Jerusalem, 4 January, 2023 (TPS) -- An Israeli “nanosatellite” launched into space on Tuesday may pave the way for inexpensive, secure optical and quantum communication from space.
The nanosatellite, dubbed TAU-SAT3, was developed by Tel Aviv University and was launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
A special ground station was set up on the roof of one of the university buildings to receive the nanosatellite’s transmissions. According to Prof. Noam Eliaz, dean of engineering, “This is the first optical ground station in Israel, and one of very few worldwide, that can lock onto, track, and collect data from a nanosatellite which, viewed from Earth, is smaller than a single pixel.”
Eliaz said this breakthrough will lower the cost of building and launching nanosatellites for optical communication. The university will conduct experiments on the rate of data that the nanosatellite can receive, process and transmit, and also for scenarios that disrupt satellite communication channels.
The satellite’s quantum components will not only boost its ability to send and receive data, they will also make the date more secure.