Worldwide Satellite Magazine SatMagazineSatMagazine July/August 2020

Cover image of the space debris field is courtesy of the Space Data Association. Can you feel what fast internet is?

500Mbps 750Mbps

100Mbps 1Gbps

50Mbps 1.46Gbps

SBM-90X Modem No speed limit !

[email protected] Radeus Labs 8200 Legacy ACU The Only Tool You'll Need. Installation is that simple.

The Radeus Labs 8200 Legacy ACU is the ideal drop-in replacement for ageing 7200 systems.

§ No hidden costs § Easy Installation § Quality without compromise

Full systems are available for all makes of antennas. Visit us at Radeuslabs.com to find your state of the art antenna control solution today!

Contact us today for a site visit! (858) 602-1255 | [email protected] | Radeuslabs.com Contact Us SALES radeuslabs, inc. (858) 391-1210 • 12720 Danielson Court • Poway, CA 92064 USA Publishing Operations Senior Columnists This Issue’s Authors

Silvano Payne, Publisher + Executive Writer Chris Forrester, Broadgate Publications Sulaiman Al Ali Dr. Mark Lake Simon Payne, Chief Technical Officer Karl Fuchs, iDirect Government Services Natasha Allden Thomas Lovsin Hartley G. Lesser, Editorial Director Bob Gough, Goonhilly Earth Station Rob Andzik Dave Rehbehn Pattie Lesser, Executive Editor Rebecca M. Cowen-Hirsch, Inmarsat David Burr Dr. Tyler Reid Donald McGee, Production Manager Ken Peterman, Viasat Alex Donnison Pascal Wauthier Andy Bernard, Sales Director Giles Peeters, Track24 Defence Chris Forrester Greg Wolff Teresa Sanderson, Operations Director Koen Willems, ST Engineering Newtec Jon Harrison Sean Payne, Business Development Director Dan Makinster, Technical Advisor

Features Advertiser Index The New Realities Of Increased Network Traffic ...... 6 Advantech Wireless Technologies, Inc. (A Baylin Company) ...... 35 by David Burr, Comtech EF Data Three Trends To Driving The Evolution Of Next-Gen Satellite Ground Systems 12 Arabsat Satellite ...... 7 by Dave Rehbehn, Hughes Network Systems Where’s My Stuff??, by SSPI ...... 14 AvL Technologies ...... 5 Teleports: A Need For Speed ...... 16 by Thomas Lovsin, STN C-COM Satellite Systems ...... 43 Forrester Reports: Bonanza Time For U.S. Satellite Builders ...... 18 by Chris Forrester, Senior Contributor Comtech EF Data ...... 11 10 Years Of Space Situational Awareness ...... 22 by Pascal Wauthier, Space Data Association CPI Satcom Products ...... 15 Executive Spotlight: Mike Carey, ATLAS Space Operations ...... 26 Keeping Communities & Businesses Connected Throughout COVID-19 30 Isotropic Networks ...... 47 by Sulaiman Al Ali, Thuraya Executive Spotlight: David Hurst, Orbital Transports ...... 32 Radeus Labs, Inc...... 3 A Frontier Architecture For New Space ...... 36 by Rob Andzik, AMERGINT Technologies RF-Design ...... 19 The Road To Robust Navigation ...... 40 by Dr. Tyler Reid, Xona Space Systems RUAG Space ...... 9 The Role Of Space Technology In A Post COVID-19 Era ...... 44 by Natasha Allden, MULTIPLY Global Ltd. Satnews Digital Editions ...... 53 A Case In Point: Datadragon™ Galvanizes Squire Tech’s Mission Critical Solutions 48 Old Space. New Tricks ...... 54 Singapore Exhibition Services — ConnecTechAsia ...... 49 by Dr. Mark Lake, Roccor LEO & The Impact On The Ground Segment ...... 56 Spacebridge (formerly Advantech Satellite Networks) ...... 2 by Alex Donnison, ETL Systems ID’ing Suspect Iranian Tankers Smuggling Crude ...... 58 Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) ...... 1 by HawkEye 360 Protecting The Network Infrastructure That Depends On Time Dissemination From GNSS Satellites ...... 62 by Greg Wolff How Does SATCOM Facilities The Maritime Supply Chain ...... 66 by Jon Harrison, Intellian Technologies

SatMagazine is published 11 times a year by Satnews Publishers, 800 Siesta Way, Sonoma, CA, 95476 — USA. Phone: (707) 939-9306 / Fax: (707) 939-9235 © 2020 Satnews Publishers We reserve the right to edit all submitted materials to meet publication content guidelines, as well as for grammar and spelling errors, or to move articles to an alternative issue to accommodate publication space requirements, or remove content due to space restrictions or unacceptable content. Submission of articles does not constitute acceptance of said material by Satnews Publishers. Edited materials may, or may not, be returned to author and/or company for review prior to publication. The views expressed in Satnews Publishers’ various publications do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Satnews Publishers. All rights reserved. All included imagery is courtesy of, and copyright to, the respective companies and/or named individuals.

SatMagazine Page 4 July/August 2020 CONNECTING YOU TO THE FUTURE SMALL PACKAGE. 1.35M FIT BIG GAIN. FLEXIBLE INTEGRATED TERMINAL

ARSTRAT KA-BAND CERTIFICATION

COMPUTER ASSISTED SATCAP MANUAL POINTING OR AUTO-AQUISITION

BUILT-IN TUNER & BEACON RECEIVER

TRI-BAND X, KU AND WIDEBAND KA FEEDS WITH QUICK CHANGE RF KITS

MODULAR & FLEXIBLE MODEM, BUC & LNB OPTIONS

SCALABLE: 75CM, 98CM & 1.35M

SET-UP BY ONE PERSON IN MINUTES

LIGHTWEIGHT IATA-COMPLIANT avltech.com CHECKABLE CASES Visit AvL @ Virtual IBC, Sept. 11-14 The New Realities Of Increased Network Traffic By David Burr, Vice President, Business Development, Comtech EF Data

Telecom providers are dealing with unprecedented internet traffic The industry consensus is that even once lockdowns are lifted that volume during the current COVID-19 crisis as more people are traffic volumes will remain higher than pre-crisis levels. According to working from home during lockdowns. The Organization for sources, such as the Technology Services Industry Association whose Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released a members say that some form of working from home is here to stay. report on this subject in May of 2020 entitled “Keeping the While employees will return to offices, many will continue to work from Internet up and running in times of crisis,” which showed that a home at least part of the time. Facebook has said that half of its majority of countries reported more than 25 percent increase in employees will be allowed to work from home permanently. In-person traffic volume and some countries even experienced more than a events and conferences have been replaced by webinars, a trend that 50 percent increase in internet traffic. In the United Kingdom, the is expected to continue even after the current crisis subsides. daytime broadband usage increased by 35 to 60 percent when As companies move more of their work online, they have accelerated compared to pre-crisis levels. digital transformation projects which further increase the number of applications running on networks. So even after the current crisis has Communications application usage has skyrocketed, with WhatsApp passed, we expect network traffic to be significantly higher than it was reporting that voice call volume has doubled and videoconferencing before the crisis. This is on top of the “normal” Internet traffic growth applications such as ZOOM and Cisco’s WebEx reporting that their of around 25 percent per year. usage has increased a mind-blowing 24x to 30x.

SatMagazine Page 6 July/August 2020

Off-the-shelf routers or switches are designed for constant speed terrestrial links and there is no established standard to provide feedback from variable speed links. Without this information, the links need to include headroom to accommodate lower link speeds during rain fades, which leaves capacity unused most of the time. Alternatively, if the link operates without headroom, there will be too much traffic when the link is impaired, leading to congestion at the satellite modem and resulting in poor user Quality of Experience (QoE) and degraded services. Worse, routing and signaling packets such as BGP could be discarded resulting in routers declaring the route unavailable, flapping or network instability. Interference can be different across multiple carriers leading to even more challenges Many telcos have been able to accommodate the additional demand when the links data rates don’t vary in concert with each other. within their deployed terrestrial infrastructure. In Korea, network loading Increasing the satellite link bandwidth introduces another issue, the is still only 45 to 60 percent of network capacity even with the additional ability to fill such a large pipe. Demand for higher bandwidth is not just traffic demand. Many telcos have a policy of increasing network about increased number of users, but also the increased amount of capacity when loading reaches 50 percent, so they are prepared to content per user. Access to internet content largely relies on one accommodate this kind of surge within their existing infrastructure. protocol: TCP. TCP has two drawbacks. It is sensitive to delay, and to Communities operating with satellite connections don’t have this packet errors or packet drops. luxury. With the high cost of satellite capacity, it is not practical to This is not a concern when the overall latency or delay between the provide the same level of headroom on satellite links. Satellite link data client (end user) and the server (content provider, cloud application) is rates are optimized for specific needs rather than adopting small, but can become a major issue that affects user experience — or standardized link rates which are common in fiber networks. New QoE — when delay reaches 100 ms or more. Example, with a typical solutions are required to address changes in traffic demands such as client to server delay of 350 to 250 ms GEO latency plus 50 ms network the COVID-19 crisis. delay —– access + internet, the maximum user session achievable Increasing the satellite modem data rate only goes so far before throughput will be 7 Mbps, but with packet errors of only 0.5 percent, transponder size becomes the limiting factor. Load balancing across the throughput will drop to 280 kbps. In today’s environment, simply multiple modems to support bonded data paths could be the next logical accessing content is not good enough. To be deemed as “usable,” step provided you deploy a properly designed solution. The load balancer internet access must be fast and smooth. needs to know the link rates of the parallel paths to allocate traffic Fortunately, there is a solution to these problems: adding a Protocol properly. Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM) has become widely Enhancement Proxy (PEP) function. The purpose of the PEP is two-fold: adopted to deal with rain fades, but it results in variable data rates. • Mitigate latency by accelerating TCP sessions throughput and response time • Managing retransmissions due to packet loss to avoid TCP retransmission and loss of throughput

SatMagazine Page 8 July/August 2020 Stay on track: High-precision GNSS positioning of your satellite

Do you need the highest precision for determining the position of your satellite? Around the world our customers trust in the accurate position, velocity and time delivered by our best-in-class GNSS receiver products. Select products from our wide navigation receiver portfolio that fi t all your opera- tional needs. RUAG Space is a leading supplier of products for satellite and launcher original equip- ment manufacturers and systems integrators, both for institutional and commercial businesses. We help you stay on track!

@RUAGSpace RUAG Space RUAG Space www.ruag.com/space | [email protected]

For these reasons, PEP is an essential function of any high- speed Internet access trunking solution over a latent medium such as satellite. The ideal solution would:

• Support Gbps of traffic by bonding multiple carriers operating on different transponders • Ensure those bonded links keep traffic flow packet ordering end to end • Accommodate changing link conditions from rain fade or interference using ACM conditions, especially on Ku- and Ka-band links where the link • Mitigate satellite latency adversely affecting the behavior of bandwidth can vary considerably. This link information is used by the Internet access (TCP) protocol HX Series load balancer to ensure that the links are loaded equally and • Maximize the utilization by ensuring that individual carriers are by the FX Series WAN Optimizer to ensure that the QoS traffic shaping equally and fully loaded policies are applied accurately. The link loading can vary significantly due to differences in long- and • Ensure a high level of end user Quality of Service (QoS)quality of short-term traffic flows and variations in the compression rates of service and QoE different traffic. The HX compensates for these factors by monitoring Operators need solutions that can deal with growing traffic demands the individual carrier loading and redirecting traffic so that the carriers and overcome the physical limitations of transponder size and rain are equally loaded. fade in an efficient, cost-effective manner. The FX Series’ shaping and queuing function prioritizes traffic using the QoS traffic type information carried in the packet header to ensure The Link Bonding Solution that the high priority traffic is protected even when the link is Networks have become more complicated. Operating at very high data congested. When the FX Series appliance is connected to multiple rates requires that networking functions need to be distributed across modems through a HX load balancer, then the sum of the modem multiple devices and those functions need to be tightly integrated to data rates is used to shape the overall traffic. The system uses Flow ensure high performance, reliability and a good QoE. The Comtech Aware Load Balancing to avoid packet re-ordering and minimize jitter. EF Data High-Speed Trunking Solution is comprised of: It also has the support of satellite links with different latencies and throughput capacities. • The CDM-760 Advanced High-Speed Trunking and Broadcast Modem – supporting more than 1.4 Gbps of user traffic with ACM Transparent Universal Network Operation to maximize transponder utilization in all conditions Today’s telecom networks have to service a variety of users, so the • The HX Series WAN Optimization Load Balancer – providing the networks need to operate with a mixture of traffic types including “plain ability to combine up to 12 physical carriers into a single logical old internet,” mobile network backhaul (LTE) and Layer 2/3 VPN private network connection while maintaining packet flow packet ordering network traffic. It is important to do this without requiring manual • The FX Series WAN Optimization – providing WAN optimization configurations so the systems should provide universal network support (WANOp) including TCP acceleration and DNS caching to provide in a plug and play fashion. high end user QoE The Comtech EF Data solution provides fully transparent operation with Layer 2 and Layer 3 operation supporting Internet access, mobile Integrated Feedback network (LTE) backhaul, MPLS private networking (MPLS VPN), and Feedback of the modem ACM state to the load balancer and Traffic QinQ VLANs. Shaper is critical in order to efficiently maximize the link fill rate in all

SatMagazine Page 10 July/August 2020 Telco Grade business models. As a 30-year veteran of the Reliability is always important. However, for high-speed links serving satellite communications industry, he previously large numbers of end users, it is absolutely critical that the solution served in various Product Management, Sales operate with telco grade resiliency. Comtech EF Data’s solution Engineering and Project Management roles at includes support for backup units and path redundancy, hot swap SES, O3b, New Skies, Polarsat, Comstream and power supplies and fail to wire functionality. GTE. Burr holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from Boston University. David Burr Customer Case Study Comtech EF Data had exactly this challenge with one of our customers. Telesat Canada needed to meet rising traffic needs of rural communities in far Northern Canada (see image below). The project needed to deliver 14 Gbps of capacity to 25 remote communities with Solving the speeds ranging from 80 Mbps up to 3 Gbps. The network would feed local DSL and 4G networks which required high VSAT Puzzle bandwidth and optimized (TCP accelerated and performance optimized) broadband services. The services were to be provided using 3 beams on a Ka-band satellite.

Conclusion Comtech’s solution is field-proven and has been successfully deployed with bonded links offering more than 3 Gbps of user traffic over Ka-band satellites. With the post crisis “new normal” world certain to include higher Internet traffic volumes, more and more operators will reach the limits of the existing satellite solutions. Comtech EF Data’s integrated link bonding solution provides operators with an important tool to support increasing traffic efficiently while maintaining a high quality of experience. When you select Comtech for your VSAT platform, you can have con昀dence that we’ll provide the pieces to solve the puzzle. We start with the industry’s most advanced hardware and software solutions, enabling the highest user throughput and availability, optimal resource utilization and premier quality of www.cometechefdata.com experience. Then, we provide technical training followed by professional installation and service commissioning wherever our systems are sold, and 24/7 x 365 engineering support in 5 time zones.

