Hardware AtlasSupplier reference Explore in 3D

SPACE / Mission payload / REVIEWED 2026-09-11

A04Optical intersatellite links

Send data between satellites using light.

Manufacturers & products

An optical terminal provides a narrow-beam laser link, pointing/acquisition/tracking and interfaces to a modem or network. Space-to-space and direct-to-Earth links have different counterpart, pointing and operating constraints.

These are sourcing candidates, not a confirmed Starlink supply chain.

manufacturer

TESAT

SCOT optical terminal family

Space optical links are offered through configuration-specific terminals; SCOT80 serves LEO inter-satellite networks with separate optical-head and electronics accommodation. [1][2]

Company location: Backnang, Germany

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

SCOT30’s August 2026 sheet states 2028 availability; do not treat it as currently available flight hardware.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

Mynaric (Rocket Lab)

CONDOR Mk3 family

Space laser terminals support optical inter-satellite links; current supplier identity includes Rocket Lab following completion of the Mynaric acquisition in April 2026. [4][3][5]

Company location: Munich, Germany

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

The Mk3 source mixes baseline specifications with roadmap material; future rates are not retained as available specifications.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

CACI

CrossBeam optical communication terminals

Terminal variants support optical networking across space orbits, with a documented manufacturing facility and a public datasheet distinguishing specific CrossBeam versions. [6][7]

Published manufacturing site: Orlando, Florida, United States

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

Compare the same variant: ST0 and ST1 values cannot be merged.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

MBRYONICS

STARCOM

Optical terminal and acquisition/control electronics support a modular link architecture with external modem and optical-amplifier integration choices. [8]

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

Published complete-system boundary requires a modem and amplifier in addition to terminal/control hardware.
Future throughput targets are not current guaranteed product values.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

Skyloom (IonQ)

Space optical communications terminals

Space optical hardware and network technology support optical links; Skyloom is now part of IonQ following the January 2026 completed acquisition. [9][10]

Custom program inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

Clarify purchase of flight terminals versus a managed network/service agreement.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

AAC Clyde Space / AAC Hyperion

CubeCAT

Compact satellite laser-terminal work includes CubeCAT deliveries and related SmallCAT demonstration heritage, providing a route for small-spacecraft optical communication integration. [11]

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

SmallCAT demonstration performance is not automatically a CubeCAT contract specification.
Future higher-rate development is kept separate from delivered hardware.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

Astrolight

ATLAS-2

A compact laser terminal supports space links with an asymmetric communications architecture and a defined optical-ground-system counterpart for direct-to-Earth use. [12]

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

The high transmit rate is not a symmetric receive-rate claim; counterpart and host pointing requirements matter.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

Odysseus Space

CYCLOPS-DTE

A direct-to-Earth optical terminal programme has completed environmental testing toward its first in-orbit demonstration, rather than establishing an already operating flight constellation product. [13]

Custom program inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

April 2026 update places first demonstration in February 2027; procurement is a development/programme engagement.
Direct-to-Earth evidence does not establish an inter-satellite terminal.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems

Optical communications terminals

Space optical terminal engineering supports custom communications architectures and mission programmes, with flight hardware and network requirements defined through programme integration. [14]

Custom program inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

Public family descriptions do not establish a single orderable configuration or common terminal specification.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

NEC

LUCAS optical link equipment

Documented Japanese flight-programme optical equipment demonstrates a cross-orbit data-relay link; it is retained as a mission-engineered supplier reference rather than an off-the-shelf smallsat terminal. [15]

Custom program inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

No general catalogue price, delivery commitment or smallsat interchangeability is established.

View product & inquiry route

manufacturer

Voyager Technologies (formerly Space Micro)

μLCT laser communication terminal

A configurable optical terminal family addresses inter-satellite and space-to-ground links with selectable waveforms and modem architecture, now presented under Voyager branding. [16][17]

Manufacturer inquiry

Request a technical quotation through the manufacturer; current configuration and availability require confirmation.

Product scope & qualifications

Brochure rates correspond to different modem configurations; do not combine family maxima into one flight-proven unit.

View product & inquiry route

What remains unverified

Optical product websites contain significant roadmap content; maturity and delivered boundary need configuration-specific confirmation.
No current orderable-price or verified lead-time data were established.
Public evidence is strongest in Europe and North America, with NEC a Japanese programme reference; this is not an exhaustive global qualification list.

Where it comes from

A company address is shown separately from a published factory location. Request the manufacturing site and lot traceability for the exact part when sourcing.

What to compare

Link topology and counterpart
Identify LEO–LEO, cross-orbit or direct-to-Earth use and the exact remote terminal/ground station.
Usable throughput and duplexing · Gbps
Separate per-direction rates, symmetric/asymmetric operation, channel rate and delivered user data.
Range and optical link budget · km / W / nm
Compare range at a defined wavelength, transmitter power, aperture, coding and counterpart sensitivity.
Pointing and field of regard · degrees / µrad
Match host attitude knowledge, acquisition cone, fine-pointing accuracy, obstruction map and slew limits.
Interoperability
Verify protocol/version, waveform, timing and actual compatibility testing; a generic standards claim is insufficient.
Delivered boundary
Check inclusion of optical head, acquisition camera, controller, modem, amplifier and harness.
DC power and thermal modes · W
Separate idle, acquisition, transmit, peak and heater load; optical output power is not DC input.
Mass and accommodation · kg / mm
Compare total installed mass with per-channel, head-only or controller-only figures.
Maturity and mission environment
Distinguish delivered flight equipment, engineering models and announced roadmaps; request life and radiation evidence.

