It will provide communications throughout Russia, even in the Arctic regions. And perhaps abroad
General Director of JSC «Satellite System „Messenger“» Pavel Cherenkov reported that the deployment of the orbital constellation of satellites «Gonets-M1» scheduled for completion in 2029. New generation spacecraft will provide communications, in particular telephone communications, throughout Russia, including hard-to-reach places and the Arctic, and will also be able to serve as infrastructure for the Internet of things.
In 2027, it is planned to launch the first two devices «Gonets-M1» to develop technologies for providing services, and from 2027 to 2029 an orbital constellation of 28 satellites will be created. Then the system «Messenger-M1» will begin to provide full-fledged services in Russia and, possibly, abroad, as Cherenkov noted. The devices will be located in low Earth orbit at an altitude of 1500 km.
Currently, working design documentation is being created, according to which elements of the ground and space complex will be manufactured. Among other things, new satellites are being designed, including weight and size characteristics and energy consumption parameters. Cherenkov emphasized that the promising constellation of satellites is not intended for relaying navigation signals and was created to perform communication tasks, primarily satellite telephony and data transmission to a wide range of subscribers.