David Burr is Vice President, Business Contact us today. Let us show you how the ef昀ciencies and 昀exibility of our platforms can help address Development, for Comtech EF Data the complexities of your global VSAT network. where he develops strategies and applications to address the maritime and satellite operator market verticals. +1.480.333.2200 Burr is passionate about the role of [email protected] efficiency and its application to satellite www.comtechefdata.com communications technology and

CEFD_SatMag 2_3_Puzzle_2020.indd 1 12/10/19 1:18 PM

SatMagazine Page 11 July/August 2020 Three Trends Driving The Evolution Of Intelligent, Next-Gen Satellite Ground Systems By Dave Rehbehn, Vice President, International Division, Hughes Network Systems

It is not an exaggeration to say that a satellite is only as good as using the DVB-S2X standard (which means the 500 MHz of spectrum can the ground system it’s on. You can have the most efficient, highest realize more than 1 Gbps of capacity). However, due to limitations of the capacity satellite in orbit – but if you can’t bring the service to the remote terminal forward error correction (FEC) decoder, most systems users on the ground, all that throughput is all but useless. are unable to effectively support 100 Mbps services — these systems do not have a sufficiently large channel capacity to support many users at This is why any conversation about next-generation satellites must include these high rates. the next-generation ground systems to support them. And just as global The next generation of ground systems will significantly increase FEC demand for connectivity drives innovation in satellite design and decoding rates to 2 Gbps or better and provide for even higher packet capabilities, the ground systems are also evolving by leaps and bounds. processing rates to support significantly higher data streams and the Beyond meeting the ever-increasing demand for bandwidth, the 100 Mbps service plans that consumers expect. ground systems of tomorrow must keep pace with – and perhaps even lead – other advances across the industry. Four trends around which Trend #2: Flexible Satellites ground systems are advancing include: 100 Mbps service plans; A number of satellite manufacturers have introduced so-called flexible “flexible” satellites; larger network deployments; and the use of higher satellites, which reconfigure the coverage and capacity distribution of bands for feeder links. the satellite while it’s in orbit. Examples include SES-17 and Inmarsat G7, 8 and 9. Trend #1: Higher Service Plans This flexible capability, which can be activated merely occasionally New satellites have the capability of delivering more than 500 MHz of or frequently, is particularly useful where there are variations in demand spectrum over a particular location, and to deliver the most possible such as in the mobility market. Consider cruise ship connectivity: in Gbps on this spectrum requires higher order modulation and advanced winter, cruise operators are active in the Caribbean; while in summer, processing at the remote terminal. Today, it is common for ground the connectivity demand may be off the coast of Alaska. A systems to support 64APSK modulation or higher on the forward channel geostationary satellite over North America could cover both regions,

SatMagazine Page 12 July/August 2020 but the trick is to move the capacity where it’s needed most rather than of stations needed. However, the use of Q/V-band also poses challenges leaving a swath of bandwidth idle for part of the year. — specifically in the areas of hardware architecture and rain fade. In order for flexible satellites to modify networks in real time in One way to address rain fade is to switch traffic, quickly and response to changing demand, the ground systems must be up to the seamlessly, from a gateway where it is raining to one where it is not. task. Specifically, to support flexible satellites, ground systems must Implementing 1:1 redundant gateway radio frequency terminals (RFTs) interact with the satellite resource management system that manages (in which each gateway RFT has a dedicated RFT available for the satellite’s resources and reconfigures the satellite. On top of that switchover in the event of rain fade) is cost-prohibitive, so the industry interactivity, timing is crucial: reconfiguration must be coordinated is moving toward schemes where gateways are m:n redundant (with a precisely with the ground system so that modems, whether at the pool of gateway RFTs that can be switched into use as needed). gateway stations or at the remote terminal, are tuned properly. A To enable this innovation, operators are centralizing data processing in successful reconfiguration process must happen in a matter of seconds a small number of data centers, reducing the onus on RFTs. Software- which means that the ground system modems must very quickly retune defined networking (SDN) greatly simplifies the rapid rerouting of traffic as and acquire the new channels. gateway stations are switched in and out of the network. And the burgeoning use of network functions virtualization (NFV) technology will Trend #3: Massive Network Deployments further reduce the hardware footprint and simplify operations. In Network deployments are growing in scale and complexity, demanding combination, these technologies enable rapid switching of gateways during ever more intelligent ground systems to support them. As High- fade conditions to maintain seamless connections for individual users. Throughput Satellites (HTS) have proliferated over the past decade, the networks they power have mushroomed to include thousands and even Supporting the Complex Network of the Future millions of remote terminals with hundreds of devices at each of the Serving the growing and changing needs of consumers, enterprises and gateway stations to route data into the terrestrial network. even things is spurring industry innovation at a tremendous pace. The HughesNet® network is but one example of a large system with Advances like flexible satellites, sprawling networks and alternate bands more than 1.5 million terminals. Every node on these networks — for feeder beams represent some of the ways the industry is adapting whether a remote or gateway component — requires a new level of technology to meet user needs. intelligence to monitor myriad data points on operation and health. Also looming on the horizon are highly complex networks that will These increasingly vast network deployments challenge traditional leverage a mix of access technologies — including satellite and FCAPS (fault, configuration, accounting, performance and security) terrestrial transport — requiring even greater intelligence at the premise network management systems. to leverage the right transport at the right time. In the ongoing cycle of To address that challenge, operators are pulling information from innovation, technology developments in satellite are driving dramatic, many devices and uploading into a cloud data lake, then applying rapid advances in ground systems, which in turn will enable an even artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to mine the more powerful and sophisticated satellite network of the future. performance data and flag issues before they develop into full-blown problems. For example, using these techniques, it is possible to identify www.hughes.com remote terminals that become misaligned or develop moisture in the IFL (intra facility link) cable. More significantly, the performance of Dave Rehbehn leads the company’s global various system elements such as an outroute can be analyzed over time marketing of broadband products as well as to identify potential performance or efficiency issues. business development for services. In this capacity, he develops Hughes international market strategy Trend #4: Alternate Bands for Feeder Beams and guides the strategic direction of the Hughes A central tenet of the satellite industry lies in maximizing the value of a international sales force. Mr. Rehbehn works most precious resource: bandwidth. One way to optimize bandwidth is closely with end users and service operators to to use different bands to meet different needs. track market trends, emerging applications and For instance, to devote as much Ka- bandwidth as possible to user business developments in global communications and beams, Hughes is using Q- and V-band for feeder beams in the design networking. A recognized thought leader in the industry, Mr. of the new JUPITER 3 (EchoStar XXIV) ground system. The Q/V-bands Rehbehn speaks frequently on satellite solutions for bridging the offer significantly more spectrum than Ka-band feeder beams, delivering digital divide. Throughout his career, Mr. Rehbehn has worked many more Gbps per gateway station and even reducing the number across the Hughes business from engineering, to consumer internet service to international enterprise and operator markets.

SatMagazine Page 13 July/August 2020 Where’s My Stuff? It’s the moment you dread. You reach into your pocket or Finding Far More than Phones handbag—and your phone isn’t there. Satellite asset tracking is an integral part of the Internet of Things (IoT), where machines talk to machines in ways that help help human beings. A flash of panic runs through you. Where is it? Lost? Stolen? You rush When emergency agencies send portable generators and trailers online and use the “find my phone” feature to see where it may be into disaster zones, they need to know where they are and how to get located... and there it is, at the restaurant where you left it last night. them back. It’s one thing to lose your phone. It’s another to lose an asset such as Energy companies exploring for oil or gas move drilling rigs, tanks a mining dump truck that costs and pumps from one place to millions. Companies with serious another all the time. When they mobile assets and equipment in know exactly where that the field need their own “find my equipment is, they can better plan phone” feature. Fortunately, they for tomorrow. have one, thanks to satellite Truck fleets have to make connectivity. on-time deliveries and coordinate multiple pick-ups.

SatMagazine Page 14 July/August 2020 That’s hard to do unless your trucks are telling you where they are and where they’re going. Those are just some of the ways that customers use asset tracking technology from Globalstar. Here’s how it works. A small device attached to each asset reads its location from GPS satellites. It transmits that location information CPI GaN BUCs directly to Globalstar satellites and the company returns that valuable data to their customers.

Knowledge is Key When you know where something is located, it can tell you a lot. Did it arrive on time? Is it in the correct place? How far is it from its next scheduled destination? For the people who have to manage those assets, it’s like a pair of magic glasses that lets them see the whole operation with one glance. That saves time and money, and keeps people safe. “Find my phone” is great but it only works when your phone is in range of the cellular network. Globalstar satellites work everywhere, from roadways and waterways to forests, mountains and prairies. Satellites enable the Internet of Things to work in places it never could operate before, and all from a little gadget you can hold in your hand—and a powerful network of satellites and ground stations circling the globe. The last word in solid state See more stories and videos of how satellite is making a better from the 昀rst name in HPAs. world at: https//www.bettersatellietworld.com • Ef昀cient solution for all satellite Produced for Satnews by Space & uplink applications Satellite Professionals International. See more stories • Up to 160 W in Ka-band and videos of satellite making • Up to 200 W in X-band a better world at . • Up to 100 W in C-band • Up to 80 W in Ku-band • 1,000 W C-band transceiver

80 W Ku-band BUC 160 W Ka-band BUC

Download our app! Search: CPI Satcom

CPI Satcom Products | www.cpii.com | +1 (669) 275-2744

SatMagazine Page 15 July/August 2020 Teleports: A Need For Speed

By Thomas Lovsin, Chief Technical Officer, STN

As the world of technology progressed and evolved, habits needed to identify whether the fault lies with network carriers, video changed, expectations widened and the portfolio of services broadcasters or teleports. expanded. Everything has moved on an express high-speed The lack of visibility into the network and QoE can result in digital highway and – being no exception — teleports accelerated dissatisfied customers and, further, revenue loss. Therefore, the key and adapted. pillars that together form the foundation for a teleport to offer its services are network throughput, robustness, and monitoring. Today there is little difference in providing services for broadcasters or STN has recently invested in a complete overhaul of the teleport’s data providers and one can almost claim that the two have merged. core ground infrastructure and that has significantly boosted the While remaining different in nuances at their core both rely on moving capacities as well as made the facility less prone to potential system huge amounts of data both intra and inter between various facilities. failures or errors. Add in-depth monitoring of each individual port, Whereas some of us may well remember the era of 3-1⁄2-inch VLAN, switch, router, etc. to the equation and you get an extremely floppy disks with a capacity of 1.44 MB, fast forward to today and the powerful and robust network that enables STN to quickly and efficiently transferr of gigabytes of data occurs in a matter of seconds — that is route traffic and process data (be it IP data or IP broadcast traffic) in the new normal. real-time all tailored specifically to each individual customers’ needs. To accommodate all this data to flow error-free and quickly across The fact is that STN’s clients use more and more devices that need different facilities and countless devices, a teleport needs to adapt its more and more bandwidth. With this overhaul, the company has core infrastructure accordingly. increased its capacity of both its core internal network as well as its Except for accessing devices via web-GUIs or similar applications, capability of providing internet services from an internet connection to 10/100/1000 Mbit/s infrastructure simply can no longer meet these server hosting; all fully redundant with automatic fail-overs that enable requirements. The complexity of networks is increasing day by day. This, the continuation of access without any STN’s internet services provide in turn, means that monitoring has become more difficult — without high-speed access and direct connections to a large number of Tier-1 accuracy, it is extremely tough to deliver customer satisfaction in cases ISP carriers’ networks — with all the major mobile, cloud and content where poor service goes undetected or due to lack of information providers, as well as various enterprises companies.

SatMagazine Page 16 July/August 2020 represent high-density building blocks for a next-generation, intent-based network with a network that can now learn, adapt, and evolve. With a system designed to be intuitive, STN’s highly specialized team of engineers can recognize intent, mitigate threats through segmentation and encryption all while retaining operational simplicity. The new network helps STN to unlock opportunities, enhance security, be more agile, and operate more efficiently. STN’s internet services are fully capable of preventing potential We all know that our industry is under enormous financial pressure cyberattacks across all applications on all of its largest networks and its and we are all — in fact — likely being asked to do more with less; to datacentre. Our function-specific processors for networking, security, handle more users and devices with less budget and less staff to content inspection, and management, our threat and intrusion manage the network. The average number of devices that one IT staff protection and detection systems can deliver up to 200Gbit/s member supports has been increasing, from a hundred devices to throughput and 100Gbit/s threat prevention throughput with all the hundreds of thousands, with the expectation that it will be perhaps security capabilities enabled. millions of devices in the future. With these upgrades and equipment and software modernization, This is clearly not possible in today’s Command-Line Interface (CLI)- STN has increased the capacity of its intranet services for as much as driven management environment. A new network is needed. A network 9900 percent, compared with 1Gbit/s infrastructure. However, the that is software-driven and hardware-enhanced. With STN’s overhaul did not end there and STN has invested heavily in upgrading modernization we have achieved the aforementioned goals; not only its global connectivity in the same manner as with our intranet. by increasing the capacities but by implementing a thorough, in-depth, By building a full-mesh global network also based on 10 Gbit/s, 40 efficient two-level monitoring system based on policy-based Gbit/s, or 100 Gbit/s, depending on the location, has allowed the networking, an intelligent network fabric, and automation that make company to remain flexible and to implement additional connectivity intent-based networking a reality for STN today. in an extremely short periods of time that are usually measured in hours. Furthermore, the revamped network looks like a single large virtual STN’s global network, which is connected to the vast majority of all switch to the users and devices connecting to it. Virtualization allows major PoP’s worldwide, is a secure and high-quality network service for agility and flexibility in ways that have not been possible with a utilizing advanced MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching) technology traditional network. that is highly expandable and flexible. Managing and securing the entire network from a single interface By employing multiple cable routes through route diversity, STN allows for faster network design, definition, provisioning, and has truly implemented a robust, fully redundant global network maintenance, which ultimately improves network uptime. system all while, similar to the intranet revamp, increasing the capacity of its flexible global network by 900 percent where 10 Gbit/s “Altogether, the result is a super-fast resilient infrastructure is deployed, 3900 percent where 40 Gbit/s technology network that allows STN to diversify as the needs of is used or 9900 percent where 100 Gbit/s connectivity is established our industry develop.” Tomaz Lovsin CTO, STN (compared with 1 Gbit/s). At the same time, the new infrastructure that was built for the enterprise campus is fully backward compatible with 40/25/10/1 Gbit/s networks enabling STN to remain fully flexible. Designed for security, the Internet of Things (IoT), and the cloud, STN’s core switches

SatMagazine Page 17 July/August 2020 Image is courtesy of Esri.

Forrester Reports: Bonanza Time For US Satellite Builders By Chris Forrester, Senior Contributor, Satnews Publishers

The C-band conversion process has resulted in a — probably — once Boeing will deliver a pair of highly efficient all-electric 702SP satellites in a lifetime boost to US satellite orders. SES and Intelsat will order for SES. The two satellites — SES-20 and SES-21 — will be as many as 13 US-built satellites that will require at least 6 rocket manufactured and assembled in Los Angeles, California. launches in order to meet the FCC’s ruling to free up an overall 300 SES, in its statement, stated, “These four C-band only new satellites MHz (280 + a 20 MHz guard band) by December 5, 2023. will enable SES to clear 280 MHz of mid-band spectrum for 5G use while seamlessly migrating SES’s existing C-band customers. Each Add to that 13 will be another satellite ordered by Eutelsat, although it satellite will have 10 primary transponders of 36 MHz plus back-up is, as of this writing, unclear as to who will win that order. tubes so they can enable the broadcast delivery of digital television to The work isn’t limited to the satellite builders — this also means a more than 120 million TV homes as well as provide critical data services. ton of work for contractors and sub-contractors as they fit tens of The satellites, when launched in Q3/2022, will be positioned at 103 thousands of filters and other apparatus at the head-ends of the degrees West, 131 degrees West and 135 degrees West orbital slots. operator’s clients’ sites across the country. The cost of manufacturing these four satellites is part of the $1.6 billion The FCC requirements are straight-forward; however, the timetable is investment envelope that SES has announced in May. extremely tight and doesn’t officially permit delays, whether through ‘force Two additional satellites will be built and act as ‘ground spares’ in majeure,’ further developments with COVID-19 or even satellite failures. case of problems. The total bill (building 6 craft, plus launch/insurance The FCC has specified that, by the end of next year (December 5, for 4 of them) will be some $1.25 billion. SES’s transition requires the 2021) they must free up all their services in the bottom 180 MHz of the manufacture and launch of four C-band spacecraft comprising: overall 300 MHz plan. Luxembourg-based SES has ordered an immediate four new (i) a replacement at 135º W.L. satellites from US manufacturers to replace the C-band capacity the (ii) a replacement at 131º W.L. company is surrendering as part of the FCC’s accelerated C-band (iii) a replacement at 103º W.L. clearance plan, with Northrop Grumman and the Boeing Company to (iv) one on-orbit spare satellite (to be collocated at 103º W.L.) to meet manufacture and assemble the C-band only satellites in Dulles, Virginia, existing contractual obligations to customers for in-orbit protection. and in Los Angeles, California. The four C-band spacecraft are planned to be launched by the end of Northrop Grumman will deliver two of its GeoStar-3 satellites, each Q3 2022, after which the relevant services will be transitioned as equipped with a high-quality, C-band payload. The two satellites — SES- described in more detail in the table on the following page. 18 and SES-19 — will be designed, assembled and tested in Dulles, Virginia.

SatMagazine Page 18 July/August 2020

SES stated the company is committed to investing in America by procuring services and equipment needed for the C-band transition from large and small businesses across the US and these significant partnerships with Northrop Grumman and the Boeing Company are cornerstones of that commitment. “Given the FCC’s strong leadership in providing for accelerated clearing of precious C-band spectrum in the US, our focus is on delivering on our commitment and making the spectrum available in the shortest possible time while ensuring that we protect the broadcast customers and communities that we have built over 35 years,” said Steve Collar, CEO/SES. “To meet our deadlines to clear C-band spectrum, we have selected established American satellite manufacturers in Northrop Grumman and Boeing with their focus on heritage, reliability and minimal risk to build these four satellites, enabling us to fully support the FCC’s 5G Fast initiative.”

SatMagazine Page 19 July/August 2020 This means that new C-band satellites will need to be constructed and launched, and located in the orbital slots not only at 103° W.L. but also at 131° W.L. and 135° W.L. as well. SES must replace the C-band satellites at these locations to maintain its service continuity commitments. There will also need to be another satellite to provide capacity needed for protection from transponder or satellite failure.

