Google Tests Solar-Powered AI Computing in Space with Project Suncatcher

Google has successfully launched its first prototype satellite for Project Suncatcher, an initiative aimed at developing solar-powered artificial intelligence computing infrastructure in space.

The satellite was built in partnership with Planet and launched on Thursday from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California aboard SpaceX's Transporter-18 rideshare mission.

Project Suncatcher will test how Google's Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) withstand the physical stresses of spaceflight, radiation, and extreme thermal conditions. The experiment will also assess the cooling performance of the TPUs in the vacuum of space.

The satellite's cooling system uses heat pipes to transfer heat from the chips to radiators that dissipate it into space. However, the chips will operate only for brief periods of about 15 minutes before being shut down to allow the radiators to catch up.