Kepler Communications will receive a $14 million investment from the Canadian government to support the development of its $203 million high-speed data relay constellation, Aether.
The satellite network will use optical intersatellite link laser technology to reduce the time needed to transmit data between space assets and ground stations.
According to François-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry, the investment through the Strategic Innovation Fund, or SFI, will position Canada as a global leader in space and critical technology development. He also expects the funding to support Kepler in creating partnerships with small and medium-sized enterprises, universities and colleges to advance network development.
The SFI investment follows Canadian Space Agency funding to demonstrate Kepler’s optical and radio frequency data relay services and a contract award from the European Space Agency designating Kepler to lead the development of the low Earth orbit segment of the High Throughput Optical Network. Short for HydRON, the program will use The Kepler Network to test a high-capacity, low-latency data transport system and advanced space-based internet traffic management.