TytoSpace Request a pilot
Cloud bands and a cyclone seen by the Suomi NPP satellite in a false-colour composite: thick cloud in orange and yellow, clear sea and land in blue.

Ground station software

Your ground station, built on software.

The receive side of a ground station, in software: planning, decoding and analysis for every antenna you own, from VHF to X-band.

Suomi NPP · VIIRS Day Microphysics X-band pass of 25 October 2026, 11:07 UTC, received on the shared 4.5 m dish near Poznań.

15Msym/sX-band QPSK decoded from NOAA-20, 958,134 frames in one pass
+53%more valid packets when stored recordings are decoded again
642satellite profiles with a ready receive plan
~5sfrom an unknown signal to its first valid frame, on replayed recordings

In operation at the Poznań University of Technology ground stationsSpace Arena 2026 finalist

Received in October 2026

Data we brought down from orbit.

Every image comes from a pass received at our stations during one campaign. Each caption says whether TytoSpace or SatDump rendered it.

A cyclone over the sea in true colour, seen by the Suomi NPP satellite.
Suomi NPP · VIIRS true colour, a cycloneX-band, 25 Oct 2026 · rendered with SatDump
PROBA-2 SWAP extreme ultraviolet image of the Sun, in orange false colour.
PROBA-2 · SWAP, the Sun in extreme UVS-band, 25 Oct 2026 · decoded and rendered by TytoSpace, false colour
Grid of CHEOPS telescope imagettes of the star HD 209458.
CHEOPS · telescope imagettesS-band · science format decoded by TytoSpace
Aqua MODIS thermal infrared image of cloud over Europe at night.
Aqua · MODIS 11 µm, night passX-band, 25 Oct 2026 · rendered with SatDump
NOAA-20 VIIRS true colour image of Anatolia and the eastern Mediterranean with cloud bands to the west.
NOAA-20 · VIIRS true colour over AnatoliaX-band, 25 Oct 2026 · 8,842 frames decoded by TytoSpace · rendered with SatDump

See each pass and its reception record

Spec sheet

What TytoSpace does.

On air / real signalVerified on the benchDelivered per project

Receive

  • VHF, UHF, S and X band
  • Up to 15 Msym/s decoded (QPSK, NOAA-20)
  • FSK, GMSK, AFSK, BPSK, QPSK, OQPSK
  • AX.25, CCSDS, Reed–Solomon, K=7
  • DVB-S2/S2X, LDPC, Turbo, SOQPSK, CPM
  • Uplink and ranging

Software

  • 642 satellite profiles ready
  • +53% packets from recordings
  • Unknown signal to first frame in ~5 s
  • Signal lab for every pass
  • Scored, conflict-free planning
  • Learned planner tuned to your stations

Hardware

  • USRP B210, more via UHD and SoapySDR
  • ICOM IC-9700 for VHF/UHF
  • Rotators: rotctld, GS-232, Rot2Prog
  • GPU kernels on NVIDIA A40
  • FPGA front end on the radio

Operations

  • Edge node keeps recording offline
  • On premises or in the cloud
  • REST API, S3, DIFI/VITA-49, SSO
  • CCSDS SLE (RAF/RCF), tested with Yamcs
  • 22/22 fault-injection runs passed
  • 100 stations, no frame loss

Highest rate: NOAA-20 X-band, 958,134 frames from one recorded pass. Modulation and coding verified on real signals; DVB-S2 is bit-exact error correction against the reference, other items lab-only. Unknown-signal timing 5.1–5.8 s on replayed S-band recordings. Packet gain on 266 archived recordings. Reliability figures from bench tests; the availability objective is 99%.

What you still need

Antennas and LNAs, a downconverter for X-band, a control unit for large servo dishes, a time reference, network and UPS, and uplink equipment if you command the satellite.

Compared

How it stacks up.

Hardware modemSatNOGSAWS Ground StationTytoSpace
Hardware at each antennaModem rackSDRNone of your ownSDR + edge node
Cost, three antennas$511–661k over five yearsFree software, your engineering time$10–22 per contact minute~$59k over five years + licence
Your antennas, offline●●—●
Raw recording of every pass◐ option◐ optional● in your cloud● by default
Recovers missed frames◐ replay—◐ your software● +53%
Identifies unknown signals———●
New missionLicence upgradeNew profileYour softwareModule
Planning built in◐ separate●●●
Uplink and ranging●—●◐ per project

Hardware prices from public tenders (DLR on TED, NASA on USAspending). Paid options as documented by Kratos (quantumRadio), WORK Microwave and Safran. AWS Ground Station on-demand prices from the AWS price list. TytoSpace figures from our own benchmarks; the status of each feature is in the spec sheet. AWS charges per contact minute, so it has no fixed five-year total.

Pilot

How a pilot works.

  1. InstallWe put an edge node and a server beside your current receiver, on one antenna and one mission.
  2. Run side by sideYour passes are received by both. Nothing in your current chain changes.
  3. CompareYou get a report on valid frames, time to data and the cost of running it, and you keep the recordings.
You provide

A split of the RF or IF feed from one antenna, a server slot or virtual machine beside it, a network link, and the link parameters of one mission. We bring the software and set it up with you.

Pricing on request.

Start small

One antenna, one satellite, one pilot.

We install TytoSpace beside your current receiver and compare the results on your own passes: valid frames, time to data and the cost of running it.