Space Norway has reached the halfway mark in its extensive upgrade of Nittedal teleport ground station antennas, which includes transitioning to the Monica M&C systems.
Satellites and their supporting ground station are complex and substantial pieces of equipment representing a sizable financial investment, so it stands to reason that upgrades to either will be complex and time consuming.
Space Norway first embarked on a project to update its monitoring and control system (M&C) in 2019 when it was decided that it was time to prepare for the coming decade with more modern and future-proof technology. However, that was just the beginning of an installation process which has now just reached the halfway mark!
The first two years were spent identifying exactly what was needed for the antennas and sourcing potential suppliers. Having collated and analysed the information, the decision was taken to opt for the Monica Monitoring and Control system from Amphinicy Technologies, and so the Monica Project was born.
Why choose the Monica Monitoring and Control system?
Explains Sverre Aamodt, Space Norway’s Technical Lead, “We chose the Monica M&C solution as it was a modern, user-friendly product which would provide good longevity. The company itself was very supportive and quick to incorporate any functionality that we requested and communicated well with our engineers to ensure things would be exactly the way we required.”
The new M&C system for the antennas at Nittedal teleport monitors and controls the transmission equipment at the ground station including everything from combiners and splitters to amplifiers. While the antennas are out of service for the system upgrade, we also take the opportunity to make some further improvements to the antenna’s equipment which controls the tracking of the satellite, de-icing of antennas, and ensures that services are transmitted and received without any hitches.
“Space Norway is enhancing its infrastructure and systems by embracing cutting-edge technologies. With Monica M&C, the company achieves seamless and secure integration of its ground segment assets. The teleport in Nittedal is a central hub for managing satellite connectivity and service delivery to a large number of users. It has been a privilege to collaborate and learn from top industry experts. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity and the valuable experience gained by working on this project,” said Marjan Patača, a Presales Specialist at Amphinicy Technologies.
Halfway point for ground station upgrade
We have now reached the halfway mark in the project and are delighted that the transitions to the new systems have run as smoothly as we had hoped. Connectivity for both our Data Services and Broadcast divisions are handled by these antennas so it was vital that we avoided any disruption to our operations.
The Monica Project team co-ordinates closely with our various business divisions as to when the upgrade to the antennas should be undertaken with minimal impact on customers. Fortunately, Space Norway maintains spare antennas, so traffic can be passed from one to another for the two months needed for the upgrade to take place. During the time the new Monica Monitoring and Control system is being installed, general maintenance takes place and then functionality and stability testing occurs throughout the remaining weeks.
Sverre adds, “The RF and Infrastructure department is most heavily involved in this work. We are also grateful to our Projects and IT Departments as well as the NOC for all the support they have given over the past few years. We are all expecting that the future installations which will be taking place until summer 2026 will progress just as smoothly.”
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