As satellite networks become more complex, advanced management solutions can help operators monitor network threats, from space to the battlefield.
Reticulate Micro aims to tackle this challenge with its Virtual Engineering Terminal for Satellite Performance Enhancement and Resourcing (VESPER), a new product launched this week that enables operators to view the real-time conditions of thousands of satellite terminals simultaneously on a single screen, Joshua Cryer tells Connectivity Business News in this week’s episode of “The Dish” podcast, which was recorded at the company’s Palm Bay, Fla., headquarters.
Although the platform debuted this week as the premier product of its new space business segment, Reticulate Space, Reticulate Micro began developing VESPER not long after the company’s inception in 2022, Cryer says.
With mega-constellations such as SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon’s Kuiper and military communication systems in orbit, the ability to manage the health and operations of all satcom terminals on a single screen is critical, Cryer tells CBN.
“We’ve taken that Vision OS that was designed to support VAST [Video Assured Secure Transmission] and we’ve now pivoted to support satcom management systems, which is what we call the VESPER platform,” Cryer tells CBN.
Reticulate Micro uses Vision OS, a highly modular management platform, to enable remote monitoring of its video encoders, even if a customer intends to use thousands, Cryer says.
The encoder technology is designed to provide high-quality video “regardless of the communications environment,” meaning it’s weather-resistant and jam-resistant, Cryer says.
Demonstration of Reticulate Micro’s VAST encoder technology
Video/CBN
Reticulate Micro’s platforms don’t require customers to purchase new hardware, which means they can avoid proprietary implementation costs when software is updated, Cryer tells CBN.
“There’s a ton of great solutions out there, but they’re typically cost-prohibitive to implement because they can be expensive to tailor and customize to specific user requirements,” Cryer says. “Our system is designed to avoid that by nature.”
Reticulate Micro’s mission is personal to Cryer, who previously worked at the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, which develops technologies for Navy Seals and Special Operations at large.
“I can tell you that a large number of my friends and colleagues passed away during military operations because they didn’t have the right mix of technologies,” Cryer tells CBN.
With higher quality information, they might have survived, Cryer adds.
All Reticulate Micro’s products are designed to provide quantum-resistant encryption, which “was needed yesterday,” he emphasizes.
Encryption solutions can be decrypted in real-time with quantum computing, which is especially dangerous for communications in a battlefield environment, he says.
“We don’t know what the future holds there, but we do know that our encryption methodologies need to change to counter quantum computing capabilities,” Cryer says.
Reticulate Micro plans to go public via IPO by the end of next month.