Ireland – Astronomical and optical instruments – Procurement of a High-Precision Optical Ground Station (OGS) Telescope Unit for Uplink and Satellite Tracking

Tender description

The Contracting Authority is seeking tenders for the procurement of a High-Precision Optical Ground Station (OGS) Telescope Unit for Uplink and Satellite Tracking. This procurement is being undertaken as part of Phase 2 of Ireland's QCI project (TransEuroOGS), co-funded by the European Commission Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and the Irish Department of Culture, Communications, and Sport. The successful tenderer will be required to design, manufacture, and deliver a turnkey telescope unit encompassing the mount, optics, and control software, complying with strict technical and spatial constraints. Key Technical Requirements: Optical Configuration: Ritchey-Chretien (RC) optical design, f/10 to f/12 system, with a clear aperture of at least 700 mm. Low central obstruction is required (30 percent or lower diameter linear obstruction preferred, maximum allowable 34 percent or lower). Optical Coatings and Power Handling: Broad-spectrum reflectivity covering both visible wavelengths and the 1550 nm C-Band NIR telecommunication spectrum, biased for optimal performance at 1550 nm. Reflectance at 1550 nm must be at least 95 percent (protected gold or equivalent high-efficiency NIR coating acceptable). The secondary mirror (M2) and main aperture must handle a high-power launch beam of maximum 40W continuous wave at 1550 nm across the aperture or annulus (power density less than 3300 W per square metre on the primary mirror). Focusing Path and Clear Aperture: Must feature at least one Nasmyth focus port (more preferred). The Nasmyth focus path must be completely free of refracting optical elements (100 percent reflective optics only, with removable optics as an allowable deviation). Clear aperture path through the Nasmyth axis must be at least 60 mm diameter to support downstream Adaptive Optics relay systems. Mount and Dynamic Tracking Specifications: Alt-Azimuth Direct-Drive or equivalent performance mount with low-latency tracking dynamics supporting Low Earth Orbit (LEO

Eligibility criteria

The full eligibility and assessment pack is released with the tender documents.