Selection & integration notes

Space-to-ground needs an optical ground network and weather-aware operations; a terminal alone does not provide continuous connectivity.
Inter-satellite terminals require counterpart agreement and network integration. Similar wavelength or an SDA standards label does not prove interoperability.
High-rate roadmap claims are not treated as purchasable current configurations.
Supplier specifications describe their own products, not any identified optical terminal on Starlink V2 Mini.

Published product examples

4 REFERENCES

Specifications belong to the named product and configuration.

SCOT80, datasheet version 2025-03TESAT

Channel rate: 2.5 or 10 Gbps bidirectional[1]Variant/configuration-dependent.
Range: Up to 8,000 km[1]Typical application-dependent value.
Mass: 11.9 kg per optical channel[1]Not optical-head-only mass.
DC power: 60–80 W[1]Depends on data rate.
Power interface: 28 V[1]Datasheet nominal interface.

Running-production family; obtain a current configuration-controlled quotation.

Example sources [1]

CONDOR Mk3 baselineMynaric (Rocket Lab)

Nominal data-rate range: 0.313–2.5 Gbps[3]Baseline table, excluding higher-rate roadmap.
Link distance: >6,500 km[3]Vendor nominal system claim; counterpart conditions not fully published.
Aperture: 80 mm[3]Baseline terminal.
Optical transmit power: 4 W at end of life[3]Optical output, not electrical consumption.
DC input: 22–38 V[3]Published electrical range.

Dimension and field-of-regard statements on the source conflict; neither is used here.

Example sources [3]

CrossBeam-ST1CACI

Data rate / link distance: 2.5 Gbps / 6,750 km[7]ST1 configuration.
Optical transmit power: 2.5 W[7]Transmitter optical output.
Typical DC power: 75 W[7]Terminal variant in datasheet.
Aperture: 10.5 cm[7]ST1 optical system.

The sheet’s 10 kg figure is the beam-director mass; it is not presented as total installed terminal mass.

Example sources [7]

ATLAS-2Astrolight

Transmit data rate: 2.5 Gbps[12]High-rate transmit direction; asymmetric return link.
Mass: 2.3 kg[12]Product-page terminal value.
Idle / transmit DC power: 1 W / 30 W[12]Separate operating modes.
Host pointing requirement: 0.5° at 2σ[12]Spacecraft pointing input requirement.
Fine-pointing resolution: <15 µrad[12]Terminal fine-pointing value.

Direct-to-Earth configuration is optimized around the specified OGS2.5 counterpart.

Example sources [12]

Sources & references

REVIEWED 2026-09-11

Manufacturer pages and technical documents support the linked claims. A review date is not a publication date or stock check.

SCOT80 optical communication terminal datasheet, version 2025-03 TESAT · Published 2025-03
Current-production SCOT80 configuration-specific optical terminal parameters.
Accessed 2026-09-10
SCOT30 smallsat optical communication terminal datasheet, version 2026-08 TESAT · Published 2026-08
SCOT30 is a development roadmap with 2028 stated availability, not currently available flight hardware.
Accessed 2026-09-10
CONDOR Mk3 Mynaric · Publication date not stated
Baseline Mk3 parameters; roadmap and inconsistent dimensions excluded.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Space products Mynaric · Publication date not stated
Current space optical terminal family inquiry.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Rocket Lab completes Mynaric acquisition Rocket Lab · Published 2026-04-14
Acquisition completed; Mynaric remains headquartered in Munich.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Optical communications CACI · Publication date not stated
Space terminal offerings and Orlando manufacturing facility.
Accessed 2026-09-10
CrossBeam free-space optical communications datasheet F629 2401 CACI · Published 2024-01
CrossBeam-ST1 variant optical link, electrical power and aperture parameters.
Accessed 2026-09-10
STARCOM MBRYONICS · Publication date not stated
Terminal and controller scope, third-party modem/amplifier integration, future throughput roadmap.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Technology Skyloom · Publication date not stated
Space optical communications hardware and integrated network technology.
Accessed 2026-09-10
IonQ completes acquisition of Skyloom IonQ · Published 2026-01-28
Completed acquisition and current corporate identity.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Laser technology: the future of space-based communications AAC Clyde Space · Publication date not stated
CubeCAT terminal deliveries; SmallCAT heritage and future development kept distinct.
Accessed 2026-09-10
ATLAS Astrolight · Publication date not stated
ATLAS-2 optical terminal parameters, asymmetric link and ground-system dependency.
Accessed 2026-09-10
CYCLOPS-DTE testing Odysseus Space · Published 2026-04-29
Ground-link terminal test progress and first in-orbit demonstration planned for February 2027.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Space technologies General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems · Publication date not stated
Custom optical communication terminal capability.
Accessed 2026-09-10
NEC achieves high-speed optical inter-satellite communication NEC · Published 2025-01-23
LUCAS flight programme, distinct from a publicly priced off-the-shelf terminal.
Accessed 2026-09-10
μLCT laser communication terminal Voyager Technologies · Published 2024-02-26
Configurable optical terminal family; waveform/rate configurations need quotation.
Accessed 2026-09-10
Space Micro brand transition Space Micro / Voyager Technologies · Publication date not stated
Official transition of Space Micro web branding to Voyager.
Accessed 2026-09-10