Goonhilly will provide deep space communications services to the UK Space Agency and international partners from Cornwall, under a new contract.
Goonhilly Earth Station Ltd (Goonhilly) will provide deep space communications services to the UK Space Agency and international partners from its satellite Earth station in Cornwall, under a new contract announced on 16 October during the International Astronautical Congress in Milan.
Space agencies and companies use a global network of large antennas to communicate with, and transfer data between, their spacecraft and controllers on Earth. As the numbers of space missions beyond Earth orbit – to destinations including the Moon – increase, the capacity of these existing services is reaching their limit.
Several of the world’s space agencies already share resources to cope with high demand, but this issue is predicted to deteriorate with the increase in robotic and human activity around the Moon.
The UK is in a unique position to provide increased capacity through facilities like Goonhilly, which is the world’s most experienced provider of commercial lunar and deep space communications services. Since 2021, Goonhilly has supported over 17 spacecraft beyond geostationary orbit, including CubeSats deployed on the Artemis-I mission. Goonhilly has also provided services for international organisations, including ESA, ISRO, and Intuitive Machines.