Intelsat has ordered at least 6 satellites. Four are to come from Maxar The SES ‘accelerated’ plan is split into a couple of phases: Technologies and will be built at Maxar’s Palo Alto plant (the former Space Systems/Loral facility). Two others will be supplied by Northrop PHASE 1 Grumman. There will also be an additional 7th satellite from Intelsat By December 5, 2021, SES will... which is currently under supplier negotiation. • Relocate all of its commercial services out of the 3700-3820 MHz The race is now on for this new capacity to be in place by December band exclusive to the contiguous United States (“CONUS”) 5, 2023. Meeting that date will enable Intelsat to receive $4.87 billion • Make necessary equipment changes on all associated Incumbent as an ‘incentive’ reward from the FCC for clearing the spectrum on time Earth Station antennas located in 46 of the top 50 Partial and thus be available to aid 5G’s rollout over the US. Economic Areas (“PEAs”) and the surrounding areas in CONUS The Intelsat craft from Maxar will be dubbed Galaxy (see Intelsat • Supplement its telemetry, tracking and control (“TT&C”) table). Northrop’s pair will be Galaxy 12R and 15R. All six craft are being operations to enhance two earth stations located in Hawley, scheduled for launch in Q3 and Q4/2022. Pennsylvani, (“Hawley”), and Brewster, Washington (“Brewster”) Intelsat also reported there will also be a 7th — as yet unspecified — • Begin to consolidate its gateway services (e.g., international satellite as part of the new C-band fleet. This 7th craft is Intelsat’s insurance feeder link, data, and other services) currently located at other policy in case of an orbital or launch problem with the initial batches of SES gateway locations as well as any customer or user gateway satellites. Intelsat says this 7th bird will be ordered by this September with services to Hawley and/or Brewster — these gateway services will a launch date by September 2023, just within the FCC’s timetable. operate on an unprotected basis in the 3700-3820 MHz band. “Quickly clearing 300 megahertz of the U.S. C-band spectrum to make way for 5G wireless applications is a complex task, layered with a PHASE 2 significant number of highly interdependent technical activities, By December 5, 2023, SES will... including building and launching multiple new satellites designed to • Relocate all of its CONUS-exclusive commercial services out of the operate at the higher portion of the band,” said Intelsat’s Chief Services 3700-4000 MHz band Officer, Mike DeMarco, on June 15. • Make necessary equipment changes on all associated Incumbent We now also know the costs for the company. Intelsat said their 7th Earth Station antennas located in all CONUS PEAs craft will cost a total of $790 million, with launch costs of an additional • Continue TT&C operations in the lower portion of the band on a $390 million, including insurance. protected basis at Hawley and Brewster and in the upper portion As long anticipated, it seems that SES and Intelsat will be providing (4.2 GHz) of the band at SES’s other teleports extra capacity over and above that required by the FCC and that the • Complete gateway consolidation to the Hawley and Brewster rocket builders will break out the additional fees for the extra payloads. sites; the gateway services will operate on an unprotected basis In most cases, the new satellites will permit SES and Intelsat to free up in the 3700-4000 MHz band at Hawley and Brewster. existing capacity for either new roles or back-up in orbit. SES reported that on-orbit testing and the usual drift to their Based on the current SES plan, there are 196 services in total that are designated orbital slots will take approximately eight weeks, suggesting impacted by the C-band repurposing: 114 services on domestic satellites they are all going to be conventionally launched and will not use electric (SES-1, SES-2, SES-3, SES-11, AMC-11, AMC-3) and 82 services on propulsion for orbit raising. international satellites (SES-4, SES-6, SES-14, NSS-9, NSS-10). SES will be SES added that, as the C-band rules requires in-CONUS C-band required to perform 111 frequency/satellite moves for services, gateway distribution to be consolidated into 200 MHz of downlink bandwidth, moves for 68 services, 11 services will require compression/modulation SES will need a total of six satellites to support its C-band cable video upgrades and 6 mobile services may require frequency moves on the distribution customers. There will need to be five active satellites to same satellite, should the user determine it is necessary. ensure at least 1000 MHz of downlink bandwidth is available to continue existing services (i.e., 5 x 200 MHz = 1000 MHz).

SatMagazine Page 20 July/August 2020 SES (and perhaps Intelsat) is making an additional major technology Eutelsat said it will need to spend $171 million to clear its C-band change and using digital compression for its broadcast clients. frequencies and will order up one new satellite, although its supplier “Specifically, the pre-transition services encoded using MPEG-2 will has not yet been specified. be upgraded to MPEG-4, which will support same or better service in By any measure this is an exciting time for the satellite industry. Of much less bandwidth. With technology upgrades, the customer’s post- course, the FCC’s incentive payments will benefit all the operators as transition needs are reduced to only 7½ transponders, which will allow well as the FCC and the US telco sector. The next key date is the those services to continue to be downlinked on a single satellite,” scheduled December 8, 2020, auction. stated SES in its FCC submission. Both SES and Intelsat, starting on December 31, 2020, will submit a Senior Columnist Chris Forrester is a well-known quarterly status report that summarizes the status of the firms’ clearing broadcasting journalist and industry consultant. He efforts. SES, for example, intends to include in each report a list of the reports on all aspects of broadcasting with special Incumbent Earth Stations receiving services from SES that have been emphasis on content, the business of television and fully transitioned pursuant to this Transition Plan. emerging applications. He founded Rapid TV News Telesat, Eutelsat and Claro have also made their plans clear. Telesat, for and has edited Interspace and its successor, Inside example, says it will not need an additional satellite and will fit filters to Satellite TV, since 1996. He also files for Advanced- its existing Anik-F1R and Anik-F3 receiving dishes and its craft can Television.com. continue working. Claro will rent space from SES on its SES-4 craft and In November of 1998, Chris was appointed an Associate thus continue services into Miami, Florida, for its (Embratel) Star One (professor) of the prestigious Adham Center for Television C1 craft. Journalism, part of the American University in Cairo (AUC), in recognition of his extensive coverage of the Arab media market. Chris is a Senior Contributor to Satnews Publishers.

SatMagazine Page 21 July/August 2020 10 Years Of Space Situational Awareness

By Pascal Wauthier, Chairman, Space Data Association

Ten years ago, satellite operators recognized a need to protect Pre-Space Data Association the space environment by the sharing of essential data for Prior to 2010, collision avoidance and space safety on the whole was collision avoidance. an afterthought to most operators and indeed most of the industry. The sustainability of space was simply not on most people’s radar. The Space Data Association (SDA) was originally born in 2009, and this Brian Swinburne of Airbus and SDA Standard year celebrates the formation of the Space Data Center and its 10 years Member Director, said, “In my opinion, prior to 2010 of operation. A lot has changed since then, both within the space it was commonplace to think that ‘space is a big place’ environment itself and the role of the SDA. Space is getting busier and — well that’s not strictly true anymore; as we know, traffic and debris pose a palpable threat in all orbits, particularly LEO, space is more congested than ever. Some collision potentially even to the extent of threatening our industry’s ability to avoidance (CA) was taking place, but this was largely operate safely at all. performed independently or by military services.” Brian Swinburne The SDA’s Space Data Center is providing valuable Collision As Brian stated, only a handful of large Avoidance (CA) information which continues to minimise the risk of operators outside of the military sector had the collision in space. But we know that space is changing, and we are capability to monitor close approaches using always looking to be at the forefront of this change. It therefore seems JSpOC or Space-Track information, and as Dan apt on the SDC’s 10th birthday that myself and some of the SDA Oltrogge of Analytical Graphics (AGI) and SDA directors explore what’s changed over the last 10 years, and where we Technical Advisor points out, “these free, legacy are heading in the next. SSA services were intended as more of a ‘heads- Dan Oltrogge

SatMagazine Page 22 July/August 2020 up’ notice of an upcoming close approach, where identified close Where Are We Now? approaches were monitored but may not have been acted upon Fast forward 10 years and I would say that things have changed hugely. because of a recognition that such notifications were often not The SDA has played a vital role over the past 10 years to get the actionable in themselves.” space industry to where we are now. Cooperation seems to be the most One of the main reasons these close approaches common reason cited by directors. Jean-Luc believes that the SDA has were not actioned upon was a lack of consistently most importantly “fostered cooperation among members, raising pooled data. According to Lorenzo Arona, Avanti and situation awareness by bringing the largest satellite operators together SDA Standard Member Director, “warnings were to cooperate on this very important topic.” based on incomplete data. They assumed free-flight Lorenzo also sees the way the SDA fostered cooperation among orbits, while active satellites perform manoeuvres members as key and stated, “I also believe it underpinned the need for Lorenzo Arona often, so there was no way of getting the full picture”. a shared approach to the utilization of near-Earth space – which is a At that time, only limited data sharing occurred, finite resource”. mainly on an individual level between operators “The SDA/SDC showed operators that it was possible to screen all- who shared personal agreements. As Jean-Luc on-all objects and have a strong legal framework. It also fostered Froeliger of Intelsat, and SDA Executive Director cooperation between operators even though they were competitors in noted, “a lot was done through personal contacts the same space market,” added Brian Swinburne. between the various Flight Dynamics groups that Dan Oltrogge also believes the SDA ,“has influenced and enhanced had been established over the years.” There was SSA much more than people realize. As a leading SSA and safety-of- therefore very little data sharing on a global basis, flight analysis center, the SDC has also been an active proponent, Jean-Luc Froeliger and almost no official or national recognition that participant and tester of new SSA capabilities fielded by the U.S. space collisions were an issue. government, to include the release of analyst satellite data, SP ephemerides, resolution of cross-tags, identification of missed

SatMagazine Page 23 July/August 2020 maneuvers, and sharing of operator data for the purpose of regaining Current Talking Points track custody and flight safety.” As we look ahead to the next 10 years, some changes in the industry Also, by encouraging operators to establish SSA Data Sharing will have a big effect on SSA and the safety of space. According to jean- Agreements with the U.S., providing interfaces to the 18SpCS Space- Luc, “A big challenge will be the proliferation of small satellites and the Track system, and by developing an efficient monitoring and warning large number of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) spacecraft constellations, many system using operator/member operational information, SDA provides of them having no onboard propulsion for collision avoidance.” effective CA capabilities to a large number of operators. There are already 1300 active satellites in LEO orbit, while planned As Swinburne said, “We’ve seen a transition from an emphasis on launches could see that number rise by ten times over the next decade. collision avoidance (significant enough at the time) through to the Tracking these satellites will become incredibly complex and it simply development of Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and even the won’t be enough to rely on third-party sensor data for the sheer volume concept of Space Traffic Management (STM). One of the biggest steps of traffic expected. Operators of smallsats will need to feed their own we’ve seen and continue to see is the adoption of such thinking by data into an independent repository, such as the Space Data Center, so national agencies rather than just a handful of operators.” we are able to have accurate, up-to-the-minute and actionable data. This is exemplified by the plan to transfer SSA services from 18SPCS According to Oltrogge, “The space population is undergoing a to the Department of Commerce in the US, and the emergence of dramatic increase for three main reasons: (1) the dozen fragmentation EUSST (European Space Surveillance and Tracking). events that occur annually, (2) advanced tracking sensors and STM Perhaps closely linked to the above is, as Lorenzo Arona remarked, systems that are on track to grow our knowledge of what’s already in “The birth of commercial SSA services like ComSpOC or ExoAnalytic.” space tenfold by 2022, and (3) the deployment of large constellations Oltrogge tells us that these services, “pair new sensor technology that put us on track to double the active spacecraft this year alone, and with advanced data fusion and analytics to dramatically improve SSA increase by tenfold by 2029.” solutions and predictions.” The emergence of these commercial We really cannot ignore how much of an issue congestion in LEO will services mostly definitely shows that the industry is prioritizing SSA and become and whether we will be able to operate with so much more flight safety. debris increasing year on year.

SatMagazine Page 24 July/August 2020 Improving the situation. New technology has a role to play too, particularly those that are Brian Oltrogge noted,“I do not feel that there is any significant aimed at “Mitigating the risk of collision or reducing the quantity of regulation within SSA; there should be more. Standardization does a debris in orbit (de-orbit technologies, active debris removal),” good job, but is not legally binding so one can choose not to observe according to Lorenzo. a standard as long as there is a stated reason for doing so. The only It’s imperative that we also look at the viability of developing place we feel regulation is effective is with regard to launch licensing.” measurement systems to assess the risk of collisions with smaller objects Arona similarly believes that “There is not enough regulation, and (e.g., smaller than 1 meter in GEO orbit). In 2017 the ESA estimated that that the current laws are widely asymmetric (i.e. different countries have there were around larger than 1mm in space; the number is undoubtedly different laws). Global standardisation of regulations would provide much higher now and poses a significant threat to satellites. clarity and benefit the sector.” The success of the SDA clearly shows that spacecraft operators are However, regulation alone is not the answer. In Jean-Luc’s words: willing to invest in improving safety of flight via the use of new “More regulation might be good, but it should not come at the expense technologies or improved cooperation. In Dan’s words “The SDA (and of added costs for commercial enterprise, nor should it restrain the the operators it represents) can work with governments and other innovation movement that is going through the space industry these operators to bring about these needed changes to significantly mitigate last few years.” the risk of collision over the next ten, or even five, years. Data sharing “The ideal mix,” according to Oltrogge, “is to ensure that nations is absolutely key to this aim.” regulate their spacecraft and launch operators to ensure a minimally- acceptable level of compliance with space safety and sustainability. This Conclusion should be coupled with the nurturing of operator voluntary aspirational best As a group, we’re hopeful that our collaborative approach to the practice initiatives such as the recently formed Space Safety Coalition.” problem of space safety is helping to mitigate the challenges presented by debris and congestion in space. The last 10 years have shown that The Next Ten Years of SSA by coming together, all of those with a stake in the safety of flight can Data is absolutely critical if operators are to be able to coordinate and effect change and work towards a goal of a clean space. collaborate to achieve the safety of flight. Through its SDC system, SDA The sharing of data, strengthened regulations, the development of has a proven track record of bringing the best available data to manage technology and a move towards national responsibility for the space CA and closely monitoring the quality of its products through extensive environment are all major talking points right now, and will continue to comparative SSA procedures. evolve over the following decade. However, to date this has been largely In Lorenzo’s opinion, “One of the main risks associated with (a lack of) driven by the commercial space sector. Now, we should see governments data sharing is that there is seldom cooperation between commercial taking over that role to ensure the sustainability of space operations. and military satellite operators. Sooner or later this might exacerbate collision risks unnecessarily. Some way of mutually sharing some www.space-data.org/sda/ information with military operators would mitigate the collision risk and keep the distribution of sensitive information on a need-to-know basis.” Pascal joined SES in 1990. His role in the Over the next few years it is hoped that data sharing and SSA will Technology organization is to lead SES Space become the responsibility of national agencies. While space safety Operations. This function is responsible for safely could someday become an international responsibility, there is currently operating the SES GEO and MEO (O3b) satellites. no organization that can perform such a task on behalf of all nations. This includes leading following Operational Teams: Brian would like to see “National agencies step up and do the job the Satellite Control Centers located in Gibraltar, properly, I want to see them catch up and learn from those who have Luxembourg, Manassas and Princeton as well as been working in the area for many years and not to try to reinvent the the Flight Dynamics Engineering, Software Engineering and wheel. I want the cost burden of SSA to move from the spacecraft Operations Architecture teams. operator to the state, SSA is an environmental issue and should be During his 29 years career at SES, Pascal led the Flight treated as such.” Lorenzo also similarly believes that there should be a Dynamics section and also led the integration of the satellite “significant increase in state funding of SSA/STM sensors and services.” operations of the News Skies, Americom, O3b and ASTRA fleet.

SatMagazine Page 25 July/August 2020 Executive Spotlight: Mike Carey

Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, ATLAS Space Operations

ATLAS Space Operations Founder and Chief Good day, Mr. Carey. Would you please tell us about your Strategy Officer, Mike Carey, has been a vocal part background and how you decided to leverage your career at of the satellite communications and technology ATLAS Space Operations? industry’s dialogue since the onset of the worldwide push to work from home due to COVID-19. Mike Mike Carey (MC) has previously touched on best practices regarding I served in the US Air Force for 32 years prior to co-founding ATLAS communications and team management, but he Space Operations. I enlisted as an avionics technician, where I learned says that there’s still a dynamic missing from the dialogue that is the basics of RF communication, RADAR, and electronic systems and already happening in professional circles. was ultimately promoted to Major General. I had the privilege of being

SatMagazine Page 26 July/August 2020 Rendine — ATLAS was incorporated in 2015. In 2017, we planted the headquarters flag in Traverse City, Michigan. It is in Michigan where we found the investment interest, optimal business environment, operating costs and talent to thrive. We are now over 30 employees strong with more than a dozen antennas operating around the world.

Many firms in the space communications and data market sectors describe themselves as “disruptors” in these space industries… does ATLAS Space Operations fall into that category and, if so, how?

