Telepix, a corporation specializing in satellites, established a satellite payload development facility called SpaceLab in the Daeduck Techno Valley in Daejeon at the end of last year. The SpaceLab, covering about 200 pyeong, is one of the few satellite payload development facilities built independently by domestic space corporations.
On the 8th, Kim Sung-hee, head of the satellite systems division and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Telepix, noted that while the scale is smaller compared to the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), the facility is technically almost at the same level. He added, "The infrastructure for managing temperature and humidity is actually better." Kim is an expert who has been responsible for satellite development at KARI for a long time.
The SpaceLab, operated as a clean facility, did not have many researchers. Kim CTO stated, "Typically, only about 3 to 4 researchers work here at a time," and explained, "We sent a star tracker developed in collaboration with LK SAMYANG to the U.S. ahead of its launch on June 21, and the high-resolution optical payload 'Shuet' that we are focusing on developing is currently being worked on in another electronic laboratory."
Telepix is a company that develops key equipment for satellites. Recently, it has garnered attention in the domestic and international space industries by successfully launching its self-developed satellite payloads in succession.
In August of last year, Telepix successfully sent a TetraFlex containing NVIDIA's graphics processing unit (GPU) into space aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, and in January of this year, it successfully launched the seaweed observation satellite 'BlueBON' on another Falcon 9.
TetraFlex is an artificial intelligence (AI) processor capable of processing satellite data in real time. It corresponds to the 'brain' of the satellite. The TetraFlex completes satellite image preprocessing in just 11 seconds, which previously took over 6 minutes with existing devices. It's like an upgrade of the satellite's brain by several stages.
Baek Moon-heum, Vice President and Technical Advisor of Telepix, said, "The processors installed in satellites operate in extreme conditions in space, so we used durable devices even if their performance decreases, and we now see the need to use devices with high processing capabilities, so we incorporated NVIDIA's GPU chips."
BlueBON is one of the results demonstrating the manufacturing capabilities of high-resolution cameras that can be said to be the satellite's 'eyes.' BlueBON is a satellite payload that observes blue carbon, which refers to the carbon absorbed by marine ecosystems. By observing the distribution of seaweed worldwide with a high-resolution camera, the trends in blue carbon can be determined.
The star tracker and Shuet, currently under development, are next-generation payloads that Telepix has high expectations for. Among them, the star tracker is a type of navigation device that helps satellites determine their own position.
Satellites orbiting in low Earth orbit use GPS (Global Positioning System) to determine their location, just as we do on the ground. They can receive signals sent down from GPS satellites at approximately 20,000 km above Earth. However, once deep space exploration begins, such as missions to the Moon or Mars, GPS becomes useless, as operations will occur at higher and more distant locations than GPS satellites.
The star tracker developed by Telepix and LK SAMYANG is a device that uses an optical camera to find the position of planets instead of satellite signals, calculating the satellite's position accurately in real time. Hong Kyung-woo, leader of telepix's star tracker development, said, "For now, we plan to send it up to about 600 km above Earth to test its functionality before fully developing it for deep space navigation systems."
Shuet, scheduled to launch in the second half of 2027, is an optical payload that consolidates all of Telepix's technological expertise. Kim CTO pointed to a prototype showing the structure of Shuet and said, "Typically, the observation width of ordinary satellites is about 10 km, so to capture Seoul, which has a width of 20 km, the satellite must pass over Seoul twice. Our Shuet applies an aspherical mirror to expand the observation width to 24 km, allowing for more efficient observation."
When it comes to developing satellite equipment in Korea, many people tend to think of small-scale facilities like university research labs. Telepix's SpaceLab shattered this stereotype at a glance.
SpaceLab continues to enhance its facilities and infrastructure. A thermal vacuum chamber, simulating space on the ground, is set to be introduced this August. Artificial satellites or spacecraft undergo tests in thermal vacuum chambers on the ground, where they experience extreme conditions ranging from -190 degrees Celsius to +150 degrees Celsius before heading into space. They also experience the vacuum of space there.
Kim CTO said, "We have the scale and facilities to develop and produce satellite hardware that can meet the diverse needs of global customers, and by establishing SpaceLab, experts from various fields such as optics, electronics, and software have come together to accelerate payload development."