O-RAID: a satellite constellation architecture for ultra-resilient global data backup

Growing global data volumes and the increasing frequency of climate-related and geopolitical threats highlight the need for ultra-resilient backup infrastructures. This paper proposes a novel Satellite-RAID architecture, named O-RAID, in which clusters of satellites operate as a distributed redundant array of independent disks (RAID), enabling large-scale cold and warm backup storage in Earth's orbit. Unlike previous work on space-based computing or satellite cloud relays, this research presents a formal design for orbital storage redundancy, inter-satellite parity exchange, latency-tolerant RAID protocols and power provisioning using a geostationary solar-energy beam. To establish a foundation for quantifying system resilience, we develop a reliability framework based on a Continuous-Time Markov Chain (CTMC) model, defining the states and transition rates for future survivability analysis of an orbital RAID equivalent. The paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the system architecture, its core components and the mathematical underpinnings for erasure coding and communication. An in-depth examination of system feasibility, survivability simulations, key constraints and communication overhead is presented, concluding that orbital backup storage presents a viable and promising paradigm for national archives, disaster-resilient storage and long-term scientific data preservation with technical readiness projected by 2035.