Medium Earth Orbit satellites provide ultra-high bandwidth for military use and civilian cruise ships
A European operator of communications satellites has started planning for its next generation of medium Earth Orbit satellites as demand ramps up in passenger shipping and naval fleets.
SES is in the middle of a major launch programme for its second generation of medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites and is already looking at technologies for the next constellation.
The Luxembourg-headquartered satellite owner has launched 10 O3b mPower spacecraft to date to offering connectivity services ranging from tens of megabits per second (Mbps) to multiple gigabits per second (Gbps) of capacity to ships, or a flotilla of vessels.
O3b mPower is the latest generation of MEO satellites providing hundreds of Mbps or even Gbps to passengers and crew on various cruise ships, and for the world’s navies.
Three more of these satellites are scheduled to be launched in 2026 and, following their commissioning, SES will have completed its new constellation in a threefold increase in available capacity by 2027.
But SES is pushing further. In September 2025, the company announced a collaboration with K2 Space to accelerate development of a next-generation MEO network.
The companies will co-develop and validate future network infrastructure and technologies. An on-orbit mission in Q1 2026 will be the first step towards rolling out SES’s future MEO network in the years after, ready for another boost to ship connectivity and coverage availability in the next decade.
