Quasar Satellite Technologies awarded $5.3 million Defence Innovation Hub contract

With more than 50,000 satellites expected to be launched in the next decade (currently there are just 6,000), there is a large and pressing need to fundamentally improve the way that satellites are supported, and how space data is managed. With this front of mind, Quasar Satellite Technologies has announced it has been awarded a $5.3 million contract through the Defence Innovation Hub to further develop its multibeam phased array ground station system that may support hundreds of satellite communications simultaneously with a single compact antenna. Currently traditional parabolic dish-based ground communications antennas can only support one satellite at a time for communication and management, creating a communications bottleneck. Quasar’s technology also meets another pressing space industry problem – what is in space and what is its purpose (called space domain awareness). “We are very excited to receive this investment from the Defence Innovation Hub,” Phil Ridley, CEO Quasar Satellite Technologies said. “This support allows us to fast-track expansion of our unique phased array technology into new satellite bands, and ultimately contribute to our vision of creating a powerful, flexible, scalable, sovereign satellite communications capability for Australia.” Quasar was born in 2021 from a partnership with Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, repurposing advanced technology developed over the past decade for radio astronomy, to solve the biggest data congestion challenge facing the satellite industry today. Customers will be able to access the patented true multibeam and all-digital phased array ground station system through its Software-as-a-Service model. Quasar Satellite Technologies received an $8.6 million seed round plus $1.9 million awarded from the NSW Physical Sciences Fund. Quasar’s mission is to provide scalable, cost-effective ground station service solutions for space communications and space domain awareness. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Director of Sales Graham Joss at [email protected]