A method of and system for designing a satellite network includes selecting an optimal design for a backhaul network to be used as part of the satellite network, selecting a number of radio frequency (RF) gateways for the satellite network, selecting an optimal number of satellite network cores (SNCs) for the satellite network. The method may also include placing each SNC at a site that is geographically separate from locations of the RF gateways, selecting a number of data centers for the satellite network, connecting each SNC to one or more data centers in the satellite network, and connecting each data center to one or more of the RF gateways via the backhaul network.