MC Many firms do, indeed, claim to be disruptors, but it’s more credible when a third party states such is true about a company. In 2017, ATLAS was named by Morgan Stanley as one of the top 12 industry disruptors. To be clear, we disrupted a calcified segment of the industry that over- charged for telemetry and data, compelled clients to adhere to their availability and was not attuned to modern software and cloud-hosting. Being cloud-agnostic insinuates one doesn’t care about the cloud interface and leaves it to the customer. ATLAS’ software service is multi- a space operations officer for the majority of my time in service, and cloud capable, flexible and enabled. We’re not agnostic about much. covered the waterfront of missions from satellite command and control to space surveillance, launch operations, nuclear operations, cyber Mike, ATLAS has been vocal about its willingness and operations and missile defense missions. ability to transition to a work-from-home model. What Transitioning from the U.S. Air Force to ATLAS was easy in that ATLAS were some contributing factors that allowed ATLAS to Space Operations supports the needed infrastructure to enable on-orbit make a smooth transition? spacecraft by providing communications for their operational command and control. MC I’ve had decades of experience in satellite communications and As I like to say, the single most important aspect of ATLAS’ culture telemetry service, so it was a natural fit to establish a more modern allowing us to adapt to the rapidly evolving situation over the past means of providing the service commercially. months is our approach to internal communications — but there is something that has been missing from the conversation. I believe the Could you give us a brief history of the company and how tools that companies use, and how they test and refine their use of and why the firm was established? those tools, will either enable them, or stall their efforts when the unforeseen happens. Whether you’re working with email or virtual MC meetings, it’s critical to have a plan in place for your company’s use of ATLAS was founded on the principle of lowering the cost barrier to digital communication. What we are seeing now is people who weren’t space-based data. Industry incumbents reflect much of the Cold War- utilizing these tools beforehand trying to play catch-up for lost time. era infrastructure their government customers became accustomed to, which resulted in high costs to new entrants in the space sector. Costs When you say tools, we’re talking about web apps? had been driven down in launch and satellite manufacturing, but there had not been any innovation within the ground segment. MC Sean McDaniel (CEO) and Brad Bode (CTO) envisaged a modern Sort of. The majority of communication occurs through the internet — satellite ground network that was cloud-enabled over a decade ago. now more than ever — but the tools we’re using are sometimes a However, it wasn’t until 2014 when Mike Rendine joined them that the substitute for interactions that would have normally been conducted in idea became a reality. Initially an LLC under Assured Space Access person. The key is to find tools that enable your company to work in a Technologies, Inc. — a company owned by Sean McDaniel and Mike way that most efficiently supports efforts to work remotely. So, when I

SatMagazine Page 27 July/August 2020 say “tools” I’m referring to services such as Teamwork, Gchat, Zoom, be in the same room as them to do that, and we don’t need to be in Chime, Teams, Discourse, etc. — these are all tools we’ve been using our office to do it. That didn’t happen because we thought it was and assessing the effectiveness of for a while. important to do business that way, it happened because we knew it As we shifted our work out of the office, it was a matter of refining would be important for our customers. and expanding our toolset, rather than testing and implementing. We were able to transition from collaborating in person to collaborating by Interesting. Surely there were still changes that you video. It’s the utility that we are able to derive from these services, and experienced in making this transition though, what the ways in which they bridge physical gaps, that makes them tools. differences have you noticed within your team as a result of moving to work-from-home? What practices do you think made ATLAS better prepared for a situation such as this? MC There have absolutely been changes, and I believe that each change MC offers a valuable commentary on the way that we were doing work, and For our team, it wasn’t so much a matter of going out of our way to it has informed the way that we approach our future of work. It’s boiled adopt remote working practices, but rather an extension of how our down to a question of efficiency for us. In a pursuit to spend time wisely, team has always worked. ATLAS was founded as a distributed team, to be prepared, to maintain satellite communications systems that and roughly half of our team continues to work remotely. The ability to remain resilient even when travel is shut down entirely, we have really interact with our staff in a productive and meaningful way — regardless had to refocus on the most efficient way to get those things done. So, of where they were — was an innate part of our growth and normal to answer your question, I think that there are two key takeaways: business practice. One is time management. We need a way to display to the rest of As a result, our readiness wasn’t necessarily “how do we prepare for our team what our availability is, how long a given task will take, how a highly contagious disease that will fundamentally change work as we much time we will need to finish a project, and what the priorities of know it,” but rather “how do we best ensure that we are prepared for our work are. Traditionally, the bulk of this work could happen in person, the unexpected?” with conversations in an office space or in passing. Leaders must constantly consider alternate operating scenarios, and Now, if a team member wants to know something or get feedback, building in flexibility adds to your resiliency. In military, space, and they can’t look in my office and see that I’m busy, they can’t wait until I technology settings, teams are always working to be as well prepared walk by — now they have to check my availability and reach out. The good as they can be without necessarily knowing the details of how a news is that this has caused us to think far more critically about our time. challenge will present itself. How long does a meeting need to take? Most platforms default a A scenario in which everyone who isn’t deemed essential in the new meeting to one hour — do we need that? This causes us to focus office must begin to work from home wasn’t on many peoples’ radar, on a smaller number of topics, it causes us to shorten the dialogue but as a function of our dynamism and day-to-day expectations of work regarding those topics, and it causes us to be conscientious of others’ and communication, it has been an occasion that we are able to rise time so that we can each maximize our efficiency as individuals and as to meet. a team. All of this allows us to spend more time providing world class service and capabilities to our customers. And it was just this practice of having already worked in a Another change that has stood out is that I’m seeing and speaking semi-remote fashion that allowed you to be prepared? to people more frequently. If I didn’t have something scheduled with another team member, it’s possible that I wouldn't have any substantive MC task-related dialogue with them for a few days. Well, that’s certainly a big part of it, but I think that largely it’s due to Now, the intervals that I see people at have been drastically the mindset of resiliency and readiness that our team has. What made shortened. Every morning I see the team, we get to discuss anything us strong is that from our inception, we focused on our customers’ important and reach out to people that we might not normally have needs and let those parameters guide us. Among those needs was the interacted with. This means that the time it takes for a decision to be ability to offer continuous, lights-out operation. That’s why you see made has been drastically reduced. If there’s a problem, or if someone features in our software that allow for customers to schedule just needs a go/no-go, that can happen in a few seconds when we’re communication with their satellite remotely, and the ability to reach out all together — there’s no back-and-forth and verifying with other to our team and tailor our offerings to their needs — we don’t need to stakeholders; managers are there and can drive rapid change.

SatMagazine Page 28 July/August 2020 ATLAS Freedom™ Platform. ATLAS global antenna network.

Are there any pitfalls in the industry that you’ve witnessed My time in service was satisfying when we helped others and solved as this situation has progressed? hard problems. Establishing the US Space Range, National Security Space Institute, and several other organizations that are now key to the MC new US Space Force were each uniquely satisfying — but each time, it I certainly think that the government — and really at all levels — has its was because of the people around me. work cut out for it. Specifically, in roles where employees are meant to work with classified material, we’ve seen projects come to a complete Any final thoughts? standstill. It’s a hard issue for them to tackle. By design, their infrastructure is set up so employees cannot take their laptop home and MC continue work. The bottom line for me, and the entire ATLAS team, is that we have As we’re seeing now, though, there must be some solution moving been served well by cultivating a work environment where we distinctly forward. In a world where we can’t have people share tight spaces or prefer to work together, while appreciating that we must be prepared use the same paths of travel, how do you keep the gears moving? I to work remotely. Communication, infrastructure, technology — it’s all think that this will serve as a learning experience and in the future, you’ll part of the solution, but a mindset of preparedness and resiliency is see brand new contingency plans, maybe too many, that take this sort what will get you through times like this. of scenario into mind. Now as we plan to come back into the workplace, at least a good portion of us, there are new considerations that we are addressing. As As you review your career to date, what projects or with ATLAS, other companies will find varying levels of comfort amongst missions truly bring a sense of satisfaction to you? their employees. Being respectful and supportive through active communication and planning will enable continued operations in what MC is definitely a fluid environment. Wow, that’s a fun question. Between my time with ATLAS and my 30 yrs in the Air Force, there are many events, projects and missions that I Be well and press on. am very proud of. The most satisfying, however, share one thing in common: the people. Talented and passionate people tackling a atlasground.com/ difficult task... and succeeding... that is what’s satisfying to me. A few examples are when ATLAS accomplished it’s first mission using our Freedom™ software and we dazzled the customer, exceeding their expectations. Or watching our team travel to the far reaches of the world to establish a new ground station. It was the ATLAS team in Ghana, Tahiti, Guam and Japan, for example that did the hard work along with the software team that brought our vision to life.

SatMagazine Page 29 July/August 2020 Keeping Communities & Businesses Connected Throughout COVID-19 Pandemic & Beyond

By Sulaiman Al Ali, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Thuraya

The world is witnessing a surge in demand for connectivity as a Connecting Teams On Land boom in remote working drives usage. How are satellite operators Thuraya has an outstanding track record in developing satellite addressing this need? phones for use on land. We were first to introduce dual-mode handsets, converging SATCOM and GSM technologies, first to Thuraya is deploying its mobile satellite services, network resources and introduce pre-paid services and the first satellite company to offer technical expertise to support communities and businesses across worldwide roaming services. multiple sectors, enabling them to stay connected and continue to To date, Thuraya has sold more than 1 million voice hardware grow. If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is that rapid globally, and currently have 4 handsets and 2 satellite smartphone transmission of information is crucial. adapters in our portfolio: X5-Touch, XT-PRO DUAL, XT-LITE, XT-PRO, Developed countries have the communications infrastructure to do SatSleeve+ and SatSleeve Hotspot. Together they make us the market this in real time, particularly in metropolitan areas. But what about leader under our coverage area. people in remote areas or in countries with poor or no infrastructure? We have hard wired innovation into our handsets. Thuraya X5-Touch For them, staying connected is vital to keep people safe and the wheels is the world’s first Android satellite phone and is the first touchscreen of the economy turning. phone in the satellite communication industry. This immediately gives Our support for vertical sectors is diverse, spanning government, it a familiar look and feel for millions of cell phone users.. maritime, energy, enterprise, media, leisure and relief. As a subsidiary The X5-Touch is dual mode, so they can switch effortlessly of Yahsat, we are able to provide solutions integrating fixed and mobile between satellite and terrestrial telecom services. Encryption and satellite technologies so that we are able to guarantee walk-and-talk capabilities provide added security and mobility. anywhere/anytime availability and resilience, maximum capabilities, Thuraya X5-Touch is also the most rugged phone in the MSS industry, flexibility, and industry-leading security. with IP67 and MIL standard.

SatMagazine Page 30 July/August 2020 Life-Saving Data Comms In The Air Thuraya has provided relief communications to first responders and aid Thuraya’s in-flight connectivity and data-sharing solution for airborne workers in emergencies and humanitarian crises — notably during the communications is the product of first-class collaboration and Ebola virus outbreaks in West Africa from 2014 to 2016. Inevitably, a innovation. Thuraya Aero was developed through Thuraya’s partnership high percentage of crisis communications involves the exchange of with the Aero Group, a global consortium of industry experts, namely data, or the use of high-bandwidth applications. Cobham, SCOTTY Group, and SRT Wireless. Thuraya Aero syncs Telemedicine technologies, in particular, can play a vital role in direct seamlessly with Thuraya’s L-band network to enable a wide range of patient care during a humanitarian crisis. Doctors use them to perform comms from voice and low-bandwidth data to applications that diagnostics, administer prescribed treatments and offer advice to demand high IP data speeds. These support beyond line-of-sight colleagues in remote locations. (BLOS) operations that demand flexible, affordable communications in Thuraya offers all the data tools users need, with a wide range of the air, such as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), robust, reliable land data terminals for use in static locations or on the border patrol and office-in-the-sky. move. Thuraya IP Voyager, for example, has been designed by Hughes Thuraya Aero is now line-fit available for Airbus H145 and H135 for easy installation in any vehicle. It is a reliable, high-quality and helicopters. The aircraft will be ready to use on delivery, with voice and affordable vehicular satellite terminal designed for a wide range of data connectivity fully functioning. mission-critical on-the-move operations such as border patrol, defense and disaster response. The terminal enables users to collaborate reliably Machine to Machine (M2M) and efficiently with colleagues using video, data, and VoIP to achieve Thuraya has been at the forefront of establishing automated mission critical tasks. technologies and the Internet of Things (IoT) as fixtures in the satellite communications landscape. Our solutions enable highly secure real- Staying Connected At Sea time monitoring, management and control of remote assets and Thuraya has been developing its maritime portfolio for over a decade, operations. but progress has accelerated rapidly in the 3 past years with the The core M2M service is ideal for real-time monitoring and control introduction of both VSAT and new L-band services. Today, our of fixed assets in remote locations via Thuraya’s L-band satellite service. excellent record in maritime communications is based on the sheer Our FT2225 terminal is suited for two-way ‘IP-lite’ applications. Thuraya breadth and quality of our smart, flexible maritime portfolio. This is IP M2M supports high-throughput applications. divided into three segments: For users who need an M2M service that works in a fixed location or in a vehicle on the move, the T2M-DUAL service is ideal. It offers dual- • SeaLite, which includes Thuraya MarineStar and other mode capability that will switch seamlessly between satellite and narrowband products covering Voice and SMS terrestrial communications to optimize two-way connectivity options • SeaPro, which includes the broadband terminals Atlas IP+ and and managed costs. Users can access a web interface or a mobile app Orion IP delivering speeds of up to 444 kbps to monitor status, location and other sensor data for their assets. • OceanPro, which includes the VSAT+ service and deliver increased bandwidth capabilities by integrating Ku- and L-bands. A Template For The Future Thuraya has been quick to recognize the implications of the COVID-19 Thuraya MarineStar, our affordable maritime voice solution launched pandemic for the future of satellite communications. This will require a at the end of 2019, has already proved a best seller, especially in the concentrated focus on the needs of key vertical sectors, such as Asian markets. It includes advanced two-way tracking and monitoring government and maritime, and on M2M and IoT. COVID-19 has caused capabilities, so there is no need for users to invest in a separate a devastating impact, but it has also focused minds globally on what solution to cover these features. Thuraya MarineStar was sold out really matters: keeping people and communities safe and connected, within a month after its launch and first installations have been made and giving businesses the communications tools they need to continue successfully. Key applications include Geofencing, tracking, alerts and to grow and prosper. fish catch reporting. thuraya.com

The author is Sulaiman Al Ali, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Thuraya.

SatMagazine Page 31 July/August 2020 Executive Spotlight: David Hurst Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Orbital Transports

David Hurst is a technology innovator Mr. Hurst founded Orbital Transports to develop the space and entrepreneur, having founded logistics and orbital infrastructure technologies needed for the multiple successful technology emerging economy of space resources—and ultimately to support companies. He has over 30 years of human settlement of the Solar System. Mr. Hurst performs experience in software engineering, systems engineering and project management for small satellite developing complex systems, managing space missions. He is a contributor to the INCOSE Space Systems software development teams, and Working Group CubeSat System Reference Model and develops delivering products. He has performed MBSE practices for small satellite missions. As an advocate of technical due diligence and business space-related and space-scalable business, he founded the strategy assessments for venture capital firms and advanced NewSpace Chicago community of space entrepreneurs and technology start-ups. In 2013, he left the IT industry to follow his others engaged in building commercial space ventures in passion for space exploration. Chicago. Mr. Hurst graduated from Northwestern University with a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He has received four patents.

SatMagazine Page 32 July/August 2020 Good day, Mr. Hurst. What smallsat services and/or ground station services and mission operations, ground transportation products does your company provide to the commercial and orbital transfer services, hosted payload, and satellite servicing and market segments and why are these important to users? refueling technologies. Orbital Transports has brought together the industry’s most David Hurst (DH) innovative and reliable companies to offer the widest possible set of Orbital Transports delivers comprehensive small satellite programs, solutions while meeting strict quality requirements. We will continue to from initial concept through completed mission. We offer turnkey grow the Space Catalog over time, adding new products and services mission outsourcing for start-ups, universities, research institutions, and from our partners, such as launch, legal, and regulatory services. companies interested in harnessing value from space or space data. By bringing the entire small satellite supply chain online, Orbital The company provides space logistics end-to-end by managing the Transports is able to offer hardware, software, services, and engineering complex operations involving the vehicles, human resources, facilities, expertise in a single, structured, searchable catalog. The first resource and services required for successful space missions. of its kind, this catalog offers everything a small satellite operator needs We work very closely with customers to meet their mission objectives to plan a successful mission. and requirements. We do the mission planning and systems Our customers don't have to do the research to find vendors and engineering. We design and assemble the spacecraft. We test the start relationships with dozens of individual companies for their mission. spacecraft and integrate it with the launch vehicle. We schedule launch We’ve already created the trusted source that customers can turn to opportunities. We operate the mission and deliver the customer’s data. for all their smallsat mission needs. Orbital Transports has a network of partner companies that provide With the complete smallsat supply chain in one place, the Space access to a wide variety of products and services needed to fulfill the Catalog facilitates logistics for nanosatellite and smallsat missions. various elements of a space mission. As the general contractor for smallsat missions, Orbital Transports coordinates partners and What do you believe are the most significant challenges connects technologies into an overall package to accomplish the that need to be addressed within the smallsat industry? customer’s mission. DH Why should a client consider Orbital Transports as the The smallsat industry is growing very quickly and consequently the preferred space logistics provider? technology is evolving at a very rapid pace. The component that was state-of-the-art last year may be obsolete this year. A large part of this DH growth is driven by the development of mega-constellations of In addition to these services, we recently launched the Space Catalog, hundreds or thousands of satellites deployed in an array. To meet the a digital portal where our partners can showcase their products and demand, manufacturers must increase their production capability to services for the smallsat market. It provides a convenient go-to resource crank out more and more small satellite components. This will plateau to check out the latest and greatest that the smallsat industry has to in a commodity-type market, where there is a wide array of commercial offer, including small satellite buses, COTS hardware components, off the shelf (COTS) products available for smallsat missions.

SatMagazine Page 33 July/August 2020 Orbital Transports’ AIRSAT smallsat. Imagery is courtesy of the company.

The challenge is the shift away from purely requirements-driven DH mission planning in which technology is developed from scratch We’ll be adding more smallsat industry partners to our network and explicitly for a single mission. Bespoke technology development takes featuring new products and services in the Space Catalog. too long and costs too much for most customers. So we are seeing a shift toward constraint-driven mission planning where requirements are Has Orbital Transports looked into supplying turnkey descoped, and budgets and timing play a much greater role in mission satellite solutions for the military/agency/government planning. Mission planners are increasingly turning to trusted COTS (MAG) market segments? products that meet these mission constraints rather than building their own. They want a trusted source to streamline finding products to meet DH their unique requirements. This transition prompted Orbital Transports Although commercial missions are our primary focus, we are starting to to build the Space Catalog. explore opportunities in the military, agency and government segments. We’re experiencing this transition in the small satellite industry We believe the supply chain efficiencies afforded by the Space Catalog because it’s so fast-moving and I think this trend will soon be felt across will bring enormous benefit to these sectors. the entire space industry. Is there a unique service that Orbital Transports is Please tell us about your company’s recent agreement bringing to the market? with Dawn Aerospace and the goal of this partnership. DH DH Orbital Transports is developing a Biotech Zero Gravity Research Our partnership with Dawn Aerospace is part of our larger strategy to Platform. Our small satellite-based solution supports cellular and bring together the smallsat industry and develop that ecosystem molecular research in zero gravity environments and provides a payload needed in order to grow the market. We’re excited to include their return capability that allows PIs to recover their research materials at products in the Propulsion Systems section of the Space Catalog and the end of the mission. With our new service, you can separate yourself welcome them to our community. Their bi-propellant is a great from gravity and accelerate your research. propulsion system product, and very relevant for smallsat missions. www.orbitaltransports.com What may we expect Orbital Transports to reveal over the next few months?

