- Greenland’s arctic location makes it a central hub for satellite communications in low Earth orbit
- Laser communication provides faster data transfer and stronger resistance to jamming than radio
- Astrolight builds optical ground stations to support civil, commercial and military networks
Greenland has been in the headlines a lot lately, after President Donald Trump renewed calls for the US to take control of the territory – but beyond politics, the Arctic region is also gaining attention for an entirely different reason – its growing importance for space and defense communications.
This strategic value is closely linked to satellites, lasers and geography, and according to European laser communications startup Astrolight, Greenland’s location near the North Pole makes it exceptionally valuable for modern satellite networks.
speaks to AZoOpticsLaurynas Maciulis, co-founder and CEO of Astrolight, said Greenland plays a key role in how low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites move around the planet.
Military use
“Greenland is strategically valuable for the LEO pass geometry because its proximity to the North Pole allows frequent satellite passes for polar satellites in orbit that provide global coverage,” he explained, adding that its position near the magnetic pole also makes it useful for monitoring space weather.
Astrolight focuses on laser-based communication, which uses tightly focused beams of light instead of traditional radio signals. This offers several practical advantages over radio frequency systems.
“Laser communication solves many practical problems that come with the use of radio frequency,” Maciulis said. “It bypasses the crowded radio frequency spectrum,” while allowing much higher data rates and offering strong resistance to jamming and spoofing.
The company has already moved beyond testing. Maciulis said Astrolight recently signed a contract with the European Space Agency to build the first optical ground station (OGS) in Greenland, aimed at speeding up the return of satellite data for use in disaster response and geointelligence.
Laser communications also attract attention in military settings, where radio transmissions can reveal the location of troops.
In a separate report by BFBS Forces NewsPeter Stensgård-Hansen from Astrolight described his own experience of using radios during military service.
“I died so many times in my nine months of service because the minute I pushed that radio down, it’s a big ‘hey, this is battalion command’. I was bombed to pieces.”
Laserlinks are far more difficult to detect or disrupt. “This is just free space, a very narrow beam that only transmits from a very narrow path from the transmitter to the receiver,” Stensgård-Hansen said.
Nato has been testing laser-based systems during recent exercises as part of efforts to improve communications resilience.
“The idea to establish a position in Greenland came from our experience with Nato… we need to spread our global space infrastructure,” Stensgård-Hansen said.
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