Real-time communication between satellites and mobile devices

A satellite for directly communicating with one or more mobile devices on a ground, comprising:

• a communication device for directly communicating data with a mobile device that is configured to display an image of a map;
• one or more processors;
• and
• a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, causes steps to be performed comprising:
• receiving a request signal for information related to a region on the map directly from the mobile device via the communication device;
• acquiring the information related to the region on the map;
• and
• sending the information to the mobile device,
• wherein the request signal includes information of at least one of a time window during which the information related to the region on the map is to be acquired by one or more satellites and a ground resolution of a satellite image.

A method for communicating data with one or more satellites, comprising:

• displaying an image of a map on a graphic user interface (GUI) on a mobile device;
• displaying a first GUI component that allows a user of the mobile device to set a time window during which information related to a region on the map is to be acquired by one or more satellites;
• displaying a second GUI component that allows the user to set a ground resolution of a satellite image,
• responsive to a touch on the GUI, sending a request signal for the information related to a region on the map directly to a satellite;
• and
• receiving the information from a satellite,
• wherein the request signal includes information of at least one of the time window and the ground resolution of a satellite image.

A method for directly communicating with one or more mobile devices on a ground, comprising:

• receiving a request signal for information directly from a mobile device via a communication device, the mobile device being configured to display an image of a map, the information being related to a region on the map;
• acquiring the information related to the region on the map;
• and
• sending the information to the mobile device,
• wherein the request signal includes information of at least one of a time window during which the information related to the region on the map is to be acquired by one or more satellites and a ground resolution of a satellite image acquire by a satellite.