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Google’s Project Suncatcher to put ML infrastructure in space
Learn about our early test to scale AI compute in space. In a new video series, the Project Suncatcher team explores the science behind this moonshot, what they've found, and the engineering challenges that remain to be solved.
Project Suncatcher is launching a prototype satellite to test if our artificial intelligence hardware can survive the harsh conditions of space. This mission evaluates how our chips handle extreme radiation, intense vibrations, and unique cooling challenges in a vacuum. You can follow our progress and learn about the engineering hurdles ahead by watching our new video series on the science behind this mission.
Google is launching a satellite to see if AI hardware can survive the harsh conditions of space. They want to know if space is a good place to run AI because satellites get plenty of solar power. The team is testing how their chips handle extreme heat, radiation, and the intense shaking of a rocket launch. This is just the first step in a long-term plan to build powerful AI systems in orbit.
After years of research, Project Suncatcher is scheduled to embark on its first test in orbit, launching a prototype satellite to evaluate how Google Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) perform in space.
Announced last year, Project Suncatcher is a long-term, research moonshot exploring whether space could one day host scalable machine learning infrastructure. In low Earth orbit, satellites can access near-constant sunlight, generating up to eight times more solar power than on Earth. Eventually, it could be possible to link together multiple constellations of satellites, allowing them to manage larger AI workloads while in orbit.
Big breakthroughs happen when you work backwards from an end goal. In our case, it's to ensure AI's profound benefits in key areas, from healthcare to scientific discovery, can reach everyone, far into the future. Just as early research into autonomous driving and quantum computing required years of experimentation before we got to practical systems, exploring compute in space begins with measured, deliberate steps.
Turning that idea into reality starts with a basic question: Can our AI hardware operate in space? This initial mission onboard the upcoming Transporter-18 rideshare mission with SpaceX was developed in partnership with Planet. It’s designed to gather in-orbit data on how our TPUs handle the physical stress of spaceflight and the radiation and thermal extremes of space.
As we prepare for an early test launch and work toward our next milestone in 2027, the Project Suncatcher team discussed what we hope to learn and the engineering hurdles ahead in a new video series digging into the science behind the mission.
A rocket trip into low Earth orbit lasts about 10 minutes, during which the spacecraft experiences intense vibration and sustained acceleration loads up to 10 times the force of gravity, or g-force. Individual components, such as the TPU chips, can experience even greater forces up to 50 to 100 g. The team conducted vibration testing by intensely shaking the satellite on all three axes to mimic the frequencies of a rocket launch. Tests like this rarely go as planned, so we were pleasantly surprised that the hardware held up to the force.
Once the TPU chips make it to space, the level of radiation outside the Earth’s atmosphere presents another challenge to overcome. Solar events and cosmic rays can wreak havoc on electronics, so our team tested TPUs in a proton beam facility at UC Davis’s Crocker Nuclear Laboratory while running AI workloads. During the test, we monitored closely to see how errors, like a bitflip, would affect our workloads. Initial results have shown that our Trillium TPUs hold up remarkably well, and can survive a radiation total ionizing dose greater than what they would receive during a five-year space mission.