GomSpace Inter-Satellite Link (ISL) Technology

GomSpace has been at the forefront of inter-satellite RF link technology, first demonstrating its capabilities in 2017 with the 3-Diamonds mission, followed by the GOMX-4 mission in 2018. Since then, the company has continued to develop customized RF ISL solutions for various missions and customers. Today, GomSpace offers an RF ISL solution designed for demonstration purposes, enabling customers to test and evaluate the technology for their specific mission needs.

 

GomX4 ISL Characteristics and Results:

The GOMX-4 mission, launched in February 2018, comprised two 6U CubeSats—GOMX-4A and GOMX-4B—designed to validate multiple technologies, including inter-satellite links.

ISL System Overview:

  • Frequency Band: S-band
  • Access Scheme: Simplex
  • Transmission Power: 1.1 W
  • Data Rate: 1 kbit/s to 50 kbit/s
  • Modulation: BPSK
  • Spreading Rate: 1 Mchip/s


The ISL system was built around GomSpace’s NanoCom SDR Mk2 and ANT2150-ISL products. The mission successfully demonstrated inter-satellite communications over distances ranging from 2,500 km to 4,500 km.

For more details on the GOMX-4 mission, visit: GOMX-4



 

3-Diamonds ISL Characteristics and Results:

The 3-Diamonds mission, launched in 2017, consisted of three 3U CubeSats and was designed to demonstrate space-based communication relaying via inter-satellite links.

ISL System Overview:

  • Frequency Band: S-band
  • Access Scheme: Half-duplex, Time-Division Duplex (TDD)
  • Network Topology: Star (one central node, two peripheral satellites)
  • Transmission Power: 1.6 W
  • Modulation: BPSK (200 kBd)
  • Link Distance: ~900 km between nodes
     

This system was based on the NanoCom SDR Mk1 and ANT2150-ISL products. The mission successfully demonstrated multi-satellite relaying, enabling the transmission of messages and images from a ground terminal through the satellite network to a remote ground station.

For more details on the 3-Diamonds mission, visit: 3-Diamonds
 

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