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Ground stations, ready for every pass.

A satellite ground station has minutes for each pass and loses signal in heavy rain. Weather sensors at the antennas, condition monitoring on antenna drives, timing references and site security report to one record that schedules passes around the weather and catches faults between them.

Industry

Telecom

Measurements

5

Sources cited

4

1. Telecom · Satellite ground stations

   Minutes per pass, lost to the rain

   A satellite crosses the sky in minutes, and a heavy shower over the station can wash out the link at higher frequencies. Antennas stop in high wind, and a worn drive can fail mid-pass. Measuring rain, wind and drive health at every antenna lets operators plan each pass and catch faults between them.

2. What is measured

   Rain, wind, drives and time

   Rain gauges beside each large antenna measure rain rate, anemometers at antenna height measure wind, and vibration sensors on motors and gearboxes follow drive health during motion. GNSS-disciplined references keep station time, and cameras watch pads and gates. Every reading names its antenna.

   Instruments

   Rain gauges · Anemometers · Drive vibration · GNSS timing · Cameras

3. The base node

   Fade predicted for every pass

   The station node predicts rain fade for each coming pass from the rain rate and the link frequency, flags antennas to stow in high wind, detects drive faults from vibration during motion and time-stamps every pass log against the GNSS reference.

4. Radio and links

   Fibre home, and the sky as a spare

   Ground stations are connected by fibre to their networks, and monitoring rides that fibre. When terrestrial links fail, the station’s own antennas or a small terminal carry the alarms, and an out-of-band cellular path is used where coverage exists. Each path is supervised.

   Links

   Fibre · Satellite · Public cellular

5. How it works

   From a shower to a moved pass

   A heavy shower approaches the station before a critical pass. Rain gauges read the rate rising, the node predicts the fade at the link frequency and alerts the scheduler, who moves the pass to a station in clear weather. The pass log records the weather and the decision.

6. From order to operation · Order

   Scope the station and its passes

   The scope reads the antennas, frequencies, pass schedule, weather history, timing and security arrangements. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns the point plan per antenna, the rain fade prediction method, the integration with scheduling and a price per station and per year.

   Plan a deployment

7. From order to operation · Survey

   Survey around the antennas

   Crews survey each antenna with the station engineer: gauge and anemometer sites clear of the dish, drive access for vibration sensors, timing references and camera views over pads and gates. They record fibre, power and lightning protection. Every candidate site is photographed for the design.

8. From order to operation · Permits

   Licences and site rules

   Nothing new may radiate or interfere with the station’s licensed operation. Work on antennas follows the station’s safety and outage rules, and every approval is kept with the station record. Sensors are checked so that nothing new radiates in the station’s bands. Work on antennas follows the station’s outage plan, so no pass is lost to installation.

9. From order to operation · Build

   Build for the antenna pad

   Rain gauges, anemometers, vibration sensors, cameras, the timing reference and nodes are built, tested together and enrolled with their identities. Each antenna’s frequencies and stow limits are configured, and every part is labelled by antenna. Configurations are tested on the bench with the scheduler interface before shipping.

   Open the Station Builder

10. From order to operation · Install

    Install between passes

    Crews install between passes: gauges and anemometers beside each antenna, vibration sensors on drives, cameras over pads and gates and the timing reference in the equipment room. Cables are protected against lightning, and every point is photographed. Each antenna returns to service before its next pass.

11. From order to operation · Commission

    Check against a real pass

    Each node proves its identity. Gauges are checked with a measured volume, anemometers against a reference, drive vibration baselines are taken on healthy antennas, and rain fade predictions are compared with received signal on real passes. Results are kept with the antenna record.

12. From order to operation · Operate

    Schedule around the weather

    Schedulers see predicted rain fade for each pass and move critical passes to stations in clear weather. Antennas stow when wind limits are reached, drive faults are planned for repair between passes, and every pass log carries its weather and timing.

