Celestia has announced that it has successfully completed the testing of its multi-beam Ka-band gateway with JoeySat, marking a major milestone in the evolution of satellite communications infrastructure. The system has been operational for nine months without the need for maintenance, reinforcing its robustness, reliability and performance in real world conditions.

The testing carried out by the Celestia team demonstrated the gateway’s ability to communicate successfully with spacecraft over an extended duration, highlighting the benefits of its design, which eliminates the need for moving parts. The system has been shown to be effective across a range of climate conditions, further validating its long-term viability.

“This achievement underscores the strength of our Ka-band gateway technology, paving the way for broader deployment,” said Dr Malachy Devlin, Celestia CEO. “A maintenance-free system with high reliability and operational efficiency is a game-changer for the satellite industry, and we are excited to take the next step towards production capability.”

The development of this breakthrough technology was supported through the ESA Connectivity and Secure Communications Directorate’s Sunrise Partnership Project and received funding from European Space Agency – ESA and the UK Space Agency. The project was made possible through collaboration with key industry partners, including Eutelsat OneWeb, MDA Space and the Dundee Ground Station.

“The extensive testing of the gateway multi-beam electronic antenna system with JoeySat orbiting at different altitudes, in challenging conditions, has proven the robustness of this innovative technology, providing an attractive solution for constellations where a high number of satellites are visible from a single point on earth,” said Nicolas Girault from ESA.

With this successful demonstration complete, Celestia is now advancing towards production capability, ready to offer a field-proven, resilient and efficient Ka-band gateway solution for next-generation satellite communications capable of tracking and communicating with up to 28 satellites simultaneously.