UK-based, Archangel Lightworks (Archangel) is building TERRA-M, a miniature & portable optical ground station, which enables secure, resilient & high-volume connectivity to & from space using laser-based communication (lasercom) (sometimes referred to as free space optics). (ps: on the secure-side, the startup closely collaborates with Singapore-based SpeQtral, which designs & manufacturers satellite-based quantum communication systems & provides it with end-to-end distribution of quantum encryption keys). <Quick primer on lasers: they can transfer 10-100x more info to & from satellites than radio waves (commonly used). They’re also cheaper (radio frequency spectrum is limited/ expensive) (lasers are license free) & safer from attacks and disruptions (e.g. a space-based lasercom internet won’t suffer from undersea cables linking continents...

Netherlands-based, Qualinx has developed a new radio chip that can receive geo-positioning info from the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) (which includes GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo & most other constellations). Qualinx patented core innovation is based on advancements in RF CMOS tech; in essence, “Qualinx managed to digitalize most analog building blocks in a GNSS receiver”. Otherwise said, “Qualinx's GNSS engine uses a novel digital baseband, enabling parallel digital processing instead of current sequential processing”. To achieve this, “a digital phase-locked loop (PLL) has been used to reduce power consumption, whilst reducing the total area of the system & enhancing total radio performance”. In fact, the chip (which will be controlled by an ARM Cortex...