SatMagazine Page 34 July/August 2020

A Frontier Architecture For New Space

By Rob Andzik, President, AMERGINT Technologies, Inc.

National security and economic stability have always remained top Not only had technology advanced rapidly since the 1950s—when priorities for the U.S. Government, with international and private America’s new civilian space program ushered in a race to the moon, sector partnerships critical to ensure its goals are achieved. competing against its sole rival Russia—the playing field had expanded significantly, with a roster of countries and enterprises vying for a stake. During World War I, for example, the U.S. enlisted the expertise of Now, in the third space age—New Space—governments and private American aeronautics visionary among others to advance the enterprises are using space not solely for exploration but objectives of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), telecommunications, Earth Observation (EO), surveillance and which was formed in 1915 to bolster the nation’s weakened aeronautical everything in between, with a shift away from traditional large satellites influence laid bare in the wake of the war. toward smallsats and cubesats in LEO that are dramatically transforming Quickly establishing itself as an innovator, NACA not only improved communication capabilities. aircraft safety, efficiency, reliability and speed but also introduced In addition to being easier and less expensive to launch, replenish remarkable instruments such as the Variable Density Tunnel, all of which and update in comparison to large satellites sent into higher orbit, paved the way for deep space exploration (the first space age) through smallsats require less power, often providing higher resolution and its successor NASA. detection as well as shorter data transmission relays. It is inarguable that the U.S. bolstered by formidable commercial While it is important to note the many changes and disruptions that enterprises commanded a powerful leadership role in space for have taken place recently—new mega-constellation launches to decades, particularly with the 1962 launch of the experimental satellite provide high-speed internet, commercial contenders filing for and the development of highly sophisticated communications and bankruptcy, the creation of the — the broader issue isn't about satellite systems. smallsats being less expensive to launch and used in entirely new and However, by the 1990s (the start of the second space age), as space exciting ways, or that the entire industry over the next five years is activity accelerated with new advances in technology, the U.S. going to migrate to the cloud increasingly struggled to keep pace.

SatMagazine Page 36 July/August 2020 AMERGINT Technologies satTRACK server.

It’s about how the U.S. can capture all of these new technologies Equally as important, the future holds more rapid changes, new and keep up with the rate of change, particularly since much of our technologies, new threats and new missions that will require a new efforts were concentrated on the second space age. workforce, virtualization, cloud computing capabilities, higher data Today, recent and rapid changes in the defense industry alone have rates, lower costs and more resiliency. made it more important than ever for organizations to respond and adapt Recognizing that U.S. legacy systems are comprised mostly of quickly, with unique requirements and challenges to consider, such as: massive and costly satellites that were architected for low-intensity conflicts rather than today’s cyber warfare, it is essential to fill critical • legacy interfaces operational gaps and mitigate emerging threats moving forward. How • an aging workforce can this be accomplished? • aging technologies When AMERGINT was founded in 2008, the company’s team of • long-lived programs engineers who had decades of experience in satellite communications • critical missions started with a blank slate, building an architecture that moved what was • a largely risk-averse culture traditionally done in hardware—in the form of digital signal processing • regulations and bit-level processing—into software. • processes • fiscal budgets

SatMagazine Page 37 July/August 2020 In 2010, for example, AMERGINT worked with the Johnson Space The software also enables organizations to create a simulation Center and delivered a system that in 2013 went operational and could environment that is impossible in an operational or real environment, handle all of the uplink and downlink for the International Space Station. injecting errors or situations that may be seen only once in 1000 times AMERGINT’s SOFTLINK architecture quickly became rated suitable for and repeated often. human spaceflight. Since then, it has undergone more than 20 different Operating in the highest levels of government and the intelligence evolutions to support an ever-changing “lab” in space, increasing community with TRL 9 systems, anything we touch, from satellite and bandwidth, increasing number of streams and supporting that mission missile defense to legacy systems 30 years old, can be modified and in real time. connected in the future. In addition to the International Space Station, AMERGINT supports Organizations recognizing the disadvantages of a traditional the monitor and control links for the GPS constellation and the data hardware/firmware approach—the long timeline in developing a acquisition systems and monitoring control systems for , providing a capability and fielding once its developed—understand that missions critical link right up to the first motion of rocket launch. are no longer predictable, particularly in a new era of electronic warfare. In fact, AMERGINT now supports well over 60 different national Uninhibited by years-long design and development lifecycles, programs with their critical monitoring, controlling satellites, payload they are now utilizing dynamic and custom-built applications for both links, imagery data and more, with systems in place that have evolved general and specific use cases, with the agility and rapid to meet each of these programs in very unique places. evolutionary process necessary to help create a fully connected and secure space domain.

SatMagazine Page 38 July/August 2020 There’s no irony lost in the fact that while billions of people are tethered to Earth, with many confined to their homes as a result of COVID- 19, the space above us has never been more competitive, congested and contested. However, as history shows, it is human nature to push boundaries, to explore and, in many instances, dominate. No doubt commercial developments will create some of the most exciting and potentially game-changing opportunities ever seen for advancing U.S. space capabilities. By embracing new frontier architecture, technologies and partnerships, the U.S. will achieve its economic and security goals while at the same time shaping the future of New Space. International Space Station, GPS, AFSCN, MMSOC and launch systems for Atlas and Delta rockets. Rob Andzik is President of AMERGINT He was also co-chair of the Object Management Group® Technologies, responsible for leading and growing (OMG®) Space Domain Task Force (SDTF) and author of the OMG’s a team of about 100 of the industry’s brightest and Ground Equipment Monitoring Service™ (GEMS) specification. most experienced engineers, software developers, A graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, with technicians and professional staff who are degrees in aerospace engineering and computer science, Rob is experts in solving complex and varied problems. Chairman of the Board for Lalmba, a humanitarian relief Through strategic development that leverages organization empowering rural communities in Kenya and AMERGINT’s highly agile software-based technologies, Rob Ethiopia to provide their own people with high-quality basic inspires excellence at every level to help evolve the space and health care, effective public health initiatives, microfinance and defense industries from decades-old technologies to those support for vulnerable children. needed to achieve future missions. With over 70 space programs and associated ground networks relying on AMERGINT products, AMERGINT Technologies is an essential and trusted partner in Rob ensures his teams consistently deliver transformative, high- the evolution of the Space and Defense Industries by focusing on quality solutions on time and with a deliberate, precise focus on mission-critical communication and data paths through the customer success. capture, processing, transport and exploitation of vital Prior to AMERGINT, Rob worked at Lockheed Martin and RT mission data. Logic, serving in various capacities including software developer, software architect and business area manager. A highly sought- www.amergint.com after engineer, he designed, implemented and maintained satellite communication systems for programs that included the

SatMagazine Page 39 July/August 2020 The Road To Robust Navigation Dr. Tyler Reid, Co-Founder and Chief Technical Officer, Xona Space Systems

During the past two decades, satellite navigation became revolutionary — with more than 5 billion enabled devices, Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) find utility in nearly all facets of modern life, from the source of time for communications networks to the source of safety-critical positioning in civil aviation.

Now, another revolution has appeared on the horizon, one that promises disruption of transportation, mobility, and safety. Autonomous systems in the form of self-driving cars, aerial platforms and mobile robotics are on rise, targeting improved access to the mobility of people, goods, and services. This transformation is one whose complexity demands more than what today’s navigation systems can provide. Xona’s vision is one of a connected and autonomous future that leverages investment in new space infrastructure for navigation services that are robust, reliable, and secure. To understand where navigation is headed, we turn to the past to understand its evolution. One hundred years ago, the state-of-the-art was celestial navigation used by mariners at sea. The Second World War brought new needs with an emerging aviation market and spawned the advent of ground-based radio navigation aids. The Cold War brought satellites to navigation that eventually lead to the familiar GPS with GPS, this implies that the mid 2020s will demand decimeter, or (Global Positioning System) that became operational in the mid 1990s. better, performance. Looking at capability over time, this progress reveals a clear trend: Autonomous systems are one of many coming applications that drive within the last century, there has been an order of magnitude this need. Localization is a foundational element of autonomous driving. improvement in location accuracy every 30 years. Each step has Knowledge of precise vehicle location, coupled with highly detailed required investment in new infrastructure to reach new capabilities. maps, add the context needed to drive with confidence. With meter-level positioning first widely available in the mid-1990s

SatMagazine Page 40 July/August 2020 To maintain an autonomous vehicle within its lane, highway operation RF interference is a growing threat on the road. Often motivated by requires knowledge of location at 50 cm, where local city roads require privacy concerns, low-cost GNSS jammers are a popular means of 30 cm1. The challenge facing auto makers is meeting the required level disrupting fleet tracking. Between 2016 and 2018, more than 50,000 of reliability. Current targets place this at Automotive Safety Integrity such disruptions were recorded on European roads alone. Level (ASIL) D, which has been argued to represent one failure per The cybersecurity of GNSS is another emerging and perhaps even billion miles of driving for subsystems like localization, a feat not yet more menacing threat. Designed in the 1970s, civil GNSS signals are demonstrated. Current Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Level 4 unencrypted and unauthenticated, leaving vulnerabilities that can be fully autonomous systems primarily rely on LiDAR for localization, but exploited with counterfeit (spoofed) signals. several technologies are emerging to meet this challenge including Less than ten years ago, GNSS spoofing required specialized computer vision, radar, and GNSS. expertise and equipment that cost upwards of $50,000. Now, with open Though some have shown progress in meeting these needs in certain source software and more accessible hardware, spoofing attacks can circumstances or conditions, they all struggle to fully solve the problem be accomplished for as little as $100. to the level of reliability, safety, and security that will ultimately be needed. With increasing accessibility to spoofing technology has come a LiDAR and vision struggle in inclement weather due to absorption or higher frequency of, and increased severity, of attacks. For example, scattering and is further hindered by occlusions. Radar, though more at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, several automotive manufactures impervious to weather, is limited by sensor noise and resolution. LiDAR, including Audi, Peugeot, Renault, Rolls-Royce, Volkswagen, Daimler- vision, and radar approaches also require a data intensive localization Benz, and BMW reported their vehicles’ GNSS to be in Buckingham, map layer which must be maintained and updated frequently. England, in the year 2036, the result of a suspected widespread GNSS technologies have also seen substantial investment in the spoofing attack. Later in 2019, researchers at Regulus Cyber Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) and autonomous driving demonstrated this vulnerability in autonomy with a staged spoofing domains. There is now continent-scale deployment of GNSS monitoring attack on a Tesla Model S and Model 3, creating unsafe behavior of stations in service, delivering correction services via cellular. the autopilot. The accuracy required for lane-determination to support future ADAS The challenge to be faced is how to achieve localization applications is nearing production where research systems are requirements on accuracy, availability, integrity, continuity, scalability, approaching that needed for full self-driving. Though GNSS accuracy and security while maintaining reasonable Cost, Size, Weight, and is approaching the needs of autonomy, other risks remain with Power (CSWaP). Furthermore, autonomous systems will interoperate in availability, interference, and cybersecurity. our cities, necessitating a common standard.

The advantages of LEO.

SatMagazine Page 41 July/August 2020 The safest maneuvers are informed with the most complete picture gives access to a long-term frequency standard, where other clocks of the surroundings. This requires going beyond the line of sight of such as Oven Control Crystal Oscillators (OCXO) can be considered for vehicle sensors and creating situational awareness at city levels. This the shorter term on satellites in LEO. demands an environment of collaborative data sharing through vehicle A GNSS receiver onboard the satellite has further implications for communication. Such a framework enables vehicles and infrastructure orbit determination, where sub-decimeter GNSS-based orbit to act collectively, improving safety and reducing the risk of collision. determination has already been demonstrated in real-time. Complexity Such data sharing is only effective if there is an agreed upon standard is further reduced by virtue of the operating environment, where LEO and datum with appropriate measures for data security. radiation levels are more amenable to Commercial-Of-The-Self (COTS) Investment in infrastructure for the establishment of such a components of automotive or industrial grade. The trade-off is in the standardized system offers the potential for the most economical and numbers, where it takes around 300 LEO satellites to match the lightweight navigation solution for the end user. Satellite navigation coverage of the 30 or so GPS satellites in MEO today. These elements offers a ubiquitous reach with established global datums and thus is combine to create the conditions for a streamlined navigation payload considered the logical choice for such a universal standard. which can be supported by several commodity satellite buses. To meet these demands, Xona is building a navigation service to be This model leverages the best of ‘traditional’ and ‘new’ space to delivered from Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) smallsats. Compared to GNSS combine and deliver new navigation signals with new capability to users in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), such satellites will be located 20 to 40 on Earth and is another step on the road to safe autonomy. times closer to Earth, having substantial implications for user performance and satellite payload cost. LEO satellites can provide www.xonaspace.com/ robust position accuracy, in part through rapid estimation of carrier phase ambiguities via speedier motion across the sky. Proximity to Earth References 1T. G. R. Reid, S. E. Houts, R. Cammarata, G. Mills, S. Agarwal, A. Vora, G. leads to stronger signals for the end user, giving better tracking Pandey., “Localization Requirements for Autonomous Vehicles,” SAE Int. J. performance and substantial resilience in the face of RF interference. Connect. Autom. Veh., vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 12-02-03–0012, Sep. 2019, doi: Lastly, such a signal is not bound by legacy systems and can be 10.4271/12-02-03-0012. designed with modern encryption and data authentication for resistance to spoofing attack. Traditionally the domain of Dr. Tyler Reid is a co-founder and CTO of Xona Space government organizations, building a commercial satellite navigation Systems, a start-up focused on GNSS augmentation service is unprecedented. However, there is also revolution underway from LEO. Previously, Tyler worked as a Research in the space sector. The new space movement challenges the Engineer with the Controls and Automated Systems traditional approach and has resulted in a tenfold reduction in the cost team at Ford Motor Company, working in localization per kilogram to orbit in recent years. and mapping for self-driving cars. He also worked as Satellites and components have become commoditized and roll off a Software Engineer at Google’s Street View and a assembly lines instead of being individually crafted for each mission. lecturer at Stanford University where co-taught the graduate These ingredients create an ecosystem where Mega Constellations of course on GPS. Tyler received his Ph.D. (’17) and M.Sc. (’12) in thousands of satellites are being constructed by the likes of SpaceX, Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford where he worked in Telesat and Amazon to meet the global demand for broadband. the GPS Research Lab and his B.Eng. (’10) in Mechanical The GNSS satellites of today host kilowatt navigation payloads, Engineering from McGill University. which use space-rated atomic clocks to drive a half dozen signals toward Earth. These live in MEO in the outer Van Allen radiation belt, Xona Space Systems is a California-based start-up whose sights are the harshest environment that Earth satellites operate in today. set on building the satellite navigation infrastructure needed to Moving to LEO offers several opportunities. First, the tens of billions support intelligent transportation systems, such as self-driving cars. of dollars of GNSS infrastructure above in MEO can be leveraged. This

SatMagazine Page 42 July/August 2020

The Role Of Space Technology In A Post COVID-19 Era By Natasha Allden, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, MULTIPLY Global Ltd.

Words, such as bounce-back, rebuild, pivot, restart, are being used This article considers technology transfer as a way to build a in articles, webinars and conversations in today’s day-to-day diversified portfolio, embedding resilience and enabling growth in a business world. post COVID-19 space sector and builds on recent industry discussions, including the feedback received as a guest speaker at the AstroAgency- Some reports predict the economy is on a slow rebuild post COVID hosted Technology Transfer webinar. 19—others report a delayed bounce-back as headlines warn all of the At the end of the article there is a link to a short, one minute survey worst recession in our lifetime. to allow us to gather further intelligence and better understand In the space industry, discussions with industry professionals are technology transfer activity in the space industry. highlighting a more optimistic view, referring to nearer-term bounce— We will publish the findings from this survey to provide a snapshot what does this really mean? What does it mean to the survival of space of the current environment and future opportunities or challenges to companies in the short-term, their ability to adapt to a new normal in inform industry and government. the medium term and their resilience against future disruptions in the long-term?

