Projects

The idea is to propose and to investigate a thin flat antenna for home applications (i.e. DVB-S), which it allows to be easily installed and aligned in a good-looking manner, suggesting innovative and cost/power efficient solutions to implement beam steering or custom solutions with a specific pre-pointing.

The goal of the project is to generate additional data for optimization of assets in satellite communication based on available recorded signal quality data from VSAT networks. This business intelligence data is used for daily work in payload operations as well as for optimizing the business case by leveraging cost reduction opportunities in orbit and on ground.

The European Optical Nucleus Network is the first commercially available Optical Network integrating KSAT’s own optical ground station (OGS) and partner stations. The ESA-ESOC ELRS at Tenerife, the DLR-GSOC at Almeria and the KSAT station at Nemea in Greece (called the Nucleus stations) will be connected to the KSAT Tromsø Network Operations Centre (TNOC).  Terrestrial optical communication has changed the way we work, but spaceborne optical links are still not standardized and Direct to Earth Links are not used in an operational environment. The project realizes a first commercial network of optical stations that can be used for supporting optical payloads on any spacecraft.

The enhanced Deployable Panel Radiators (eDPR) is a major feature of the OneSat innovative, fully reconfigurable; software defined, and standardized satellite for commercial telecommunication missions in geostationary orbit. This product is one of the major OneSat innovation providing the thermal system with an unprecedented heat rejection capability and efficiency thanks to its ecliptic mechanism (Airbus patent) keeping the panels out of the sun exposure. This is essential to the OneSat platform to reach the required heat rejection due to Active Antenna dissipation in addition to fixed radiators while preserving the Spacecraft compactness.

Development of two Highly-Integrated Single-Chip Frequency Converter MMICs (SCFC) capable of supporting various frequency translation schemes, at Ku and Ka bands, to be exploited in future LEO and MEO constellations.

Study to investigate long-term electrical breakdown behavior of typical isolation designs including bare, encapsulated and conformal coated PCBs for space application.

The performed activity included three different parts : The Q Band EPC qualification and Q Band TWTA validation, the adaptation of current test means (Pre Integration test bench & TVAC) and the preliminary study of EPC for very high power amplification in Ka Band.

Development and processor-in-the-loop validation of innovative guidance algorithms for on-board optimization of thrust and attitude profile for autonomous electrical orbit raising.

Eurostar NEO has two double-capacity almost-spherical skirt-mounted propellant tanks placed within a central cone/cylinder structure. The benefits vs. legacy Eurostar platforms, which featured four polar mounted tanks around a central structure, are: more room for payload, more cost-efficient use of titanium alloy and value added in MAIT.

With user links in High-Throughput Satellites reaching 500+Mbaud symbol rates and new spectrum allocation for terrestrial 5G in Ka-band, user terminals can support both satellite and terrestrial carriers. The Hybrid Channel Emulator allows users to validate the performance of such terminals in a lab environment, by emulating synchronized radio propagation conditions of satellite and terrestrial links in many scenarios.

The activity is designed to address the deficiency in available secure access technology in remote areas and in areas where there is no or unreliable terrestrial radio coverage. The solution provides a satellite ready secure access device, which can pass IP data between a secure management portal and remotely located equipment.

Magister Solutions Ltd. offers a cloud-based simulation service called Magister SimLab, which integrates the whole network simulation workflow into one easy-to-use service including scenario and campaign design, simulation execution and monitoring, and results analysis.

This project consists of the development and implementation of a demonstrator for DVB-S2X wideband transmission links - supporting baud rates up to 1.4 Gsps.

This activity focuses its efforts on the implementation and verification of the most critical features of ground components for DVB standardized beam-hopping. In that context an end-to-end hardware testbed is developed to verify standard compliance and demonstrate features like e.g. seamless beam-hopping time plan updates.

Three different frequency generation modules have been developed in the program. These frequency generation modules are targeting use in low phase noise applications.

Low power, low weight electronically steerable Ka band antenna arrays for fixed and mobile satellite terminals using RF MEMS phase shifters. Typical applications are Maritime, trains, UAV’s, mobile, Satellite backhaul.

SHADER investigate the use of HAPS-borne broadband satcom datalink, to relief small RPAS (drones) from the burden of heavy data transceiver payloads.
This is an enabling technology for the use of small UAV in areas with little connectivity.

RADIOSAT: a miniaturized K/Ka band transceiver for small satellites.

To develop a system (i.e., a protocol stack) that integrates satellite links (beyond line-of-sight) and terrestrial links (line-of-sight) in the 5030-5091 MHz band to provide seamless C2 communications for unmanned aircraft, UAVs.

Satellite communications industry has been growing rapidly over recent years. There has never been more satellite launches than we have had in the last two years with all the LEO launches. Diversity of satellites, new transmission modes and optimization techniques combined with proprietary standards is all adding complexity to an already challenging environment. As the number of satellites increases, it is expected that the number of interference cases increases as well. This leads to a significant higher amount of effort for satellite operators to identify interference cases.
AI has the potential to be a game changer in the satellite industry, where it could be used to improve processes and increase efficiency. AI could establish a digital assistant, capable of processing information about everyday satellite procedures, resolving and predicting issues before they become errors.

