SAN FRANCISCO – Telesat chosen Aalyria Technologies to orchestrate communications for its Lightspeed low-Earth orbit broadband network.
Under the contact announced Nov. 14, Aalyria’s Spacetime networking technology will organize the flow of information traffic within the broadband constellation for greater than 10 years. The worth of the contract was not disclosed.
“Partnering with an industry leader like Telesat is an enormous deal for Aalyria,” Brian Barritt, Aalyria chief technology officer, told by email. Lightspeed is “a very next-generation constellation” with advanced technologies including hybrid orbits, optical intersatellite links, phased array antennas and data processing in space, he added.
Spacetime is designed to make sure reliable, secure communications by constantly analyzing possible data paths in complex networks. With machine learning and artificial intelligence, Spacetime creates a digital twin of Earth and space that takes under consideration the movement of objects, atmospheric characteristics and weather.
“Aalyria’s Spacetime orchestration capabilities are a key enabler in achieving the bottom latency, highest availability and resiliency for meeting the committed information rates and repair level agreements for our enterprise-class LEO services,” Dave Wendling, Telesat chief technical officer, said in an announcement. “Aalyria’s expertise and heritage with Spacetime align perfectly with our vision for Telesat Lightspeed, and we’re confident that this partnership will contribute to the success of this revolutionary network.”
Lightspeed Mesh Network
Telesat announced in August that it had raised enough money to determine a mesh network in space with an initial constellation of 156 satellites. Lightspeed satellites are scheduled to achieve orbit in 2026 and 2027 on 14 SpaceX launches.
“We’re excited to partner with Telesat in the event of Telesat Lightspeed, a constellation that is ready to redefine the chances of world satellite communication,” Aalyria CEO Chris Taylor said in an announcement. “Aalyria’s Spacetime will play a pivotal role in ensuring the efficient orchestration and management of the network, and we look ahead to contributing to Telesat’s success.”
Aalyria, a by-product of Google parent Alphabet established in 2021, has announced a series of contract awards for Spacetime and Tightbeam optical communications technology. Customers include Intelsat, Airbus and Rivada Space Networks.
Aalyria is also working with the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit to reveal global, high-speed, secure data connections through the Hybrid Space Architecture project. And Aalyria is participating within the U.S. Navy’s Secure Optical Aerial Relay project.