BEIJING, July 7 -- Recently, a surgical team from the Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery Department of the Chinese PLA General Hospital overcame the problem of high latency in remote surgery through low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication technology, and completed remote surgery spanning hundreds of kilometers.
北京7月7日电 近日，解放军总医肝胆胰外科医学部借助低轨卫星通信技术，攻克远程手术高时延难题，完成跨越数百公里的远程外科手术。
Inside a mobile surgical vehicle in Xiong’an New Area, Central China's Hebei Province, surgical commands were transmitted with precision to an operating room at the First Medical Center of the Chinese PLA General Hospital in Beijing, which is located hundreds of kilometers away. After 30 minutes, a robot-assisted left lateral hepatectomy was successfully completed, marking a milestone in "sky-ground-space coordinated" medical operations.
在河北雄安新区移动手术车里，手术指令精准传达到了数百公里之外的北京——解放军总医院第一医学中心手术室。30分钟后，这场“空天地协同”机器人肝左外叶切除术宣告成功。
In the past, remote satellite surgeries relied on geostationary orbit satellites located approximately 36,000 kilometers above Earth. The vast distance caused delays in signal transmission, resulting in lag in the robot's response to surgical commands and delayed feedback of patients' vital signs—factors that posed risks to safety and reduced the flexibility of doctors.
以往远程卫星手术依赖的是距离地球约3.6万公里的静止轨道卫星。遥远的距离带来了信号传输时延，医生的操作指令传到手术机器人会有“卡顿”，患者的关键生命体征数据反馈也滞后，限制了手术的安全性和医生操作的灵活性。
This recent operation utilized LEO satellites orbiting at altitudes of 160 to 2,000 kilometers above Earth, drastically reducing signal transmission time. This greatly enhanced the real-time responsiveness and precision of the surgery.
此次手术借助的距地球160至2000公里轨道上的低轨卫星，让信号传输时间显著降低，极大提升了手术的实时性和操作的准确性。
It is reported that the advantages of LEO satellites extend far beyond transmission speed. The technology "does not depend on ground infrastructure, is immune to geological disasters, and is unrestricted by geography or time." This means the remote surgical system can be deployed in remote mountainous regions, deserts, or ships at sea — delivering life-saving medical care wherever and whenever needed.
据了解，低轨卫星带来的优势远不止于速度。这项技术“不依赖地面基础设施、不受地质灾害影响、不受地理时空限制”。无论是偏远山区、沙漠，广袤海洋上的船只，都能接入这套远程手术系统，及时获得救治。
