Agnirva Space Premier League - Expedition #32517: Listening to Satellites: How Ten-Mayak Mapped the Skies with Radiosounding

Satellites zip overhead every day, silently relaying signals back to Earth. But how do we track these signals and understand their coverage in real time? The Ten-Mayak project, initiated by ROSCOSMOS and led by O. Alifanov, tackled this question by developing procedures to monitor satellite coverage using a ground-based receiver network.

The idea was simple but powerful: place a series of ground receivers across wide areas to ‘listen’ to satellite transmissions. By analyzing these signals, scientists could better understand satellite paths, signal strength, and coverage quality. The experiment was conducted over multiple ISS expeditions (14 through 34), reflecting the project’s complexity and longevity.

This type of radiosounding is essential for improving satellite communication systems. Ground receivers collect data on signal strength, timing, and frequency. When synchronized and analyzed, this data reveals how satellites interact with the atmosphere and terrain, which can affect how well they perform.

One of the unique aspects of Ten-Mayak is its educational and cultural value. It wasn’t just a technical endeavor—it also involved collaboration with educational institutions, allowing students and amateur radio operators to participate. It turned satellite tracking into a hands-on learning experience.

The project also had practical implications. Better understanding of satellite behavior helps optimize communication systems for navigation, television, and internet services. In remote areas or during emergencies, reliable satellite communication is often the only lifeline.

Ten-Mayak demonstrated how relatively low-cost ground technology could be used to map high-tech space systems. By involving educational institutions, it nurtured a new generation of engineers and scientists who learned by doing.

Whether you’re interested in physics, communications, or space engineering, Ten-Mayak offers a real-world example of how ground-based observations complement space missions. It’s a reminder that you don’t have to leave Earth to participate in the space age—you can contribute from your own backyard.

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