SOFA Small Optical Ground Station Focal-Optics Assembly

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SOFA – Small Optical Ground Station Focal-Optics Assembly, mounted on PlaneWave telescope CDK20 (Observable Space).
SOFA upgrades a standard telescope into a fully capable optical ground station. It ist a low-cost instrument that supplements standard telescope optics, transforming astronomical observatoreies and commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) portable telescopes into optical ground stations.
The module integrates precision pointing, an IR tracking & daylight camera, an uplink launcher, and the Receiver Front-End (RFE) for high-rate LEO downlinks — all in a compact design.
We’re excited to work together with the DLR on advancing future-ready optical communication systems.