Viasat Opens First Africa RTE Ground Station in Ghana

Viasat Inc. has announced the launch of its first Real-Time Earth (RTE) facility in Africa, located in Accra, Ghana.

Viasat partnered with the Ghana Space Science and Technology Institute (GSSTI) to bring new space opportunities and jobs to Africa. With this new station, Viasat’s RTE global network is now active in five continents.

Viasat RTE provides Ground-Station-as-a-Service (GSaaS) capabilities in support of environmental, insurance, shipping, energy and government operations. It is a fully-managed, affordable ground network that supports next-generation and legacy orbits using the S-, X-, and Ka-bands. This includes geosynchronous equatorial orbit (GEO), medium earth orbit (MEO) and low earth orbit (LEO) satellites. These would enable operators to meet current and future data requirements.

Viasat’s RTE satellite ground station facility is located at the Ghana Radio Astronomy Observatory, Kuntunse. It includes a Viasat full-motion 7.3M S/X/Ka-band antenna and associated infrastructure. The antenna is ready to provide satellite operators with the ability to perform Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TT&C) capabilities. It can also rapidly download, stream and/or disseminate valuable satellite-based data in a timely and secure manner.

“The new RTE ground station, is part of Viasat’s strategic growth plan for a global RTE ground service network,” said John Williams, vice president, Real-Time Earth at Viasat. “By working with GSSTI, we have opened a state-of-the-art RTE facility.” He also noted that it would bring jobs and economic growth to the region. In addition, he noted that the RTE further differentiates Viasat’s service as it provides satellite operators access to world-class antenna systems. Additionally, these systems will provide high-speed RTE connectivity of payload data across a secure network.

Eric Aggrey, research scientist and project manager of Ghana Radio Astronomy Project, GSSTI added, “The development of Viasat’s new antenna site has been an extremely positive opportunity for the people and economy of Ghana”. He also noted that GSSTI have positively grown its presence in the global space and technology sector. In addition, GSSTI is looking forward to expanding its relationship with Viasat. The Institute hopes to leverage the partnership to bring new space opportunities, technologies and skillsets to Africa.