SatMagazine Page 44 July/August 2020 What Bounce-Back Could Look Like serve multiple sectors and applications. Therefore, this question is Confidence is the key word here. When confidence in the economy directed to revenue-generating, post-seed, pre-listed, companies. starts to return, so will investment and funding. However, to build With what we’ve learned from COVID-19, surely, is that there is a confidence companies need to demonstrate their viability and growth. need to build resilience as well as growth potential into businesses There are two possible approaches: earlier on. During a recent webinar, organized during the peak of lockdown by strategic space marketing firm AstroAgency, there was a • Existing: Companies focus on growing their market share and panel on this subject that had participants excitedly using phrases such developing their existing products for that market. a "dual income" and “multiple routes to market.” The concept of • New: Companies focus on entering new markets with existing finding multiple clients for technology that was developed primarily for offerings, taking their products or services into new applications space really resonated with that webinar group. with existing or new markets, they may even look to develop entirely new products. Technology Transfer Technology transfer is about diversifying your portfolio, spreading your Not all routes are right for every company, but all need to be considered risk and improving opportunities for success. It is about transferring your as part of a strategic review. For those companies looking at the new technology, skills and capability into new markets (industries and approach, they should be looking at technology transfer. geographies) and new applications—often using new business models. Space agencies, including NASA and ESA, have dedicated pro-active Diversified Portfolio technology transfer programs. However, technology transfer is often In financial markets, a diversified investment portfolio is one that referred to as “spill-overs” in the commercial, business-to-business focusses on a mix of assets to realise the highest return for the least context, implying a reactive, accidental, activity. Spill-over value to the risk. Different assets (stocks, fixed income, commodities, etc.) react public far exceeds the direct £3 to £4 return on every public £1 invested differently to economic changes, which makes a diversified portfolio by space agencies in single-purpose technology development. more resilient. Even colloquially, people speak about “not putting all There is no definitive measure of the economic value from space their eggs in one basket.” technology transfer, particularly given the intangible elements such as Why are technology companies often singularly focused on products skill and knowledge sharing. However, there are studies that indicate for one market? This is, in part, linked to the maturity of the company. the size of the potential impact. Start-ups are focused on delivering on their initial investment promises For example, NASA estimates they have generated $1.5 billion while established technology companies in mass markets often already added value through their life sciences technology transfer. If this is

SatMagazine Page 45 July/August 2020 the size of the opportunity created by one public organisation in a products, looking to move into high value or high-volume markets, single sector, it raises the question—what value could be generated if were well placed to benefit from diversification. the commercial space industry did more business-to-business An industry that is achieving revenue growth cross-sector, driving technology transfers? export and stimulating private investment, is one that is succeeding. In 2018, MULTIPLY held a number of interviews with UK space An industry too dependent on public financing or limited customer companies to obtain their views on technology transfer. All participants channels is at risk. To realize sustainable commercial industries, you recognized the value, citing revenue growth as a primary driver for them need to build sustainable commercial companies. to proactively do technology transfer. Other reasons cited included: With the reality of our vulnerabilities laid bare by COVID-19, resilience and growth need to be at the heart of every company’s • Demonstrating scalability to raise investment strategy. Technology transfer, for many, has a core role to play. • Accessing new geographic regions with new products, which then enables cross-sell back to their original product Survey • Bringing learnings back into their core offering We’ve considered technology transfer to build a diversified portfolio • De-risking the business from disruption by removing reliance on approach to the post COVID-19 space sector and what this could look only a few revenue streams like. Now we’d like to get your input to understand your current • Demonstrating innovation and leadership, boosting company technology transfer activity and your future technology transfer and employer brand, building pride amongst employees and intentions and appetite. improving retention Please follow the link at the end of this paragraph to participate in a short, 3 minute survey—your input will enable us to present a snapshot In spite of this, a number of barriers (perceived and actual) were of the current environment and make recommendations for the future also cited: to both industry and government.

• Considered a distraction from core business www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/CCZK7TB • Do not have the bandwidth to put time into non-core activity • Do not have resources to invest into non-core activity www.multiply.space • Don’t have in-house skills and experience • Don’t have access into other markets The author is Natasha Allden, the Founder and CEO • Considered too early in their growth to diversify of MULTIPLY Global Ltd. • Existing investors want them to focus on one core offering MULTIPLY works with advanced engineering At Multiply, we’ve considered technology transfer as a vehicle for companies, specializing in the space sector, to resilience and growth for the post COVID-19 space sector, so, what multiply value through business-to-business could this look like? technology transfer programmes and ventures. Established in 2015 MULTIPLY has developed opportunities in excess of £30 What If…? million for their clients from public grants, private financing, What if taking a diversified portfolio approach was the new norm? I’d technology transfer, new markets and collaborations. MULTIPLY go so far as to say not “if,” but “why aren’t we already doing so”? What defines, designs and delivers strategic propositions through end- if technology transfer was considered as core business? What if to-end customer programs for clients globally. investors and governments looked at technology transfer value-add as a scored criterion in investment and funding decisions? I am not suggesting this as a silver bullet, nor as the correct solution for every company. MULTIPLY’s study in 2018 noted that technology transfer could pose a challenge for those early stage R&D companies that were not sufficiently resourced, securely funded, nor their technology yet proven in their core business. However, those [more established] companies with proven technology, typically with early adopters already buying their

SatMagazine Page 46 July/August 2020 YOUR NETWORK JUST GOT SMARTER.

Access to bandwidth has drastically improved around the world, but people still struggle with long lag times and excessive data overage fees. All of that is changing.

Datadragon lets you understand, optimize, and prioritize your bandwidth according to your speci c needs, while it learns your usage patterns to anticipate what you’ll need in the future.

Expect more from your network, with Datadragon. Learn more here: https://isotropic.network/datadragon

MOBILITY SATELLITE INNOVATION AWARDS

TOP 5G HYBRID/WIRELESS © 2020 Isotropic Networks, Inc. All rights reserved. MOBILITY INNOVATION Squire Tech’s pCOM

A Case In Point: Datadragon™ Galvanizes Squire Tech’s Mission Critical Solutions

Squire Tech’s wide portfolio of solutions have been deployed across The Challenge a range of different scenarios from police departments to the Squire Tech must be able to offer its customers highly reliable services energy sector, sheriff’s offices and construction companies. The that are fast to deploy and that are highly portable but, most company’s technology has also been widely used during major importantly, that are completely failsafe and able to operate wherever disruptive events and emergency situations. and whenever they are required. In the event of an emergency or disaster, communications are critical. The popular pCom platform has evolved over time as the company has Often, it is telecommunications networks that are hit most negatively by implemented ideas derived from feedback from their customers’ and these situations as their connectivity relies on the stability of terrestrial is now available in a range of models (the pCom Mini, pCom XL and communications such as wires and cell towers. These may become pCom LT). All models are easy to deploy and can be quickly transported damaged or simply overloaded as there is a surge in call volume. to offer vital communications at the heart of where they are needed. At these times, those involved in the recovery effort — public safety The company also offers satellite-based business continuity and mobile and emergency management teams — must be prepared to use other SATCOM solutions. forms of communications.

SatMagazine Page 48 July/August 2020

VSAT technology enables rapid deployment of all-IP connectivity, anywhere. As no prior infrastructure is required, SATCOMs can simply be driven into a disaster zone and be operating within minutes. Cells on Wheels (COWS) offer the complete package that emergency management and first responder teams require. This technology allows fast connectivity to vital information anywhere and anytime, making it ideal for disaster recovery, emergency response, or for crowded events. Once their solutions have been deployed, the challenge for Squire Tech is to manage their customers’ throughput effectively and to enable them to communicate and use all the applications necessary to fulfil their mission. In these situations, bandwidth can be scarce, so it is essential that it is used wisely and efficiently. Squire Tech required a solution that could allow them to monitor throughput usage and allocate it across their entire network.

The Solution: Datadragon™ Squire Tech made the decision to deploy Isotropic Network’s Datadragon bandwidth management platform across their entire product range. Datadragon is an intuitive bandwidth management platform that enables unprecedented levels of application-level transparency, The company can now analyze and efficiently distribute bandwidth, optimization, and personalization across single, multi-use, or creating opportunities from surplus availability. This has enabled Squire hybrid networks. Tech to become a more profitable business, to operate a more efficient Datadragon allows providers to move beyond current data models network and enables their customers to get much more out of the and work with their customers to create smart plans based on actual network that they have purchased. usage. Its artificial intelligence (AI) and built-in analytics learn usage The company has deployed during some of the most recent patterns, then optimize throughout and deliver access to data based disasters, including the devastating hurricanes in Florida that have been on available bandwidth streams from all terrestrial and satellite-based further complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, another event where platforms. Datadragon provides users with the amount and quality of Squire Tech’s equipment has been proven essential. Use of Datadragon connectivity they need for their applications. has transformed operations. The platform operates on three core principles: “Since deploying Datadragon, we now have the ability to visualize the data across the network, prioritize time critical applications such as Increase Visibility by providing users with a real-time picture of VoIP, and ensure no data flow is left behind,” said Michael Zalle, Vice throughput utilization, down to the application level, across any President at Squire Tech Solutions. “With the Datadragon portal, we single, multiuse, and hybrid networks. can easily see if the client is online, where the client geographically is, and whether the data is properly being allocated. This is vital to us, as Optimize Access by giving users control. Let them see, allocate, our clients often have limited resources available to them during critical and purchase bandwidth based on their unique needs. times. The difference that Datadragon has made to our client’s overall user experience has been immeasurable.” Reduce Friction through Datadragon’s analytics and AI. Provide internet access that simply “works” by automatically allocating squiretechsolutions.com throughput based on user history and demand. Based in Plano, Texas, Squire Tech Solutions is a mobile The Result command and critical enterprise communications service Squire Tech’s customers are no longer met with the frustrations of provider specializing in user-friendly VSAT and wireless enabled dropped connections and slow lag times at a time when rapid voice, video, and data for mission critical needs. connectivity becomes a lifesaver and communications are mission critical.

SatMagazine Page 50 July/August 2020 Satellite Technology To Help 5G Networks Overcome Lower Signal Strength In Remote Areas

By Rahul Papney, Principal Consultant, BIS Research

Telecommunications technology via 5G has the potential to the mid-range frequency spectrum, which is mostly used for specialized transform the everyday lives of humankind. The use of 5G communications, such as military and other SATCOM programs. technology can further lead to economic growth as well as the digitalization of a connected society — 5G technology is resilient, Better speed: Ideally, 4G network allow for 1 Gbps of download speed, ubiquitoua and... unlimited. whereas 5G allows around 20 Gbps. However, the challenges associated with this speed include the limitations imposed by carriers. 5G technology-based networks offer faster speed over 4G and can Keeping in mind the current infrastructure, a 5G network is expected easily sustain a large number of devices at a given time and can to deliver approximately 5 to 10 times more data at a speed of 10 Gbps. transform the entire telecom industry. Furthermore, the technical To achieve this, several low-power stations are to be installed to developments occurring in the 5G architecture augments the capacity maintain this faster speed. The mobile telecommunications standard of the network to transmit information. Thus, a combination of 5G and organization highlights the potential of integrated satellite and 5G satellite technology can deliver disruption in the communications and network infrastructure, especially for communications across industries satellite industry by creating numerous opportunities. including aeronautical, maritime, and railways. Such opportunities include backhaul, trunking, mobility and hybrid networks. The backhaul in the network will enable connecting remote Satellites assisting 5G network reach: One of the major challenges of areas through satellite communication (SATCOM) and will increase the 5G bandwidth is overcoming the lower signal strength. Satellite ease of recording data and communication. Trunking will further enable technology can help 5G networks reach remote areas as well as gathering data from remote locations by enabling data sharing over communications in areas with limited population to help those users certain frequencies. gain access to 5G networks, even when there is no availability to basic Additionally, to support the growing number of connected vehicles, broadband and mobile services. wireless connectivity is highly required. However, terrestrial networks are not always successful in providing it; thus, a 5G satellite network can Frequent satellite launches: Until March 2019, more than 58 percent of help overcome this challenge that is resident with mobility connectivity. U.S. satellites were used for commercial requirements and such Another area of opportunity for 5G satellite communication are the launches are expected to increase in future. These frequent satellite Over-The-Top (OTT) media services, where 5G SATCOM networks can launches were also accomplished because latency was one of the major play a major role in IP based content distribution. factors limiting the exiting SATCOM communication constellations. The expectation is that an increased number of satellite constellations will The Framework of 5G Architecture be launched as part of the 5G network establishment via satellite 5G architecture is witnessing several innovations and technological technology. These satellite constellation are launched into different improvements, such as virtualization and automation, faster speed as orbits, including Low-Earth Orbit (LEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), well as low latency, and continuous IoT support, all accompanied by Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO), and Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO). In frequent satellite launches. particular, LEO and GEO systems are projected to deliver universal coverage to fulfill the 5G latency requirements. Automation and virtual versions: These optimize the performance of the server by combining the components and resources of both Constant IoT support: One of the most ambitious goals of 5G is to aid hardware and software. The 5G technology aids developments, such the expansion of devices that encompass the Internet of Things (IoT). as network slicing. Also, the technology supports highly efficient and Owing to the advancements in frequency, more devices can transmit cost-effective performance in the transmission of data over the network. data without causing performance issues.

Enhanced channel bandwidth: To reduce the latency in data transfer and SATCOM to optimize speed, higher frequency channels are being used. The target The major benefits and disadvantages associated with SATCOM is of 5G SATCOM is to remove latency with a target of 1ms. 5G network commonly known to the fraternity. For instance, SATCOM supports operates in a low band spectrum; however, it shifts to a higher frequency extensive, geographical connectivity coverage without necessarily channel of the millimeter-wave spectrum to mark a significant change to deploying fixed infrastructure, including cable links. This makes 5G enhance speed. In addition, 5G networks are also being developed for SATCOM an efficient solution for rural and remote area coverage.

SatMagazine Page 51 July/August 2020 Furthermore, additional strengths include high bandwidth capacity as well Avanti conducted a live satellite network demonstration that consisted as the capability of content broadcasting and multicasting on a large scale. of GEO HYLAS 4 satellite and used iDirect 5G enabled gateway satellite The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is planning to pay ground infrastructure for high bandwidth. satellite providers, such as Intelsat, to release airwaves for implementing Moreover, with the development of a 5G network around the globe, 5G mobile network, and, in turn, sell these airwaves through public the demand for SATCOM services has emerged at a rapid pace, auction to providers. especially when it comes to gathering remote area and the integrating that data at a central location. The evolution of the 5G satellite 5G Satellite Communication Market Estimation communication network is expected to create higher bandwidth or low As per the market intelligence published by BIS Research, the 5G latency services to end users. In order to achieve this, numerous SATCOM market is estimated to be around $1.31 billion in 2021, with satellites are placed in various bands, which can provide a balance a projection to grow at a significant CAGR of 28.91 percent during the between throughput, quality, and coverage. forecast period, 2021 to 2030. This growth of the market is sustained by the increasing demand for higher bandwidth and low latency from 5G Satellite Communication Spectrum Used end-use industries, including aviation, transportation and logistics and The different types of spectrum bands that support the 5G satellite consumer electronics. Presently, these end use industries are struggling communications include L- and S-band, C- and X band and Ku- and Ka- to provide optimum performance on current communication network band. The L- and S-band is expected to support 5G SATCOM due to its technologies, along with present bandwidth, and are struggling to low frequency and is the suitable bandwidth for wireless communications provide optimum performance to their users. connecting 5G terrestrial network to satellites, used by the maritime In addition, the 5G SATCOM market is also facing a number of industry for tracking small ships and vessels, and for fishing applications. challenges, such as the complications present that pertain to the C- and X-bands are expected to be the prominent frequency band integration of 5G mobile wireless terrestrial systems and SATCOM for the 5G SATCOM services — the low-frequency spectrum of C-band signaling, which is difficult due to the intricate architecture of each could, potentially, serve low bandwidth applications. This is expected sector. In order to offer reliable and robust 5G SATCOM services, a to increase in popularity with the military for various radar applications, service provider tends to drive for global coverage through the access including pulsed, continuous-wave, dual-polarization, single- to a large number of satellites in a constellation. polarization, and synthetic aperture radar during the forecast period. The Ku- and Ka-band segment will account for the highest market 5G SATCOM End-Use Industries and Orbits Used penetration and those bandwidths are anticipated to retain their Aviation, consumer electronics, energy, and heavy industries, among position during the forecast period, as well. These frequency bands others, have been rapidly evolving, the current communication network have a huge advantage of possesing large bandwidth and being able technologies and bandwidths also need enhancements to deliver optimum to support applications that require high transmission power. Ka- and performance. The consumer electronics industry is growing owing to the Ku-band are expected to be widely used to support connectivity rising demand for high-speed browsing required by different consumer applications the demand high throughput during the coming years. devices, such as smartphones, coupled with lower latency AR/VR devices, causing a higher market penetration. This, in turn, is driving the demand bisresearch.com for 5G SATCOM in the consumer electronics segment. The parameters for high-performing networks are low latency, high Rahul has over 5 years of experience and is bandwidth, high system spectral efficiency, and peak throughput, along responsible for tracking technological and market with less energy loss. Further, the different types of orbits for the 5G developments in space, aviation, military, robotics SATCOM market include LEO, MEO and GEO. and automation sectors. He is responsible for LEO-based satellites have higher market penetration as the guiding the development of deep insightful investment required for manufacturing an applicable small or medium- research studies pertaining to several emerging sized satellite is low when compared to the capital required for technologies in the aerospace and defense industry. He ensures manufacturing a large, heavy satellite. For instance, China launched the perpetual interaction with clients to develop customized Yinhe-1 commercial 5G satellite into LEO in mid-January 2020. The solutions specific to the requirements of the organization in satellite is expected to test Ka- band communications. focus. Some of the major clients catered by him include leading However, GEO-based satellites can help achieve this feat as they organizations such as Airbus, Boeing, Israel Aerospace Industries, provide a broad range of network reach, cover a wide portion of Earth’s Eutelsat, Microcosm Inc, Aguila Ammunition, and Teradyne Inc surface for data transfer and connect the extreme corners of the globe (Universal Robots), among others. for communication, due to their high altitude. For instance, in 2019,

SatMagazine Page 52 July/August 2020 SatNews CONNECTIONS ON EARTH FOR CONNECTIONS IN SPACE

agazine atellite M ide S ldw Wor

20 20 rch Ma US agazine JOIN E! SatM NLIN s O es . iv an ulliv rost & S ch f F sy o urte e is co ag ver im Free subscriptions and acces Co Timely newsCom anpdlet ede itarorials/reg s.com satnew

SatMagazine | MilsatMagazine | SatNews.com Seymour “Sy” Liebergot and Katharine Johnson (ca 1960’s)

Old Space. New Tricks.

