Artist’s impression of Alphasat. Photo: ESA

[Via Satellite 12-24-2014] Inmarsat’s U.S. Government Business Unit reached 10 Mbps while testing an on-demand lease service with the experimental L-band Advanced Communications Element (LACE) terminal. The prototype established a 10 Mbps return link for real-time video from the Middle East and Africa through a small L-band antenna across the Alphasat satellite.

According to Inmarsat, the demonstration reached a data rate more than an order of magnitude higher than other L-band experiments. The company anticipates LACE will play a significant role in military communications by enabling small teams to return large quantities of video and sensor data while on the move.