Halifax-based space startup will receive $1.7 million from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The funds will help Galaxia build and launch the first two of its intelligent nanosatellites into orbit 鈥� part of Atlantic Canada鈥檚 first commercial satellite 鈥榗onstellation.鈥�
Galaxia, a space computation company, was founded in 2020 by Arad Gharagozli (BEng鈥�20) and is developing technology that allows groups of satellites to communicate more effectively and efficiently using edge computing. (With edge computing, data is stored closer to its source, which allows the data to be collected and processed faster and use less bandwidth as compared to cloud computing.)
Galaxia鈥檚 shoebox-sized nanosatellites, each weighing less than 10 kilograms, will be used to observe Earth in a variety of ways, according to the company鈥檚 website, from infrastructure monitoring to maritime security or processing time-sensitive intelligence during harsh weather.
Galaxia鈥檚 vision dovetailing with CSA鈥檚
Gharagozli, who is both CEO of Galaxia and founder of the , is thrilled with the funding.听
鈥淎s you can imagine, space industry is one of the most expensive industries to grow in,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he up-front capital required to bring a concept into reality is high, and [the] associated risk is even higher. CSA鈥檚 funding will enable us to de-risk our ground-breaking technology and demonstrate its capabilities in space.鈥�
But most importantly, he explains, it shows that Galaxia鈥檚 vision dovetails with the Canadian Space Agency鈥檚. (The two agencies are no strangers to one another, and last year Gharagozli and Tony Pellerin of the CSA co-presented an Open Dialogue Live lecture at 麻豆传媒 called .)
This isn鈥檛 the first time Gharagozli has broken new ground. In December of 2022, he and several students with the 麻豆传媒 Space Systems Lab built and launched LORIS (Low Orbit Reconnaissance and Imagery Satellite), the first satellite ever designed in Atlantic Canada, from NASA in Houston, TX. It will remain in orbit, being studied by and sending images to Gharagozli and his team, until approximately December 2023.
鈥淟ORIS has been an exceptional learning opportunity on so many levels,鈥� Gharagozli says. 鈥淟ORIS carried several high-tech systems that were all designed and manufactured here in Nova Scotia and were tested in space.鈥澨�
A common goal
LORIS was built from scratch during a pandemic, with limited resources and a continuous turnover of staff and volunteers, says Gharagozli. 鈥淚 would like to thank Dr. Kevin Plucknett, the principal investigator (PI) of the LORIS mission for his leadership. His continued support of the DSS led to the success of this mission and further helped me to establish GALAXIA at its early stages.鈥�
It ended up being a symbol of what a united vision can accomplish when people focus on a common goal. 鈥淚 can say with confidence it is by far one of the most daring and ambitious undertakings that we have done at 麻豆传媒, [and it] cleared a path for a whole new industry to blossom in our region.鈥�
With files from [PDF 224 KB].
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