It took four tries, but a Pacific Dataport satellite finally blasted off from a SpaceX launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL Sunday night.
Pacific Dataport hopes to serve tribes in remote parts of Alaska, where broadband service has been unavailable or cost prohibitive.
For three days, the flight was delayed due to the elements and technical issues. But on Sunday, a rocket called Falcon Heavy successfully carried the satellite into space.
Brian Murkowski, a spokesperson for Pacific Dataport, says the Aurora 4A will be a game changer.
“Remote communities will have effectively the same capabilities and services that, that you would get in Seattle or San Francisco or L.A. And furthermore, it won’t cost you an arm and a leg. It will be competitive.”
The Aurora 4A is positioned higher above the earth and looks down directly on Alaska – which provides some new options for broadband and cell service customers.
Pacific Dataport says Aurora 4A is the first of its kind – a “micro” geostationary satellite, smaller in size but with advanced technology that gives it more data capacity.
In the days leading up to the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP), Yurok Tribal leaders will be participating in a series of events starting Tuesday, including candle light vigils, testimonies, a flower drop, and more at the California State Capitol to elevate tribally led efforts to resolve the ongoing crisis.
Watch the vigil live starting at 8:30am PT
A couple of public health studies are trying to prevent childhood obesity in tribal communities.
Emma VandenEinde of the Mountain West News Bureau reports on their approaches in part two of our special feature.
This story was supported by The Water Desk, an initiative from the University of Colorado Boulder’s Center for Environmental Journalism. Listen or read part one.
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