The “Large Xenon Tank Assembly” (L-XTA) is the largest high-pressure xenon tank in the world – designed and built in Europa.
Its cost-competitive, qualified lightweight COPV design offers an optimal performance for high-pressure storage of Xe gas for hybrid & full-electric satellite propulsion systems. 
Two dedicated “tank families” have been qualified, each with a common diameter, covering a total volume range of 300-900 l.
Tank qualification was successfully performed with two dedicated models, one for each family size. First targeted missions are ELECTRA and Mars Sample Return.
 

OSS is currently developing proprietary metal mesh fabrics for the foldable reflector surface of their Wrapped Rib and Offset Reflector antenna architectures. The knitted metal mesh structures are being developed using state-of-the-art knitting processes and will undergo full mechanical and RF characterization. The patterns and mesh densities under development enable operational frequencies up to Ka band.

RHYTHM is a time and frequency disseminator based on the use of different technologies to ensure robustness and continuity of the synchronization signal to the final user’s network.
Under the ARTES C&G project, carried out by ANTARES in collaboration with RAI, the RHYTHM prototype is brought from a breadboard to an industrialized product, ready for the market.

The Spainsat-NG phase -1 project objective is to develop an innovative and powerful X-band active antenna fully integrated and using the latest available technologies on the market. The aim of this phase is to de-risk the most critical areas to pave the way for a successful project.

The 3D thermal IF is a 3D heat pipe using ALM techniques, hydraulically connected to a standard AGHP132, in order to significantly reduce thermal gradients from the equipment unit to the radiator panel. It is characterized as in “3D” since it is interfacing equipment’s face, and not its baseplate.This entails the need to operate in gravity conditions.

Design and development of surface mountable filters at L- and C-bands to improve integrated design of frequency converters.

Over the past two decades, Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands (Airbus DS NL) has developed, and continuously updated, a non-explosive low shock hold down and release system for its Advanced Rigid Array and Flatpack solar array families. Many hundreds of these systems have released in orbit - with 100 percent success rate - on a variety of solar arrays and other deployable systems.

The objective of the NELS program is to qualify the successor of the existing hold down and release system, which is more robust and has an extended preload capacity.

In this ARTES C&G phase, Airbus DS NL has qualified the NELS design. At the end of the qualification test campaign the NELS product is considered flight qualified and ready for first application programme implementation.

A transmit Ka band FERM for the future active antenna used for Mission Earth Orbit has been developed in this study. This is competitive solution achieving, optimum performances, mass, volume, power consumption and cost.

Traditional TT&C links still utilize frequency division as access method together with bandwidth inefficient modulations. The use of direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) modulation opens possibilities for more secure links with improved interference immunity. For
satellites utilizing electric orbit raising, the use of DSSS is particularly useful since it eliminates the need for detailed frequency scheduling when passing below the GEO belt over a prolonged time frame.

PROSEQO project’s main aim is the realization of a software for the evaluation of a generic satellite-ground QKD link in terms of secret key rate. The project comprehends the design of an analytical model which describes the relation among the parameters of a QKD setup and serves as a foundation for the software itself.

The project aims to study the feasibility of an eCall system supported by Galileo/SAR and Kinéis as backup communication systems for situations where terrestrial networks might not be available.

To address the challenges with thermal control in space, Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands (Airbus DS NL) has developed the HiPeR product range:
     - HiPeR Flexlinks: these are thermal straps with unprecedented capability to conduct heat on-board spacecraft. Highly flexible and with a conductance-to-mass ratio (W/K per kg) three to five times higher than traditional solutions, the thermal straps offer a versatile solution for thermal control requirements, while being mechanically decoupled (visit our webpage here).  
     - HiPeR Radiators: provide high design flexibility through their low mass and low stiffness performance. They can be used to complement or replace traditional radiators.  In doing so, they enable optimized designs along mechanical and thermal properties without infringing one or the other.
 

Enhancing the cooling loop performance by minimising thermal resistances within this heat exchanger.

The objective of the project is to develop and qualify an assembly of multiple C to Q band converters intended for Very High Throughput Satellite communication payloads employing digital transparent processors for maximum traffic allocation flexibility. The equipment translates a C band output (3 GHz bandwidth) of the processor DACs to a Q band downlink frequency towards the gateways, with a compact and modular unit that must meet very challenging mass and cost targets.

This study determined the optimum use of a FaintStar-based star tracker for the future telecommunications market assessing the feasibility of designing a competitive star tracker suitable for telecommunication satellites. The study demonstrated that a FaintStar-based star tracker can indeed meet the demanding requirements in terms of performance and robustness.

To design and develop a very high power isolator and a compact output multiplexer for use in a QV band 40GHz downlink path

Laser communications has been rapidly maturing since the early 2000’s and can now provide massive backhaul link for airborne connectivity. Airborne Laser communications through UltraAir terminal connected to SpaceDataHighway services will provide a new means for high data rate, protected connectivity for the commercial and governmental airborne users opening up new possibilities and concepts of operation for the aviation future.

A spacecraft with a chemical and/or electric propulsion system, but without a propellant tank. A more compact design, a reduced mass and easier to demise at the end of life. That is the vision of the team working on the Multifunctional Structure Elements project.

The objective of this project is to develop and manufacture a new generation of miniaturised cameras (M-CAM) based on previous concepts. The "MCAMv3" shall be based as much as possible on “plug and play” features, in order to obtain the smallest generic and qualified space camera owning standard interfaces.