Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) has launched a ground station as a service designed to help customers communicate with their satellites and downlink and process satellite data using the Azure cloud platform.
The Azure Orbital GSaaS can help satellite operators schedule contact with their spacecraft and downlink data into virtual networks on the cloud for processing using data analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning and geospatial tools on Azure, Yves Pitsch, principal program manager for Azure networking, wrote in a blog post published Tuesday.
“Contact scheduling will be available for Microsoft owned and operated ground stations in X, S, and UHF band frequencies via shared high gain antennas,” Pitsch wrote.
The company is working with AMERGINT Technologies, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Kubos, KSAT, Viasat and US Electrodynamics on Azure Orbital.
Pitch noted that SES has come up with a cloud-scale operational environment and will use Azure Orbital to develop managed services and facilitate order and service delivery processes.
