Satellites rely on the radio frequency spectrum to communicate with each other and with ground stations on Earth, but spectrum is a finite resource prone to interference, a problem that only gets worse as more satellites are launched into orbit.
Satellite operators are increasingly concerned that an increasing number of spacecraft over the same region of Earth, using the same portion of the spectrum (called the frequency band), will generate more signal interference. To reduce this risk, operators typically coordinate with each other and enter into agreements to ensure that interference is limited. But coordinating among many different satellite operators and tracking these agreements over time is a costly and time-consuming burden.
Let's consider the process in the United States. Spectrum allocation falls under the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission, which approves satellite applications in “processing rounds.” Once a constellation is approved in a round, the operator of that constellation may have to coordinate with the operators of all previous rounds and submit analysis for each previous round to demonstrate that its satellites will not cause interference.
"It's a pretty exhausting process," he said. Magnestar via its founder and CEO, Jacqueline Good, in an interview. “Suddenly, the number of issues related to spectrum management within the space sector is getting worse. "It's the basic problem around signal interference: multiple satellites communicating on the same frequency band in a given region potentially interfering with each other, the coordination process of how these satellite operators work."
Even once an agreement is reached, operators “have no way to really ensure that those agreements are followed, and they make minimal efforts to monitor the outcome of that agreement,” he added.
The result is overworked regulators and operators, with modeling, simulation and monitoring tools that are hardly up to the task at hand. Magnestar's solution is a software platform called 24/7x, which performs interference simulations and runs specific calculations, such as signal-to-noise ratio, to ensure the RF environment remains clean. The technology is integrated into a peer-to-peer operator test environment, so operators can communicate with each other and send data back and forth in a standardized and autonomous manner.
“Once they are in that peer-to-peer sandbox, they can complete coordination directly in that sandbox,” Good explained. Magnestar's technology can perform 10 times more simulations compared to existing technology, she said.
The software also catalogs coordination agreements, which can help companies manage and comply with them. While Magnestar's technology doesn't magically turn spectrum into a finite resource, Good argued that as coordination improves, companies will be able to dynamically share spectrum, which would be a game-changer for the industry.
"Even operators that have a lot of spectrum and only use 10% to 15% of their allocation could potentially share some of that spectrum or even sublease some of that spectrum in an exchange-type market," Good said. "This can only be achieved if we guarantee that coordination agreements are met and that they have clear connectivity pathways."
Good is a first-time founder who founded Magnestar in December 2021. She previously worked as director of data strategy and product management at $124 billion Canadian pension fund OMERS and for Canadian software company TIBCO, designing and helping to implement enterprise data infrastructure systems across multiple industries.
"I very much realized that I had this love for space," he said. “I knew I wanted to build the company at that time. “I had acquired enough skills and networked to build a company and decided I wanted to build it in space.”
To start, he applied to the International Space University and received funding from the European Space Agency to study space engineering. She was also accepted into the UK accelerator Entrepreneur First and was the 600th solo founder to complete the programme, out of a portfolio of over XNUMX companies.
He connected with more than 25 satellite operators in the first six months of starting the company, and "they all referred to signal interference, coordination being an absolute bottleneck within their companies, and post-launch monitoring." Coordination was also a huge problem,” he said.
Magnestar currently employs five full-time and three part-time people. The startup raised a $1,1 million pre-seed round late last year and is currently in the process of raising a full seed.
Beyond fundraising, the team is staying busy: Magnestar is currently in the beta testing process and plans to start an early adoption program in February 2024 that will allow up to 10 operators to use the software for two to three months. . From there, the company hopes to transition these operators to a full license that is paid monthly or annually.
The long-term vision is to have hundreds, if not thousands, of users employing the technology on a regular basis and to make 24/7 service the “industry-wide standard” for interference management, Good said.
“This problem will continue to grow as we go from the current 8.000 satellites in space to more than 100.000 satellites. Eliminating the conflict of signal interference and collisions in real time is something we are moving towards as an industry and that we are well positioned to solve.”