13. From order to operation · Maintain

    Maintain in pass gaps

    Sensors are checked during antenna maintenance windows, gauges cleaned, drive baselines updated after repairs, and the timing reference checked against GNSS. Every change is recorded with the antenna, so pass and availability records stay complete. Spares are kept on site for quick swaps between passes.

    Book field services

14. Data products

    For schedulers, operators and customers

    Pass schedulers receive rain fade predictions; station operators receive wind stow alerts; maintenance engineers receive antenna drive health; operators and customers receive pass logs with weather and timing. Each product carries its antenna, frequency and time. Reports are dated and versioned.

    See the data products

15. Evidence

    Availability on record

    Every reading, prediction, pass and fault is signed and kept. Rain fade follows the ITU propagation recommendations, rain characteristics follow the ITU precipitation model, weather follows WMO practice, and operation follows the radio regulations and the station’s licence. Records are open to customers.

    Drawn against

    ITU-R P.618 · ITU-R P.837 · WMO-No. 8 · ITU Radio Regulations

16. What you get

    Ground segment hosting

    Antenna sites, shelters, power and fibre for satellite operators, with downlink and processing at the edge. Delivered as managed service and infrastructure hosting, for satellite operators, EO companies, research missions. Scale: Multi-site, multi-mission. Service levels are written as numbers you can measure on your own dashboard.

    Talk to sales

17. Next step

    Plan satellite ground stations with us

    Tell us the site, the measurements and the rules it answers to. We reply with a survey proposal, a design and a scope for satellite ground stations. An engineer replies with a survey proposal and a scope, and the plan grows from one site to the network you need, at your pace.

    Plan a deploymentOpen the Station BuilderOpen the Studio

01The place and its hazards

Where it runs, and what can go wrong.

Operating contextGround stations track satellites through passes, uplinking commands and downlinking data, often unattended and far from towns. Rain attenuates higher-frequency links, wind limits antenna operation, lightning threatens equipment, and timing must be accurate. Propagation prediction follows ITU recommendations, and stations operate under radio regulations and their licences.

Hazards

• Rain fade losing passes at higher frequencies
• High wind stopping antennas
• Lightning damage
• Antenna drive and bearing faults
• Unattended sites open to intrusion

02What must be measured

What, where, how often, and under which rules.

Each measurement names where it is taken, how often, and the public standard or regulation behind it. Numbers in the sources column open the cited source below.

03The observation stack

From one base unit to a network.

The same blocks at every scale: instruments and a base node, a site with its radio, a fleet run as one, and a network federated on the open protocol.

1. 01

   Base unit

   An antenna point: rain, wind and drive sensors with a camera, read by an edge node with a timing reference.

   Build a station →
2. 02

   Site

   A ground station: every antenna, the timing reference and site security on the station’s fibre.

   Plan a site →
3. 03

   Fleet

   Every station of an operator or a ground network run as one fleet, with one record.

   Managed offers →
4. 04

   Network

   Ground station operators and their customers exchange pass, weather and availability records through open standards.

   The open protocol →

• 01Compact weather station
• 02GNSS reference station (RTK)
• 03Vibration and condition monitor
• 04PTZ camera
• 05Edge node (Wedge)
• 06Fibre terminal
• 07Lattice tower

Radio and links

Fibre

Ground stations are connected by fibre to their networks; monitoring rides it.

Radio and links

Satellite

The station’s own antennas or a small terminal carry alarms when terrestrial links fail.

Radio and links

Public cellular

An out-of-band path for site alarms where coverage exists.

Edge computeThe station node predicts rain fade for each coming pass from rain rate and the link’s frequency, flags antennas to stow in high wind, detects drive faults from vibration during motion and keeps every pass log time-stamped against the GNSS reference.

PowerMonitoring runs on the station’s protected supply with batteries.

04How it works

From the instrument to the product.

One observation’s path, tier by tier, with the interface on every link and a bill of materials below; then how the one node grows to a site, a fleet and federated networks.

