Global Ground Station Network

KSAT (Kongsberg Satellite Services) operates the world’s largest commercial polar satellite ground station network, with 26 ground station sites totaling over 200 antenna systems. The network provides telemetry, tracking, and command (TT&C), mission data downlink, and real-time monitoring services to satellite operators worldwide.

KSAT’s most strategically important sites are at Svalbard (Spitsbergen), Norway and Antarctica — the only locations where a single ground station can contact any polar-orbiting (SSO) satellite on nearly every orbit. A polar station at 80°N latitude can communicate with SSO satellites 10–16 times per day rather than the 2–4 passes typical of equatorial or mid-latitude stations, dramatically increasing data downlink capacity and command uplink frequency.

KSAT serves 200+ spacecraft daily, including ESA, NASA, NOAA, commercial EO operators (Planet, Airbus, Maxar), communications satellite operators, and new-space constellations. Services include X, S, Ka-band downlink, S/X uplink for TT&C, laser communications (optical ground stations), and a growing Amazon Web Services integration for direct-to-cloud data delivery. KSAT is a joint venture between Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and the Norwegian Space Agency.