Skip to content

Novel Ka-Band ground station services on offer by KSAT for LEO satellites

(Tromsø, 6th of December 2014) Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) today announces its novel Ka-band Ground Station Support service through an ideally located antenna network. The emerging use of Ka-band as an operational downlink will substantially increase data rates from satellites in Low Earth Orbits (LEO). KSAT is now investing into the augmentation of its network capabilities with Ka-band support.

The first antenna system will be located at Svalbard at 78 deg Northern latitude allowing data access to polar orbiting satellites on each and every orbit. In the near future, KSAT will equip additional sites with Ka-band capabilities, among others the Antarctic Troll Station at 72 deg Southern latitude.

“We see a demand for ever growing data rates from Earth Observation missions. With the implementation of a Ka-band service, KSAT is well prepared for satisfying our customers’ future needs.” says Rolf Skatteboe, CEO of KSAT.

The installation was preceded by campaigns to characterize the local atmospheric influences on radio frequencies in the Ka-band. Stig Kræmer, Infrastructure Manager and responsible for the antenna deployments observes that “both Svalbard and Troll have a very dry climate and could be described as polar deserts. Therefore, atmospheric humidity attenuation which can severely inhibit the use of Ka-band in other locations, is less of a concern for us.” These local advantages allow for a highly cost-efficient service using smaller diameter antennas achieving high data rates previously only possible with large diameter antennas.

KSAT has already agreed to provide Ka-band services to the NASA Joint Polar Satellite System JPSS series of satellites from its location in Svalbard and in Troll, Antarctica. The Svalbard site has been evaluated through an extensive radiometer test campaign conducted in collaboration with NASA and the Norwegian Space Centre.

Please contact KSAT at sales@ksat.no for further information or visit our website at www.ksat.no
Source