Harwell, UK, 11th November 2021 / Atheras Analytics, a UK-based company in the satellite telecommunications sector, has secured funding from the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S). The funding will allow Atheras to extend the capabilities of its SaaS-based software tools to cover a wider range of satellites and orbits.
Founded in August 2020, Atheras Analytics’ core technology is based on research that has been conducted by UKI2S partner, the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), into the effects of weather impairments on Ka-band and Q/V-band satellite links. The company has developed a suite of SaaS-based software tools that enables satellite operators to optimise the design and operation of their next-generation Ka-band and Q/V-band satellite networks by taking into account region-specific weather conditions – in particular rainfall. The core of these tools is an AI-based Outage Prediction Algorithm (OPA) that was developed by STFC RAL Space inventor, Dr. Spiros Ventouras, based on ESA-funded research into atmospheric attenuation of Ka-band and Q/V-band satellite links, which were taken across Europe over several years. The OPA employs advanced machine learning techniques, including neural networks, to “train” it for multiple different operational scenarios.
Atheras’ Managing Director, John Yates, explained: “This funding will enable us to support the many new innovative satellite constellations coming on-line in the near future offering ubiquitous high-speed Internet service to business and consumers worldwide. It will help us to accelerate the development of our toolkit and extend the capabilities of the OPA into exciting new growth areas, such as the rapidly evolving Low Earth Orbit and Medium Earth Orbit satellite constellations and optical satellite links.”
Letizia Gionfrida, Investment Associate at Midven, the fund manager for UKI2S, said: “Atheras is a great example of how high-quality research by one of our partner laboratories can form the basis of a company solving a global problem and we look forward to supporting their growth.”
The satellite telecommunications sector is about to enter a phase of major change in the delivery of ubiquitous consumer and enterprise broadband through the use of High Throughput Satellites (HTS) and Very High Throughput Satellites (VHTS), which can deliver more than 20 x the data capacity of traditional satellites at a fraction of the cost. Employing higher frequency Ka-bands and Q/V-bands is necessary to support these higher data rates. However, because these higher frequency bands are much more susceptible to atmospheric impairments than those previously used, the work of Atheras Analytics is essential to support this shift in broadband delivery.
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Notes to Editors
About Atheras
Atheras Analytics has developed a suite of software tools to meet these challenges and enable satellite operators to optimise the design and operation of their next-generation, multi-gateway satellite networks that are becoming essential to deliver high throughput satellite (HTS) services globally. Learn more at https://atherasanalytics.com.
About the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S)
UKI2S is a national seed investment fund that nurtures innovative businesses from great UK science to leverage private investment and grow jobs. The Fund is backed by UKRI, Dstl and other public bodies and is independently managed by specialist venture capital firm Midven, part of Future Planet Capital https://futureplanetcapital.com/, the impact-led, global venture capital firm built to invest in high growth potential companies from the world's top research centres. UKI2S provides the patient, long-term committed capital and strategic advice these companies need to flourish. Over the past decade and more, the fund has built a substantial track record of companies that between them have attracted over £600m of later stage investment. Learn more at http://ukinnovationscienceseedfund.co.uk/. Twitter: @UKI2S.
For further information, please contact:
Corporate contact:
John Yates, Managing Director
Atheras Analytics
T: +44 1235 884 244
M: +44 7721 335 963
E: john.yates@atherasanalytics.com
Media contact:
Richard Anderson / Juliette Craggs / Darya Shulakova
Sciad Communications
T: +44 (0)20 3405 7892
E: UKI2S@sciad.com
