Space systems: a radar satellite, its ground station and the constellation it flies with. The loop, step by step: 1. A constellation, a station and the ground below. 2. A satellite rises toward the station. 3. Sensors check that the response worked. 4. The station locks the beam and starts the pass. 5. Each reading is stamped with time and place. 6. Telemetry and payload data come down. 7. Relays carry the packets without reading them. 8. The edge verifies every signature first. 9. Mission control checks health and plans the next pass. 10. Only a confirmed result leaves the edge. 11. The next task is queued for upload. 12. The alert arrives with its evidence attached. 13. The satellite sets and the station parks. 14. Sensors check that the response worked. 15. Record, proof and action are archived together. 16. Everything settles back to idle.
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A constellation, a station and the ground below
Nexus Observatory
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Space and satellite systemsSpacecraft buses and payload classes, constellations sized to revisit and coverage, non-terrestrial networks and 3GPP direct-to-device, tasking and downlink, and space safety from tracking to conjunction awareness. Every pass, product and link carries its provenance into the grid.
Plan with usReference architectureThe open protocolAt a glance
From orbit to the ground, on one protocol
Space and satellite systems covers spacecraft buses and payload classes, constellations sized to revisit and coverage, non-terrestrial networks and direct-to-device, tasking and downlink, and space safety. Every pass, product and link carries its provenance into the same grid as the ground stations.
The problem
Orbit and ground, on different records
Satellite data and ground observations usually live in separate systems with separate clocks and licences. Combining them takes manual work, and the provenance is lost along the way. Analysts end up comparing images and readings without knowing whether their clocks, places or terms agree.
Key facts
- Standards
- CCSDS · STAC
Components
- LEO broadband user terminal (generic flat-panel class) on a ballasted pivot mount, with cable and router
- Automatic weather station (AWS) to WMO siting practice
- Geodetic GNSS station on a deep-drilled braced monument (generic class, no brand)
- "AI tower in a box"
- PTP grandmaster clock with GNSS antenna
- Data hall row pair with cold-aisle containment
- Operations console with a video wall
Interfaces
- Radio
- Satellite (LEO/GEO) · Ethernet · PoE
Where it works
- Space and satellite systems: where it should stand
- Space and satellite systems: what it can reach
- Space and satellite systems: will the link close
- Space and satellite systems: will it last the winter
In the story below
- The system, part by part
- Assembly
- Installation
- Deployment
- Connections
- Operation
- Failure and recovery
- Scale and federation
- What you get
Scenes · 16
Next steps
Plan a deploymentTalk to salesSee Constellations and orbitsSee Licensing and spectrumThe problem
Orbit and ground, on different records
Satellite data and ground observations usually live in separate systems with separate clocks and licences. Combining them takes manual work, and the provenance is lost along the way. Analysts end up comparing images and readings without knowing whether their clocks, places or terms agree.
What it does
From orbit to the ground, on one protocol
Space and satellite systems covers spacecraft buses and payload classes, constellations sized to revisit and coverage, non-terrestrial networks and direct-to-device, tasking and downlink, and space safety. Every pass, product and link carries its provenance into the same grid as the ground stations.
Spacecraft and payloads
Buses and payload classes
Optical, radar and RF payloads ride on buses chosen for the mission. The small spacecraft shown is a base unit; constellations repeat it to buy revisit and coverage. Payloads are chosen against the measurement the mission needs, and integrated with the evidence they will produce.
See Spacecraft and payloadsDesign it in the Field Deployment Studio
Space and satellite systems: where it should stand
A deployment of space and satellite systems starts from the ground: candidate spots are staked and the viewshed from each mast top shows what is in sight over the terrain. The spot that sees the most of what matters, with access and power within reach, becomes the first site of the space and satellite systems design.
Design it in the Field Deployment Studio
Space and satellite systems: what it can reach
From that spot, the coverage of the space and satellite systems radio is computed over the real ground, with its isolines and the shadow behind every ridge. Where the space and satellite systems coverage leaves a gap, the design adds a site before anything is bought.
Design it in the Field Deployment Studio
Space and satellite systems: will the link close
The hop from a space and satellite systems site to the hub is drawn on its terrain profile, with the first Fresnel zone to scale and the worst clearance marked. The link budget of the space and satellite systems design closes from transmitter to margin with its assumptions stated, or the design moves the mast.
Design it in the Field Deployment Studio
Space and satellite systems: will it last the winter
The solar array and battery of each space and satellite systems site are sized from the yield of the darkest month against the load. The state of charge of the space and satellite systems design never crosses its floor, and the whole plan goes to the team as a manifest of sites, links, power and parts.
Open the Field Deployment StudioTime
Passes and records on one clock
Ground stations and spacecraft share a traceable time base, so every pass, image and link record lines up with the ground observations they are compared against. Clock offsets and orbit determination quality are carried with each record, so a comparison knows its limits.
