SAN FRANCISCO – Spire Global established two-way optical communications for the first time between two six-unit cubesats.
The cubesats, equipped with an optical communications payload about the size of a tissue box, transmitted data as far as 5,000 kilometers.
“Precisely pointing two satellites, across distances equivalent of New York to London,” to establish an optical link is a “significant milestone for Spire,” John E. Ward, Spire senior director of research & development, said in a statement. “This achievement places us among a select group of organizations capable of developing and deploying this advanced technology and overcoming the complexities of aligning satellites separated by thousands of kilometers in Low Earth Orbit. Integrating this technology into our future fleet will enhance resilience, improve security, and reduce latency for critical applications.”
The ability to share data quickly and securely through an optical intersatellite link (OISL) could benefit a variety of space-based missions from weather forecasting and global communications to environmental monitoring and navigation, according to the March 3 news release.
“Our OISL payload is the smallest on the market, allowing us to deploy this technology on our small satellites while delivering performance previously achievable only with much larger systems,” Thomas Carroll, Spire Applied Optics leader, said in a statement. “This breakthrough has the potential to enhance our data and Space Services solutions, especially for applications that require continuous coverage with fast and secure data relay.”
The optical intersatellite links were demonstrated by cubesats launched in 2023. Spire plans to launch three additional Lemur cubesats with OISL technology this year, including two contracted with Exolaunch to fly within days on the SpaceX Transporter-13 rideshare.
The European Space Agency’s Advanced Research in Telecommunications Services (ARTES) Pioneer Partnership Project helped fund Spire OISL technology. Additional support was provided by the UK Space Agency.
“Through our ARTES Pioneer Partnership Project, we have supported Spire in the development of a new OISL capability for their space data service network,” Clive Edwards, ESA Pioneer Implementation Manager, said in a statement. “This OISL system is set to transform satellite communications, offering enhanced security and efficiency for space-based data transmission.”