05From order to operation

Every step, from the first call to a running site.

The same crew and the same record carry the work from scope to maintenance.

1. 01 Order

   Scope the station and its passes

   The scope reads the antennas, frequencies, pass schedule, weather history, timing and security arrangements. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns the point plan per antenna, the rain fade prediction method, the integration with scheduling and a price per station and per year. 2

2. 02 Survey

   Survey around the antennas

   Crews survey each antenna with the station engineer: gauge and anemometer sites clear of the dish, drive access for vibration sensors, timing references and camera views over pads and gates. They record fibre, power and lightning protection. Every candidate site is photographed for the design.

3. 03 Permits

   Licences and site rules

   Nothing new may radiate or interfere with the station’s licensed operation. Work on antennas follows the station’s safety and outage rules, and every approval is kept with the station record. Sensors are checked so that nothing new radiates in the station’s bands. Work on antennas follows the station’s outage plan, so no pass is lost to installation. 4

4. 04 Build

   Build for the antenna pad

   Rain gauges, anemometers, vibration sensors, cameras, the timing reference and nodes are built, tested together and enrolled with their identities. Each antenna’s frequencies and stow limits are configured, and every part is labelled by antenna. Configurations are tested on the bench with the scheduler interface before shipping.

5. 05 Install

   Install between passes

   Crews install between passes: gauges and anemometers beside each antenna, vibration sensors on drives, cameras over pads and gates and the timing reference in the equipment room. Cables are protected against lightning, and every point is photographed. Each antenna returns to service before its next pass.

6. 06 Commission

   Check against a real pass

   Each node proves its identity. Gauges are checked with a measured volume, anemometers against a reference, drive vibration baselines are taken on healthy antennas, and rain fade predictions are compared with received signal on real passes. Results are kept with the antenna record.

7. 07 Operate

   Schedule around the weather

   Schedulers see predicted rain fade for each pass and move critical passes to stations in clear weather. Antennas stow when wind limits are reached, drive faults are planned for repair between passes, and every pass log carries its weather and timing. 21

8. 08 Maintain

   Maintain in pass gaps

   Sensors are checked during antenna maintenance windows, gauges cleaned, drive baselines updated after repairs, and the timing reference checked against GNSS. Every change is recorded with the antenna, so pass and availability records stay complete. Spares are kept on site for quick swaps between passes.

06Data products and integration

What it delivers, to whom, and into which systems.

Data products

• Rain fade predictions per passPass schedulers
• Wind stow alertsStation operators
• Antenna drive healthMaintenance engineers
• Pass logs with weather and timingOperators and customers

Integration

• Pass schedulingPredicted fade per pass feeds the scheduling system.
• Station controlStow alerts reach the antenna control system through its own interfaces.
• Customer reportingAvailability and pass logs are exported for customers.

Exchanged through ITU-R P.618, ITU-R P.837, OGC SensorThings API.

07Questions buyers ask

Before you scope it.

How is rain fade predicted?

From measured rain rate and the link frequency, using the ITU propagation methods.

Will sensors interfere with the antennas?

Nothing radiates in the station’s bands, and sites are chosen clear of the dish.

Can passes move to another station?

Yes, where the network has one in clear weather; the scheduler decides.

What timing is used?

GNSS-disciplined references at each station.

08Resources

The sources behind this page.

Public standards, regulations and guidance, cited where they apply. Each applies only where its jurisdiction or scope does.

1. 1Recommendation ITU-R P.837: Characteristics of precipitation for propagation modellingInternational Telecommunication Union
2. 2Recommendation ITU-R P.618: Propagation data and prediction methods for Earth-space telecommunication systemsInternational Telecommunication Union
3. 3Guide to Instruments and Methods of Observation (WMO-No. 8)World Meteorological Organization
4. 4ITU Radio RegulationsInternational Telecommunication Union

09Related

Use cases and solutions.

10Telecom: specialized fields

Other fields of this industry.

Bring us the site.

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