Cable / Telecom News

Telesat selects Intellian dual-parabolic terminals for Lightspeed LEO network


OTTAWA and SEOUL — Satellite operator Telesat announced today it has awarded a contract to Korea-based satellite communications solutions provider Intellian to design and supply reference enterprise user terminals for the Telesat Lightspeed low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network.

“Intellian’s innovative satellite terminal technology leverages the company’s non-geostationary satellite orbit (NGSO) modem integration expertise and satellite tracking algorithms and will provide Telesat’s most demanding customers with highly reliable, high throughput access to the Telesat Lightspeed network,” a Telesat press release reads.

Telesat will use early deliveries of Intellian terminals “to support system development and performance testing, and during the Telesat Lightspeed Alpha and Beta Test phases, to demonstrate system capabilities to Telesat’s enterprise, telecom and government customers, including the Government of Canada,” the release says.

The two companies are also discussing terminal development programs for other market segments, according to the release.

Intellian’s high-performance user terminals feature dual-parabolic antennas (pictured above) “in a true make-before-break configuration to achieve seamless handovers from one satellite to the next in the LEO constellation,” the release explains.

“The parabolic reflectors are optimized to provide the highest gain achievable with a 1m aperture, allowing high data rates and excellent link margin performance for Telesat’s end-user community. Long-term reliability and resilience, which are hallmarks of all Intellian products, particularly in extreme hot and cold environments, will enable worldwide deployment.”

“As a proven terminal provider for Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO demonstrations and with their extensive experience in deploying tracking antennas for NGSO networks, Intellian is the right partner to enable customer access to the Telesat Lightspeed network from anywhere in the world,” said Aneesh Dalvi, Telesat’s director of LEO landing stations and user terminals, in the release.

“Intellian’s carrier-grade, dual-parabolic terminals will be an integral component of Telesat’s low-latency, high-performance Telesat Lightspeed ecosystem.”

“We’re very pleased to be a technological cornerstone of such a significant venture,” said Eric Sung, Intellian’s CEO. “This contract is another resounding affirmation of our position as a market leader, partnering to deliver unparalleled value to customers across a diverse range of markets. Our proven capabilities to design cutting-edge, high-performance and flexible solutions synonymous with our products make us an ideal partner for Telesat.”

Photo supplied by Telesat.