Kassas explained that to replicate the performance of GPS, a satellite navigation system in low Earth orbit would need about 10 times as many satellites as a similar satellite constellation in mid-Earth orbit. But as the recent rise of Xona and other competitors has shown, low production and launch costs have made it possible to build and launch such a constellation of satellites dedicated to delivering PNT services from low Earth orbit.
Tim Graham is lead hardware, software and propulsion satellite development at Xona Space Systems.
Credit: Room Space Systems
Tim Graham is lead hardware, software and propulsion satellite development at Xona Space Systems.
Credit: Room Space Systems
Creation and commissioning of the satellite fleet
There is a room Contracted with AerospacelabA satellite manufacturer in Belgium to build some of the first satellites to carry Xona’s PNT payloads into orbit. But the company is focused on developing its own in-house satellite bus to produce most of the planned 258 Pulsar satellites at the company’s factory in Burlingame, California.
“We had our first hire on this internal satellite team just over a year ago, and it’s incredibly impressive to see what the team has accomplished to date,” said Perkins. “Bringing in people with that kind of experience can help us learn how to keep simplifying the first version from what it looked like.”
One of Xona’s recent notable works, Tim Grahamworked on engineering challenges at SpaceX for ten years, eventually becoming the avionics engineering manager on SpaceX’s Raptor engines that propel SpaceX’s Starship rocket. But he saw an opportunity to bring his expertise and experience in expanding hardware manufacturing to Xona, joining the company earlier this year to lead satellite development across hardware, software and engines.
“If you look at the historical impact of major technological developments, GPS is up there as a world-changer,” Graham told Ars. “It’s a very exciting mission to bring to life a more modern design for a modern technology GPS system.”
Graham Khona also appreciated joining a company led by his co-founder and CEO Brian Manningpreviously worked as a SpaceX engineer on the redesign of Falcon 9 rocket propulsion components. “The SpaceX people kind of went through a grinder together, and so it was a good fit,” Graham said.