By Dr. Mark Lake, Chief Technical Officer, Roccor

#NewSpace or #Space2.0 have become incendiary hashtags in New Jersey to be the electrical, environmental and consumables social media and board room conversations around the aerospace manager, or EECOM, for Gene Krantz’s “White Flight” of mission industry. Their use intentionally irritates proponents of control engineers. Unlike most people who do shift work, Sy considered antidisestablishmentarianism and loosens anchors to the status quo his job more play than work. Every two weeks when the government- in a middle-aged and sluggish aerospace industry whose customers stamped paycheck arrived, Sy would whisper under his breath: “I can’t are demanding to be reborn. And out of the cauldron of these believe I get paid to do this.” Sy loved his work. conversations, a greater clarity is emerging on what must change As Sy settled into a spare chair at the EECOM console, he learned and what must never change... that the previous night hadn’t been “A-okay” as the Houston news radio station had reported during his drive to work. An alarm had As the sun rose over Houston on April 13, 1970, it displaced a waxing awoken the crew warning of low pressure inside a hydrogen tank in one quarter moon and slowly brought the hazy gulf coast sky to a low of the spacecraft’s fuel cells. Either the tank was leaking, or the pressure simmer. A little after noon, Seymour "Sy" Liebergot retreated from this sensor had was failing — and Sy had to sort it out. sauna into the air-conditioning of Control Room 2 in Building 30 at In 1970, NASA’s Mission Control Room was the epitome of the new NASA’s Johnson Space Center. His shift didn’t start for about an hour, space age and the mid-mod style of interior design it inspired. Rows of but Sy wanted to get to his engineering station early and find out what, sage-green computers on white linoleum desks neatly trimmed in if anything, might have gone wrong the night before. He didn’t want to brushed aluminum and were anchored to a grey-tiled concrete floor. start his shift “behind the curve.” He wanted to get up to speed on the The walls, being a slightly brighter hue of sage green, reached two spacecraft’s current condition so that he could be “ahead of the curve” stories to a ceiling grid of off-white acoustic tiles and florescent lights. during the next eight hours of the mission. Fifty years later, the style of architectural design has once again become The mission was NASA’s third attempt to land on the moon. And Sy fashionable. The style of engineering development has once again was a young aeronautical engineer who had moved to Houston from become necessary.

SatMagazine Page 54 July/August 2020 The people in Sy’s Mission Control room were some of the most Hidden figures, such as Katherine Johnson at the Langley Research creative and talented minds in NASA’s spaceflight program and their Center, assumed critically important roles within the machinery of jobs were to challenge the status quo, if necessary, in order to solve engineering development, quietly away from the spotlight of the hard problems quickly and ensure the mission was successful ultimately. celebrated astronauts, and fiercely committed to getting the Each of NASA’s Mission Control engineers was an expert in their field, engineering done quickly and correctly. thoroughly knowledgeable about a particular spacecraft subsystem, The pace of engineering and flight demonstration was incredibly fast and quite capable of dealing creatively with “check engine” lights from compared to what has become the sluggish norm of our industry at the Apollo spacecraft that weren’t easy to explain. middle age. Mistakes were made — like the infamous fuel cell problem Sy had learned that explaining a “check engine” light required on Apollo 13 — but they were quickly resolved while mission managers socializing the problem among other Mission Control engineers. So, he managed around the occasional failures essential to fast-paced discussed the possible causes with the rest of the White Flight control development ut expectata. engineers, asking each if they had seen any spurious spikes in their data Process and procedure that today are perceived as safeguards streams that might help isolate a singular cause. against failure were originally conceived a half-century ago to Sy was aware that each flight control engineer was cautious not to encourage early failure — fail fast — as guarantees of speed and announce a problem until he was fairly sure there actually was one efficiency. They were produced by those responsible for ensuring speed evident. Sy called this practice “sand bagging.” None of the steely- and efficiency — the thousands of hidden scientists and engineers eyed missile men who manned the engineering consoles in Mission whose passions for their work drove them to produce good technical Control wanted to be over cautious and run the risk of changing the results quickly and efficiently and who embrace early failure as essential flight plan — or worse yet cancelling the flight plan — because of ghost to learning and improvement. problems conjured up by some errant sensor in their system. However, Now we are fighting over what should change and what must remain once it was clear there was a problem, Sy and his engineering the same as our industry moves into a #NewSpace renaissance. Those colleagues quickly shared all forensic data that could help explain what of us in the shadows of this debate see our role as no different than that was going wrong. of Sy Liebergot and Katharine Johnson. For us, #NewSpace is really old Filtering out the “ghosts” in the data, the team concluded that the space with a few new tricks. problem was most likely — but not certainly — a bad sensor. They Once again, we have to solve hard engineering problems on a daily agreed to keep an eye on the rest of the data sensors, watching closely basis. Once again, we must rely on teams of the best and the brightest how the system performed over the remainder of the mission. Then, as engineering minds. Once again, we must create an environment that the astronauts prepared to go to sleep that evening, another feels more like play than work. And once again, we have to expect that explanation occurred to Sy. moving fast means occasionally the best among us will make mistakes. Two days earlier, the fuel cell tanks were filled to their tops with However, this time we’ve got to do all this and — no kidding — we super-cooled liquid hydrogen and oxygen. They now contained a slurry have to do it less expensively! of gas and liquid that, in zero gravity, can easily separate into globules of liquid floating in pockets of gas. This cryogenic sludge, Sy decided, www.roccor.com could be fouling the sensors. He further thought that a fouled sensor might be cleared if the sludge was stirred up and the pockets of gas Author Dr. Mark Lake is the Chief Technology Officer recombined with the globs of liquid. at Roccor where he oversees technology and Sy asked White Flight Director Gene Kranz’s permission to have the advanced product development efforts, multi- Apollo 13 astronauts turn on electric motors to stir the frozen slurry organization cooperative ventures, and strategic one last time before they went to bed... and we all know what partnerships for technology capitalization. Dr. Lake happened next. started his career as a research engineer and program Fifty years ago, old space was new space. Our industry was only a manager for NASA. He has published over 50 decade old — not much older than today’s hashtags #NewSpace and research publications in the field of aircraft and spacecraft #Space2.0 — and each mission had an element of the new and the structures and a book entitled, The Inventor’s Puzzle: unknown. The engineering design and mission operations rule books Deciphering the Business of Product Innovation. He is also an were being written by the people — such as Sy Liebergot — who Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and designed and managed those early missions. At its very beginning in the Astronautics and an adjunct member of the graduate faculty of late 1950s, and under extreme pressure to launch the first human into the department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at the space, NASA quickly grew its engineering teams with amazing diversity University of Colorado. and breadth of creative, passion-driven talent.

SatMagazine Page 55 July/August 2020 LEO & The Impact On The Ground Segment By Alex Donnison, Business Development Manager, ETL Systems

In recent months, the expansion of LEO constellations has created Development Challenges – The Ground Segment a consistent buzz within the satellite industry, as well as capturing The ground segment is often overlooked in favor of the more the public’s imagination. Large scale deployments of Starlink’s LEO glamourous space segment, but it represents a vital link in the chain satellites are well underway, promising to deliver internet coverage for the global connectivity that LEO promises. The “UFO on a stick” to remote locations for the first time, as well as significantly antenna, as Musk refers to it, may offer a “plug-in and point at the improving latency for areas with existing broadband infrastructure. sky” solution that will be mimicked by other operators, but delivering a cost-effective way to manage ground signals is still a crucial part of It is widely acknowledged that a successful LEO constellation will be a the LEO infrastructure. game-changer for communications and connectivity, increasing The current focus for LEO operators is to ensure that the satellites bandwidth far beyond the current GEO and MEO satellite capabilities. operate seamlessly; however, as constellations expand, they will need However, LEO deployment hasn’t followed a smooth path so far and to bring the focus back down to Earth. While the receivers have been while SpaceX currently seems the most likely market leader, there is still finalized, the ground segment infrastructure hasn’t been fully an element of unpredictability within the sector. developed. There is one thing that everyone in the development phase OneWeb’s recent filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with 74 satellites agrees on though – it must be affordable. still in orbit, and the earlier failure of LeoSat, are examples of what A LEO teleport is completely different to a GEO teleport, featuring happens when development and operational costs outpace the ability distinct antenna and switching systems. If cost-effective equipment to secure funding. While One Web’s bankruptcy was heavily affected capable of handling the signals isn’t developed quickly, then the LEO by the economic impact of COVID-19, it has left potential LEO investors constellation itself is effectively redundant. With regards to technical wary, as market disruptions continue in the wake of the pandemic. function, LEO will require significantly more switching, and therefore Given the current landscape it’s likely that only the most robust and more gateways and more gateway antennas than ever before. cost-effective solutions will survive, and they need to be developed as When it comes to the ground infrastructure for LEO, one thing for quickly as possible. As Elon Musk said recently, “If the schedule is long, certain is that there are four key development areas to consider: the design is wrong.” While SpaceX has significantly cut costs in one of the most expensive The RF Signal Frequency that will be used parts of the chain, by launching satellites with its own reusable rockets, Before you can develop the right ground station equipment, you need it initially struggled to develop a low-cost receiver that was simple to know the signal frequency range that will be used to ensure that enough to be installed by any user. Proving that what happens on the the equipment can be fully optimised. This is a simple yet extremely ground can sometimes be the most challenging part of the critical element within LEO ground station design, which we cannot development process. SpaceX has recently overcome this hurdle, afford to overlook. finalising the design and receiving FCC approval for up to 1 million in the USA.

SatMagazine Page 56 July/August 2020 Which bandwidths the competing constellations will operate on ETL Systems has for some time been predicting the type of designs Frequency will be an issue for LEO as these satellites will operate in that will be required to control, monitor and handle RF signals Ku- to Ka-band with very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) satellites operating in connecting the ground with the LEO constellation. We have a V-band, a very high frequency. The size reduction these bands deliver dedicated team of RF engineers whose primary job is to work on the will be extremely important in LEO, as operators are looking to keep aforementioned development areas. equipment to a minimum. That means that any ground station equipment needs to be compact while offering full functionality. Looking to the Future However, what we will likely also see is that the bandwidths will differ We are beginning to see more collaboration between the ground globally, with the potential for different bandwidths in each country. segment and space segment in the satellite sector. This represents an Geographically, we are likely to have other potential challenges, as exciting new future for the industry. LEO has set the challenge, and now some countries may not allow access to these bandwidths. Once we ground segment stakeholders need to rise to the occasion and deliver know who the customers are, ground infrastructure can be installed in on a key part of the chain. The recent expansion of video streaming and the areas where the customer is actually using it, which will help to High Throughput Satellite (HTS) capacity and has put satellite capacity mitigate this problem. With ground segment installation linked to pricing under strain, but as long as the satellite market continues to demand, the industry will need to work closely with both governments offer a competitive price per bandwidth it remains valuable. Working and regulatory bodies, in order to achieve cost-effective results in the collaboratively with LEO operators will help to support this. correct locations. LEO constellations will focus on selling megabits rather than megahertz, and in some instances, will reduce uplinks and downlinks Redundancy through intersatellite links using onboard lasers. As an RF equipment Redundancy is of course front and centre for every satellite operator, manufacturer, ETL Systems has the capability to manage the bandwidth but for LEO operators it is even more so. LEO faces a fairly unique set and multiple links as required. As connectivity increases there will be of challenges within the industry, with satellites travelling at high speeds an explosion in the number of links, which is where ETL System’s in low altitudes. This results in LEO smallsats having to be ‘passed’ from equipment and experience will be invaluable. All development teams ground station to ground station as they orbit, to allow them to relay must position themselves to respond to that need. information seamlessly. A completely different approach to current The emergence of LEO offers an opportunity for GEO ground system ground station usage, and it raises a few questions regarding their manufacturers to develop new products for a lucrative market, existing capabilities. capitalising on years of GEO experience. We haven’t seen significant We know that switching between these fast-moving satellites change within the ground segment of the satellite industry for a long effectively, presents a challenge. Auto switch-over will be absolutely time, and LEO is really driving innovation. It’s a truly exciting time to be vital to ensuring consistent, uninterrupted connectivity and switches working within this sector. need to be agile enough to manage all frequencies and shift quickly from one satellite to the next. www.etlsystems.com At the same time, we must consider cost and simplicity, it’s a balancing act that all manufacturers should be working toward. Author Alex Donnison has a dual role at ETL. He With many of the LEO satellites operating in Ku- and Ka- band there works in components sales and is also the Business is a very real risk of rain-fade and other atmospheric conditions. Having Development Manager. In his Business Development backup sites will be extremely important, as will the tools to divert RF role, he is involved in the future strategic direction for signals between sites to ensure services remain connected. the company.

Keeping Costs Low In order for LEO to compete with existing systems, and each other, development and production costs need to be low. This is apparent from the whole way in which these systems are being built and launched. When it comes to the ground segment, there is a great deal of pressure from the LEO operators to keep those costs low as well, while ensuring good resiliency, continual availability, and small, compact units. That will likely be a challenge for many ground equipment manufacturers.

SatMagazine Page 57 July/August 2020 ID’ing Suspect Iranian Tankers Smuggling Crude

By HawkEye 360, with thanks to TankerTrackers.com and Planet

Sanctions enforcement and counter-smuggling operations are Background among the most challenging missions facing global navies. In May of 2019, the U.S. announced that it would no longer grant Sanctioned countries such as Iran regularly seek to evade United sanction exemptions for buyers of Iranian oil. At the time, the U.S. States sanctions, relying heavily on oil for funding. asserted that Iranian militias with ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps had been smuggling crude oil from western Iraq to Syria. A To investigate these activities, HawkEye 360 collaborated with December 2019 report by S&P Global Platts, a reporting agency for oil, TankerTrackers.com to examine how Iran might be using its tanker placed estimates for the cross-border flow of crude oil facilitated by the fleet to smuggle large amounts of crude oil through the Mediterranean militias as high as 10,000 barrels per day. into Syria for sale. At the head of Iraq’s Iranian-backed militias was Jamal Jafaar HawkEye 360’s unique analytics supported this first-of-its-kind Mohammed Ali Ebrahimi, better known as Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. In multiple intelligence (Multi-INT) report combining commercial RF signal January 2020, U.S. airstrikes killed Abu Mahdi, whom sources say data with TankerTrackers.com’s analysis of commercial electro-optical directed oil smuggling operations across Iraq’s Anbar Province. Given imagery and open source data. HawkEye 360’s SEAker® product traced ongoing airstrikes against the militias, experts wondered if this the path of suspect tankers, showing signal gaps in the voyage, while additional pressure could force Iran to compensate by shipping more the company’s RFGeo™ product identified tanker marine radio signals crude by sea, instead of by land. at an active Syrian port for the Baniyas Refinery. Using imagery intelligence (IMINT), TankerTrackers.com examined Planet’s imagery The Blind Spot and identified several newly arrived Iranian-flagged tankers at that port. Vessels engaged in smuggling can stop transmitting the maritime HawkEye 360’s data reinforced TankerTrackers.com’s findings that Automatic Identification System (AIS) broadcast to avoid identification Iran has increased tanker activity to Syria to evade crude oil sanctions. and location during a voyage. Deactivating AIS largely makes a vessel This fusion of multiple commercial modalities produces an unclassified invisible to traditional law enforcement and intelligence capabilities. and sharable assessment of Iranian tanker activities. This was seen with Iran’s Adrian Darya-1 tanker, which arrived at Syria to off-load oil without broadcasting any notices over AIS.

SatMagazine Page 58 July/August 2020 HawkEye 360 partnered with TankerTrackers.com, a commercial crude This data is useful to detect the presence of vessels or provide tip- oil watchdog, to determine if there were any indications Iran was offs to activities of interest, particularly when vessels “go dark” and stop increasing crude exports through maritime channels into Syria. transmitting AIS. In mid-March of 2020, HawkEye 360 started monitoring Iranian Revealing New Insights crude oil tankers that might be traveling to Syria. One such vessel, In the maritime domain, HawkEye 360 uses a satellite constellation to Romina, was last known to have returned to Iranian waters from a trip independently geolocate VHF marine communications, L-band mobile on February 23. Romina then remained completely dark until it satellite devices, X-band navigation radar, S-band navigation radar, AIS appeared in the Gulf of Suez on March 17. signals, and emergency position indicating radio beacons (EPIRBs).

SatMagazine Page 59 July/August 2020 HawkEye 360’s SEAker product flagged suspicious AIS gaps in the The detected VHF signal potentially indicated newly arriving tankers vessel’s recorded travel. When the vessel exited the Suez into the that were coordinating the off-loading of crude oil, but this required more Mediterranean on March 21, the vessel again went dark, leaving information to validate. observers without any indicator as to the vessel’s position. This is where TankerTrackers.com’s imagery intelligence (IMINT) and When AIS is not able to supply enough knowledge, other data open source intelligence (OSINT) expertise was essential for sources are critical for developing comprehensive maritime awareness. corroborating vessel activity at the Syrian Baniyas Refinery. On the evening of March 25, HawkEye 360’s RFGeo product On March 26, TankerTrackers.com analyzed Planet Labs’ 3-meter geolocated VHF channel 16 maritime signals at Syria’s Baniyas Refinery. electro-optical satellite imagery of the sea near the refinery. VHF channel 16 is the international hailing frequency to establish initial The satellite imagery showed several vessels near the refinery’s contact between two vessels or a vessel and land, such as for port designated anchorage. activity. When the signal was captured, AIS records showed no vessels in the vicinity.

