OGS Tracker Information

OGS Tracker is a free, citable registry of the world's optical ground stations, the telescopes that receive laser downlinks from space. Optical downlink capacity is scaling faster than the ground segment that serves it. Roughly 830 optical ground stations are needed by 2035, and about 5% of that infrastructure exists today. The data on what does exist is scattered across conference papers, press releases and ITU filings, so we gather it into one place. For every documented site, the registry records: - Coordinates, altitude and the atmospherics that decide availability - Aperture, adaptive optics, wavelengths and demonstrated data rates - CCSDS standards spoken and links actually closed - Who can book passes: agency, research or commercial - The regulatory picture from licensing status to laser clearance and aviation coordination Every entry cites its sources. Empty fields mean not yet documented, never zero. The inclusion methodology is published alongside the data, and operators can review and correct their own records. Three commitments: no paywall, no login, and listing cannot be bought. 46 documented sites across 17 countries so far. The full database opens August 2026. Operating a station we should have, or holding data we're missing? The contribute form is open at ogstracker.com.