HBK CHAT VOL 22 ISS 2 NEWSLETTER

Tech Space

HBK ICT: A year in review - Nteboheng Molefe

Just thought I let you in on a couple of projects that have been keeping the ICT team at HBK facilities on its toes. Yes, this is one of the long-standing projects that everyone has been working on for years. The migration to the cloud started in end 2021, continuing to the beginning of 2022. The advantage of this long wait is that all files are now available for you anywhere, anytime – even when you are overseas. All you need is internet connection. Another huge advantage is that backups are done automatically in the cloud. The upgrade of the MPLS network between SANSA Space Operations and Teraco has been completed and is fully operational. We installed 6 additional routers to provide full redundancy and automatic link failover after link outage. The MPLS failover configuration is aligned with our objective “to improve the reliability of existing infrastructure” and achieve 99.999% availability/ uptime. Improving reliability of existing infrastructure I-drive really took time but it was worth it

ingest data and sends it to systems designed to capture that information. Initially, acquisition capturing was done manually whereby a user will physically monitor the start and end of the pass as it happens and write the information on paper, which will then have to be retyped in by the reporter. M.A.S improves efficiency by automating acquisition and loss of signal. This is an analysis tool created to allow technical support to be able to characterise antennae based on the deviation of the expected signal frequency received by the Base Band Unit. Doppler effect is used to keep track of change in frequency. Too much change in frequency (whether positive or negative) means that the antenna is not performing well. The system helps to track this information. Doppler Analysis and Recording Software

Telemetry Data Recording Software

This is a data recording tool created for logging telemetry data processed by the Base Band Unit. This data received from satellite is processed to be in a readable format.

Landsat 9 Post Past Report Software

After all, we are techies

This software creates reports on successfully tracked Landsat 9 passes. It was basically a request from a client to get summary of data received. The ICT team is proud to have successfully delivered all these projects that are being used for business efficiency.

Herearecoupleof software solutionswedeveloped,:

Mission Assistant Software (M.A.S)

This system assists the operations team in capturing the acquisition of signal (AoS) and loss of signal (LoS) between the antenna and the satellite – that is the time when a satellite passes a specific location at a specific time and the antenna is used to point into that location,

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