieve 1,000 POPs, according to the Chinese government.

The satellites communicate with each other at up-to-100Gbps using lasers, and share 30 terabytes of storage between them, according to Space News. The 12 launched last week carry scientific payloads, including an X-ray polarization detector for picking up brief cosmic phenomena such as gamma-ray bursts. The satellites also have the capability to create 3D digital twin data that can be used for purposes like emergency response, gaming, and tourism, ADA Space says in its announcement.

The benefits of having a space-based supercomputer go beyond saving communications time, according to South China Morning Post. The outlet notes that traditional satellite transmissions are slow, and that “less than 10 per cent” of satellite data makes it to Earth, due to things like limited bandwidth and ground station availability. And Jonathan McDowell, a space historian and astronomer at Harvard University, told the outlet, “Orbital data centres can use solar power and radiate their heat to space, reducing the energy needs and carbon footprint.” He said both the US and Europe could carry out similar projects in the future, writes SCMP.