An Israeli startup, NSLComm that launched its first cubesat in July, is building two more cubesats with funding from customers including a major multinational corporation.
NSLComm CEO and co-founder, Raz Itzhaki told SpaceNews that they have a working satellite in orbit with more than 90 percent success of the mission goals. He further added, “The satellite is communicating at all frequencies: UHV, VHF, S-band and Ka-band. But still we think we can do better.”
NSLComm plans to offer customers one gigabit per second communications from nanosatellites with the antenna and advanced electronics.
NSLComm packed NSLSat-1 with a Ka-band antenna that expands to 60 centimeters, an adaptive sub-reflector to control the communications footprint, an onboard photogrammetry system to measure and map the reflector, and a high throughput transponder to reach that goal. Further, continuous R&D along with the soaring need of miniaturization within the space sector has contributed the market growth for cubesat as per a report by Value Market Research. Moreover, the booming demand for IoT and machine-to-machine satellite network is likely to propel the market growth.
NSLComm is modifying the design based on lessons learned from NSLSat-1 for its next two satellites, including NSLSat-2, which the company plans to launch in six months. Itzhaki told that both satellites are fully funded.
NSLComm issued a news release in September, announcing a multimillion dollar contract with a major multinational corporation.
Itzhaki said, “NSLComm is bringing nanosatellites from testbeds and technology demonstrations to something that has real capabilities to be part of a communications constellation and bring down the cost of communications to a level where satellite communications will eventually be able to compete with fiber and radio frequency communications terrestrially.”
Early this month, Swissto12, a company that specializes in additive manufacturing telecommunications equipment for aerospace customers, announced successful commissioning of the Ka-band antenna feeder assembly it printed for NSLSat-1.
For Swissto12, the NSLSat-1 order was a challenge.
Naira Shekhawat has been into Content Writing just after completing her Graduation in English Literature. Her love for words has won her many accolades in her respective jobs ever since. Naira covers business sections for VMR News. She is a traveller by heart and loves writing on food blogs as a freelancer.