Stratellite is a brand name trademark of Sanswire for a future emissions-free, high-altitude stratospheric airship that provides a stationary communications platform for various types of wireless signals usually carried by communications towers or satellites.
Using airship technology, a stratellite is above the cloud and so can be powered by solar cells and propelled by electric motors which are designed to keep the craft at a single pre- programmed axis GPS coordinate and check with higher satellites that it stays in that position.
Specifications
General characteristics
Capacity: 3,000 lb (1,400 kg)
Length: 245 ft (75 m)
Width: 145 ft (44 m)
Height: 87 ft (27 m)
Volume: 1,300,000 cu ft (37,000 m3)
Performance
Service ceiling: 70,000 ft (21,000 m)
Avionics 6 onboard GPS units connected to the ship's engines.
DETAIL
Proponents claim a high-altitude communications platform, like the Stratellite, could make terrestrial broadcast towers obsolete, reducing the cost and time required for hardware updates. An update made to a single unit would effectively cascade to an entire grid of virtual broadcast towers.