ArkEdge Space selected for QZSS utilization demonstration project

ArkEdge Space Inc. has been selected for Japan’s fiscal 2025 QZSS Utilization Demonstration Project. The initiative is jointly organized by Japan’s Cabinet Office and Quasi-Zenith Satellite System Service Inc.

The company will deploy next-generation tide monitoring buoys across island nations in the Asia-Pacific region. The buoys will use MADOCA-PPP, a high-precision GNSS augmentation service provided by Japan’s Quasi-Zenith Satellite System known as Michibiki. The devices will collect sea level data and transmit information through ArkEdge Space’s Internet of Things satellites.

ArkEdge Space specializes in designing, developing and operating micro-satellites while integrating communications technologies including IoT and VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) for observation and positioning applications. The company plans to use this demonstration project to address challenges in developing regions related to disaster preparedness, tsunami and storm surge monitoring, port infrastructure development and climate change adaptation.

Field operations are scheduled to begin in November 2025. The company plans to host a regional seminar at the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum. Additional announcements regarding buoy deployment and project updates will be made separately.

The project aims to promote global adoption of Japan’s Michibiki satellite positioning technology and advance sustainable marine observation infrastructure using IoT-enabled satellite services.

The QZSS Utilization Demonstration Project is a public initiative conducted by Japan’s Cabinet Office and Quasi-Zenith Satellite System Service Inc. to promote early adoption of commercial services and products using Japan’s QZSS Michibiki system.

MADOCA-PPP is a real-time high-precision positioning augmentation service developed by Japan’s Cabinet Office and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The service delivers centimeter-level accuracy of 10 centimeters or less both horizontally and vertically via the L6 signal of the Michibiki constellation and is compatible with multi-GNSS receivers.

VDES is a next-generation maritime communication system that extends the functionality of the Automatic Identification System to enable high-speed, bidirectional data exchange. In Japan, ArkEdge Space is part of the Satellite VDES Consortium with IHI Corporation and Japan Radio Co. Ltd. In July 2025, the company launched a test satellite and began in-orbit demonstrations of VDES technology.