SatMagazine Page 60 July/August 2020 TankerTrackers.com used its library of 3 meter imagery signatures available from HawkEye 360 and TankerTrackers.com offers richer for the Iranian crude-carrying fleet and associated assets to identify maritime awareness. four Iranian-flagged vessels (Romina, Samah, Adrian Darya-1, and HawkEye 360’s unique RF data can help identify maritime activity of Tour-2). interest for further investigation, allowing enforcement organizations Although Adrian Darya-1 was already known to be at the port, the to focus resources accordingly. As demonstrated by this first-of-its-kind recent arrival of Romina and additional tankers to Syria’s Baniyas commercial Multi-INT reporting, a robust ecosystem of commercial Refinery without AIS notification was consistent with the behavior data sources provides invaluable insights to help make the world a anticipated from vessels being used to evade Iranian sanctions. safer place.

The Takeaway www.he360.com As seen in this analysis, AIS offers limited ability to monitor crude oil smuggling activities. Combining the best commercial data sources

Photo of the Pathfinder smallsat is courtesy of the company.

SatMagazine Page 61 July/August 2020 Protecting The Network Infrastructure That Depends On Time Dissemination From GNSS Satellites By Greg Wolff, Senior Product Line Manager, Frequency and Time Systems, Microchip

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has described The World’s de Facto Time Standard critical infrastructure as the physical assets and cyber systems According to CISA, GPS has become the de facto time standard for that are so vital that their incapacity or destruction would have a many commercial users because of its relatively low cost and ubiquitous debilitating impact on the economic security, public health or availability. There also is growing adoption of GNSS devices such as safety of our nation. those using GPS. Until recently, GPS devices were viewed simply as radio receivers. These devices are, however, really computers, with In support of this mission, DHS formed the Cybersecurity and similar security risks. Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to be the nation’s risk advisor, Threats include denial-of-service attacks (jamming) and the working with partners to defend against today’s threats and collaborating introduction of bad data into the system (spoofing). The advent of to build more secure and resilient infrastructure for the future. software-defined radios (SDRs) has increased the ease and lowered the According to CISA, there is dramatic growth in the degree to which cost with which these types of attacks can be launched. Efforts should critical infrastructure depends on Global Positioning System be made to ensure accurate and resilient timing for your GPS devices. (GPS)/Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) (GPS/GNSS) for the GNSS signals are inherently fragile. Disruptions are typically classified dissemination of “time.” While the use of GNSS-based time has become into two categories: “jamming” that renders the GNSS signal more vital for critical infrastructure operations, the security of the GNSS undetectable by overpowering it with a locally generated signal at the signal itself has become increasingly vulnerable to a wide range of same frequency, and spoofing, in which a false GNSS signal is created jamming and spoofing threats, both intentional and unintentional. that the receiver is fooled into tracking. Contained within the fake signal Given the inherently fragile nature of the GNSS signal, an important is inaccurate information, such as false location data. way in which reception of the GNSS signal can be guarded is through The GNSS signal is very weak and is largely only detected with a clear better visibility of the GNSS signal characteristics in real-time, including view of the sky. Given the significant distance the signal must travel from performing test and measurement of GNSS signals and identifying satellites orbiting 12,500+ miles above the earth’s surface, the GNSS anomalies. While this work was previously done in the lab and problem signals are at a very low power level (typically –133 dBm) when reaching diagnosis required substantial GNSS expertise, the latest performance the Earth’s surface. monitoring software solutions create a simple way for operators to know Reports of large geographical areas being jammed are now common the overall health of GNSS reception. throughout the world. Further, intentional threats are not the only vulnerability category to be concerned with (see Figure 1). Errors due to weather, atmosphere and even the operation of the GNSS satellite control system can impact the secure reception of GNSS. This has occurred at a global level for both GPS in 2016 and, more recently, with Galileo unavailability, which just occurred in 2019.

SatMagazine Page 62 July/August 2020 Figure 1: GNSS vulnerabilities can be intentional or unintentional. Table 1. Typical characteristics of a GNSS signal. Visibility of Timing Anomalies The defense against these threats is visibility, which starts Although GNSS systems are mostly known for “navigation,” the with surveillance. fundamental operation of GNSS is completely dependent on timing accuracy. When determining if the GNSS reception is performing well, From Surveillance to Characterization measurement of the phase difference between what is expected versus GNSS surveillance is the first step, giving network operators the bird’s what is being received is a good signal characteristic to visualize eye view they need to survey their critical infrastructure. When an (see Figure 2). anomaly or outage occurs, the most immediate need is to quickly identify if the event is isolated to a specific location, affecting a regional area, or caused by a global situation. If it is a single location being impacted, then the cause can most likely be narrowed down to an issue such as multi-path interference, local weather anomaly or a potential drive-by jamming/spoofing threat (a common example being a vehicle with jamming device). If the impact is affecting multiple locations, then a more complex problem is likely occurring and narrowing the root cause is more difficult, especially in such cases as the GPS 2016 anomaly and more recent Galileo 2019 outage. Once the scope of the problem has been pinpointed, the next step is to dig into more of the details. This requires more specific signal characterization to identify root cause. GNSS simulators typically have highly sophisticated recording Figure 2. Phase measurements of GNSS reception capabilities which developers of GNSS receivers and related equipment have been using for years to perform test and measurement of GNSS Under normal conditions, the phase offset should typically be in the signals. Such equipment is effective for laboratory environments or even ±50 ns range as seen in the previous plot. Given this small range of in manufacturing; however, this instrumentation is expensive and acceptable performance, detection of a timing anomaly can be quite requires instrumentation specialists with extensive training. Software is difficult and is one of the most important techniques for protecting now available that enables network operators to simplify these against GNSS vulnerabilities. important measurement and diagnosis capabilities. An example is Timing anomalies can be gradual, sudden, or complex such as repeated Microchip’s TimePictra® with its BlueSky Performance Monitoring phase jumps. Timing errors can cause serious havoc and confusion as such capabilities. Table 1 to the upper right provides a sample of some of errors can cascade down to the underlying timing distribution systems the metrics and signal characteristics that can be tracked with it. operating a large data center or mobile switching office.

SatMagazine Page 63 July/August 2020 Below is an example of a timing anomaly where there is a repeated timing offset of roughly 150 ns being generated (see Figure 3). With this type of repeated event, a typical GNSS receiver/timing system could be jumping in and out of holdover causing major confusion for critical infrastructure operation.

Figure 3. Timing Anomaly — repeating offset of 150 ns.

Visibility of Position Anomalies For critical infrastructure, the GNSS antenna is typically installed in a fixed location with a clear view of the sky and the exact position of the antenna is surveyed with the coordinates programmed into the receiver. When the GNSS receiver is being used for “timing,” precise survey of the antenna is necessary to ensure the most accurate timing performance. Any kind of offset and/or spoofed position data can cause the GNSS receiver to have degraded timing performance and ultimately Figure 4. Position excursion creating phase jumps. cause the GNSS receiver to lose the ability to track satellites completely. In the example show in the column to the right, under normal Visibility of Spoofing conditions, the position as received by the GNSS receiver is roughly Spoofing attacks can be difficult to detect as it is the GNSS data itself 1 to 5 meters, as compared to the surveyed position of the GNSS antenna. that is being manipulated. Like data network threats, GNSS spoofing is The first plot in Figure 4 to the upper right shows normal position an on-going and evolving threat vector which requires a defense system fluctuation; however, occurring once per day, there is also a position that can be upgraded to guard against emerging threats. excursion of about 15 to 20 meters. The plot below it is of phase As shown in Figure 5 on the next page, a GNSS receiver is tracking movement which shows a phase shift of roughly 100 ns (peak-to-peak) six satellites under normal conditions and then satellites begin to be simultaneous with the position movement of the first plot. prematurely knocked out. Over the course of approximately three The position movement, which is likely the result of multi-path minutes, all satellites are no longer being tracked. Satellites falling out interference, is impacting timing performance. Multiple GNSS signal of view this quickly is abnormal and is just a simple example of how characteristics are viewed together so that network operators can better spoofing can create a confusing situation for a GNSS receiver trying to understand cause and effect. track satellites.

SatMagazine Page 64 July/August 2020 a location or affecting a larger geographical area. It also enables the next step in the mitigation process, giving operators the key performance metrics that are required so they have the visibility to take quick and cost-effective action.

www.microchip.com

Greg Wolff has worked in the time and frequency industry since 1988 and was an early pioneer in the marketing of network synchronization solutions to major critical infrastructure operators across the globe. Greg is an active contributor to emerging standards supporting PNT (Position Navigation and Time) resiliency and most recently, as part of Figure 5. Spoofing of GNSS satellite tracking Microchip Technology’s Frequency and Time Systems group, he Protecting Every Device launched the BlueSky GNSS Firewall. Security has become the most important requirement for critical infrastructure operations. Any device connected to critical infrastructure can become a target for exploitation and needs to be as secure as possible. Security hardening of a GNSS system is a continual process, due to the constant emergence of new threats. Like network security vulnerabilities, new GNSS vulnerabilities are on the rise and GNSS signal visibility is a vital capability for helping to determine the root cause of a GNSS vulnerability, especially before a minor disruption becomes a more serious outage. When a GNSS vulnerability is detected, today’s performance monitoring software provides surveillance of GNSS reception quality without having to send network operations personnel on an expensive visit to check an antenna on a high-rise rooftop. It enables critical infrastructure operators to quickly identify if the problem is specific to

SatMagazine Page 65 July/August 2020 How Does SATCOM Facilitate The Maritime Supply Chain

By Jon Harrison, Vice President and General Manager, Intellian Technologies.

For many people, ships seem an incidental part of their reality. globally each year, most of which end up on ships. These are washed, Beyond a momentary feeling of awe as they spot one of these boxed and labelled at their source before being loaded into ocean leviathans unloading in port, or a distant view from the refrigerated containers for transport. From the moment they are picked, beach as a container vessel slips over the horizon bound for who- the clock is ticking, and although bananas are picked green and ripened knows-where, they appear to have little impact on everyday life. in forced ripening centers just before sale, undue shipping delays or However, take a moment to consider what these huge ships are onboard systems failures can ruin a shipment, with consequent carrying and the reality soon becomes clear that maritime trade is economic loss. at the heart of everything we do. Connectivity Begets Efficiency Approximately 9 percent of the world’s goods will, at some point in their The largest global exporter of bananas is Ecuador, with a shipping time journey, be transported by sea. That adds up to about 11 billion tons to Europe of around 35 days. Not so long ago, once a vessel had of cargo every year, making the shipping industry a huge exercise in departed from Ecuador, it could only share a minimal amount of global, distributed logistics. Even with the efficiencies afforded by information with its fleet operator, owing to the tiny bandwidth available. containerization, this a task of considerable complexity to ensure that It would then arrive, at some point during a large time allowance made an entire ship’s cargo is ready to be loaded at the allotted time, that necessary by the ship’s uncertain ETA, at its destination. the vessel makes its voyage to arrive punctually at the destination port Today, that same vessel’s progress is not only tracked, but huge — but not so early that it spends excessive time waiting — and that the amounts of onboard data can be shared with company headquarters. land-based infrastructure is ready to accept the influx of up to 9,000 We live in the era of the Smart Ship, and most new vessels are now 40 foot containers. being built with some level of smart capability. Hyundai Heavy To manage that scale of operation, communications are key and Industries, for instance — the world’s largest shipbuilder, with a market become even more so, as specific needs such as preserving perishable share of approximately 23 percent — has been fitting its Integrated goods are factored into the planning. To use the fruit industry as an Smart Ship Solution (ISSS) to all new-build vessels since 2017. Smart example, approximately 20 million tons of bananas are exported Ships can share virtually any aspect of their onboard systems: speed,

SatMagazine Page 66 July/August 2020 fuel consumption, bearing temperatures, watertight door integrity, Making VSAT Mainstream CCTV… the list is endless, and in the case of our banana carrier cargo Intellian’s approach to commoditizing VSAT is embodied by the firm’s monitoring is likely to be added to the mix, documenting the NX Series antennas, which span five models from 60 to 150 cm. This temperature of each container. range of sizes in itself makes the NX Series an easy choice for the Remote diagnosis and guided repair are also becoming increasingly operators of diverse fleets, as all of the terminals share a standard, common, whereby an onshore expert can review sensor readings, below-deck, Antenna Control Unit (ACU) as well as the same AptusNX helping to predict failures and advising the onboard engineers as to configuration and management software,. This configuration allows the viable repairs. This might involve video and shared screens, while for operator to select an antenna that fits the space and bandwidth crew welfare, video calls and streaming are becoming commonplace. requirements of each of their vessels without getting to grips with All this requires bandwidth, and — especially if video is required — disparate systems. lots of it. The only way to deliver that at sea is using VSAT, and it is this The NX Series antennas are designed to be future-proof, capable of commoditization of what was once regarded as a luxury that is driving tracking GEO, MEO and LEO satellites and convertible between Ku- antenna manufacturers such as Intellian to make their products easier and Ka-bands. Upgradable BUCs — fitting is a straight swap — allow to install, network-agnostic and cheaper to buy. higher power units to be used where greater upload bandwidth is “VSAT user terminals used to be very complex and expensive,” said required. This makes them compatible with all existing and planned Jon Harrison, Vice President and General Manager at Intellian. “If you networks, and permits customers both to take advantage of network imagine a pyramid of addressable vessels requiring connectivity, VSAT upgrades or change providers if desired. was only used by the top sector – about 75,000 ships. Less complex This flexible approach is underpinned by Intellian’s AptusNX and commoditized terminals cost a fraction of the price, so we’re able software, which facilitates commissioning with a simple wizard and to target the next layer of the pyramid, a much bigger market which allows both local and remote health checks and diagnostics once could be up to 500,000 vessels. But to do that we need to deliver an installed, limiting the need for high-level onboard expertise. easier onboard package, not just an antenna.” Physical installation is also easier than ever: all NX antennas come pre-slung in compact shipping crates, have no shipping brackets — thanks to a dynamic braking system on the motors which damps movement in transit – and connect with a single cable carrying power, Tx and Rx signals.

SatMagazine Page 67 July/August 2020 Intellian’s NX series VSAT product family.

These last two points obviate the need for the installer to remove the dome, helping to maintain waterproof integrity and avoid damage. They also share parts as much as possible. For example, the motors used to control the three planes of antenna movement are identical, and each one now also has the encoder built into the unit. This and similar innovations have resulted in a spare parts saving of almost 40 percent across the range, making it easier for customers and technicians Intellian’s v100NX. to carry the correct components. Intellian’s thinking has had to extend beyond antenna design to being carried out online — a process which has been accelerated by embrace this commoditized market. Increased demand has led to a shift the current pandemic — and the continuing development of in expectations, driving service providers toward supplying full autonomous systems is likely to make ships more, rather than less, equipment solutions, including the antenna and rack, thus simplifying dependent on shoreside intervention. installation and bringing down operational costs for the customer. Although the container vessel slipping over the horizon mentioned Several major service providers have changed their focus to at the beginning of this article might seem to be disappearing into delivering the ‘connected vessel’ and providing a virtual office romantic isolation, reality could not be further from the truth — our environment, but this approach transfers the overheads from the banana-carrier is remotely managed in every detail to ensure that the customer to the provider. Intellian’s solution has been to increase vessel’s cargo arrives in timely, efficient and tip-top condition and the support for its service partners: supplying off-the-shelf equipment racks crew are able to remain in constant touch with loved ones via calls and ready to ship, providing comprehensive global logistics and social media. warehousing, and reducing system package sizes as much as possible The modern vessel is never really separated from the shore — more in order to minimize shipping costs. a peninsula than an island. And that’s all made possible by one technical “It’s working,” said Harrison. “This proactive approach has improved element: VSAT. our market share – we’re now No.1.” www.intelliantech.com The Future for Maritime VSAT As more and more vessels gain higher bandwidth connections, the Jon Harrison is a Vice President and General shipping industry is changing. Under pressure to operate more Manager at Intellian Technologies. As a member of efficiently, not just to maintain profitability but also to minimize fuel the Intellian Executive Team, Jon’s role is to consumption and emissions, the industry is making more use of its develop Intellian’s global SATCOM-based business connectivity than ever before. and the end-to-end welfare of the Intellian Europe, Global fleets are managed from shore-based centers to ensure that Middle East and Africa teams. Jon is often cargoes are delivered on time with the minimum use of fuel — a feat keynote speaker at many of the Intellian showcase only made possible through continuous monitoring, as the dynamic events and has seen the satellite communication parameters of weather and sea state constantly change the situation. ecosystem evolve over the past 30 years, with data demands Equipment failure is minimized through systems monitoring, increasing exponentially. Jon has a Bachelor’s degree in Satellite powered by shore-based computing far beyond what is possible with Communication Technology and, more recently, an MBA. onboard processing power, informed by dynamic and historical data from other fleet vessels. Crew training and certification is increasingly

SatMagazine Page 68 July/August 2020