How it works
Request, schedule, receive, process
A tasking request is scheduled against passes and ground stations; the spacecraft acquires, downlinks and the ground segment processes the data into products, one chain with one record. Every request can be traced from the first order to the delivered product, with its licence and its acquisition record.
- Standards
- CCSDS · STAC
NTN and direct-to-device
From orbit to the handset
3GPP non-terrestrial networks extend coverage from orbit to terminals and, increasingly, to ordinary devices, so remote sites stay connected when terrestrial links fail. Terminals fail over between orbit and ground automatically, and every switch is recorded with the reason. Each switch is recorded, so service levels can be checked.
See NTN and direct-to-deviceSpace safety
Tracking, telemetry and command
Spacecraft are tracked, commanded over authenticated links and screened for conjunctions. Every command and manoeuvre is recorded with who authorised it. Conjunction warnings are acted on according to a written procedure, and the decision is kept with the mission record.
See Space safetyLicensing and spectrum
Filings and earth-station rules
Spacecraft filings, frequency coordination and earth-station licences are prepared country by country and kept with the mission record. Filings are tracked to their deadlines, and every licence condition is checked against how the mission actually operates. Licence conditions are kept with the mission record and checked against operations.
See Licensing and spectrumOperations
Passes, health and deliveries, watched
Operations watch pass schedules, spacecraft health and product delivery in the same console as the ground fleet. Missed passes and late products raise alerts with their cause, so recovery starts at once and the record shows what was done. Every alert carries its cause.
Constellations
Sized to revisit and coverage
Orbits and the number of spacecraft follow from how often and where the mission must look. Adding spacecraft adds revisit; adding ground stations adds contact time. The constellation plan states the revisit and coverage it buys, so a mission is designed against a need, not a catalogue.
See Constellations and orbitsWhat you get
Missions, tasking and backhaul
Orbit and pass methods, the payload class catalogue and ground-station interfaces on the protocol are open. Mission and payload integration, tasking and downlink services and non-terrestrial backhaul for remote sites are contracted. Pricing follows the mission and the services chosen, from a single tasking order to an operated constellation.
Talk to salesNext step
Tell us the mission
Tell us what you need to see or connect, where and how often. We propose the orbit, the payload or the service, and the ground segment. The proposal states the revisit, the coverage, the latency to the ground and the evidence each product will carry.
Plan a deploymentTalk to sales
01 · What this platform covers
Space and satellite systems, area by area.
Choose an area for its systems, standards, the industries it serves and how we deliver it.
01Constellations and orbits
LEO, MEO and GEO, sized to revisit and coverage.02Spacecraft and payloads
Buses and optical, radar and RF payload classes.03NTN and direct-to-device
3GPP non-terrestrial networks, from orbit to handset.04Tasking and downlink
Request, schedule, receive and process: one chain.05Space safety
Tracking, telemetry and command, conjunction awareness.06Licensing and spectrum
Filings, coordination and earth-station rules, by country.02 · Built on the open protocol
One protocol under every platform.
Marked: the functions this platform leans on hardest. The protocol itself is open, so what you build here runs anywhere the protocol runs.
01 JOIN
02 ADMIT
03 DESCRIBE
04 TIME
05 OBSERVE
06 QUALIFY
07 FEDERATE
08 ORCHESTRATE
03 · Open and enterprise
Open by default. Enterprise by contract.
The open layer lives on the main site, free to use and build on. Enterprise services are delivered under contract by Nexus Observatory Inc.
Open, on the main site
- Orbit and pass methods
- Payload class catalogue
- Ground-station interfaces on the protocol
Enterprise, on this site
- Mission and payload integration
- Tasking and downlink services
- Non-terrestrial backhaul for remote sites
04 · Industries served
The industries that build on space and satellite systems.
Each industry has its own site: its use cases, its community and the enterprise path, with this platform among the systems behind it.
Industry Public safetyWarning time, gained at the sensor.Industry HumanitarianObservation where the need is greatest and the grid is thinnest.Industry ClimateThe atmosphere, observed to the standard science needs.Industry NatureHabitat, measured without disturbing it.Industry OceansFrom the coastline to the open ocean.Industry AgricultureFarm decisions on measured ground.Industry TelecomTowers that compute, sense and connect.Industry TransportCorridors that report their own conditions.Industry ResearchInstruments for science, run like infrastructure.Industry Insurance and financeIndependent measurements for risk transfer.05 · Every platform
Every platform, one architecture.
One platform for each technical area of our work, on the same protocol, the same data and the same design.
Protocol & GridSoftwareHardware & powerSensors & instrumentsConnectivityEdge compute & AIEarth observation & GeoAIField servicesData & licensingSpace and satellite systemsPositioning, navigation and timingSecurity and trustDigital twins and simulationDesign and integrationTest and qualificationOperations centreTraining and enablementFrontier labsBring us the site.
We bring the survey, the design and the crew. Nexus Observatory Inc. The form names who receives your details.
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