Astrogate Labs
Astrogate Labs is developing laser communication terminals for satellites, aiming to dramatically increase data transmission rates between satellites and ground. As satellites collect ever more imagery and sensor data, traditional radio downlinks (RF) at limited bandwidth are becoming a bottleneck. Astrogate’s solution is to use optical wireless communication - essentially infrared lasers - to send data to Earth at gigabit speeds, similar to fiber-optics but through space. Its compact laser terminals can be mounted on small satellites to enable high-speed downlinks or even inter-satellite links. In March 2022, Astrogate Labs demonstrated India’s first free-space optical communication between a ground transmitter and a payload carried on a high-altitude balloon, validating the technology in real atmospheric conditions. By replacing or augmenting RF systems, their tech can help smallsat operators download large volumes of imagery with lower latency and without spectrum licensing issues.
Astrogate’s Optical Terminal: a small (shoebox-sized) laser communication module that can be installed on a satellite. It consists of a fine-pointing mechanism (to line up with the ground station or another satellite) and a laser transceiver. The terminal can achieve data rates of 1– 5 Gbps over distances of several hundred kilometers.
Ground Laser Station: The startup is also setting up optical ground stations (receivers) possibly in high-altitude locations for cloud-free reception.
Data Relay Service: In the long run, Astrogate plans to offer a “data relay network” where customer satellites can downlink to one of Astrogate’s optical ground terminals or via a laser link to a relay satellite – enabling fast data dump even when the client satellite is out of range of its own stations. The initial market is Earth-imaging satellites that need to send high-res images down quickly.
Meet the Team
Founders
Other Team Members
Aditya Kedaliya (Head of Research) - an IISc alumnus working on pointing algorithms. Astrogate is mentored by Dr. K. Narayanan (ex-ISRO, optical comm expert). The startup has won the French Tech Challenge 2020 and collaborated with ISRO’s Small Satellite center on technology trials, validating its approach to industry stakeholders.
