Commissioning of the TeraNet Optical Ground Station Network
Sascha W. Schediwy, Aliesha Aden, Benjamin Dix-Matthews, Alex Frost, Amrita Gill, David Gozzard, Mike Kriele, Andrew M. Lance, Nicolas G. Maron, Ayden McCann, Shawn McSorley, Lilani Toms-Hardman, Lyra Walsh, Larissa Wiese, Graeme Wren, Randall Carman
Abstract
TeraNet is a new three-node optical ground station network that has been established in Western Australia. The network is built to support a broad range of space missions operating between low Earth orbit and the Moon, using both conventional and advanced optical technologies developed at the University of Western Australia. It is designed to be spacecraft and mission agnostic, able to be adapted for compatibility with spacecraft using a variety of communication and timing protocols.
The TeraNet network comprises three ground station nodes, each of which are equipped to support direct-detection, bidirectional optical communication with low Earth orbit spacecraft. In addition, each node is focused on the development of a unique advanced optics technology.
Specifically:
● TeraNet-1 is a 70 cm aperture optical ground station located on the campus of the University of Western Australia. It uses ultra-sensitive optical detectors and specialised modulation formats to maximise the information recovered from spacecraft at lunar distances.
● TeraNet-2 is a 70 cm aperture, ground station at the Yarragadee Geodetic Observatory 300 km North of Perth. It is equipped with a commercial-grade adaptive optics system for efficient single-mode fibre coupling. This enables high-speed coherent communications and ultra-precise coherent timing and positioning between ground and space.
● TeraNet-3 is a 43 cm aperture mobile optical ground station node built onto the back of a Jeep utility vehicle for rapid, tactical deployment anywhere in the world. It is setup for quantum communication and quantum-assured time transfer and can establish satellite communication links within ten minutes of arriving on site, day or night.
In this paper, we report on the results and outcomes of the TeraNet commissioning campaign, including optical communication links with on-orbit spacecraft, the performance of the TeraNet-2 adaptive optics system, the rapid deployment capability of TeraNet-3, remote network operations of all three nodes, and interoperability tests with other optical ground stations across Australia and New Zealand.