Besides the development of integrated avionic modules there are more fundamental R&D activities on innovative technologies for thermal control, enhanced hardening against space radiation in higher Erath orbits and improved cyber security. The technology is being developed by a Dutch consortium and will give the Netherlands an independent position in the space market.
In this project, the Resolite-50 terminal under development by FSO Instruments (a Dutch OEM in the field of lasersatcom) is the use-case for the developed avionics. This laser-satcom terminal is primarily intended to transmit generated sensor data from a satellite in real-time to a network of optical communication satellites. Such a network is continuously available to receive and forward the data to ground. Therefore, this technology makes it possible to eliminate the dependence on traditional ground stations with a limited number of contact moments per day to transmit generated data to the user. This technology enables the user to have continuous and low-latency access to the observations of the satellite.
Also, communication by means of laser light is intrinsically safer than traditional communication using radio waves (RF) that can be more easily intercepted. The developments within this project are largely applicable to other space communication terminals and instruments for e.g. space science, space exploration or earth observation.