The objective of IIST Satellite ground station is to carry out tracking, telemetry and commanding (TT&C) operations of student satellite missions. It also provides tracking and telemetry support for the stratospheric balloon borne payloads (Radiosonde experiments) launched periodically from Ponmudi Climate Observatory of IIST. The ground station facilitates learning and hands-on experience for students in the field of radio communication, satellite tracking, antenna positioning/control systems along with telemetry data visualization/processing, real-time commanding and mission operations.

A standalone VHF/UHF SDR Ground Station unit is also designed with the latest state of the art technologies like wideband SDR (Software Defined Radio) based MODEM and fully integrated network-based architecture.

Presently, the ground station is capable of providing TTC support to any Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite mission operating in VHF band: 144-146 MHz, UHF band: 434-438 MHz and S band: 2.2-2.4 GHz (on receive mode) of frequencies.

The mission control room of the ground station, located in the top floor of the Aerospace Engineering block, accommodates SDR-based Receivers, RF power amplifiers, Transmitters, Antenna controllers, Operator Consoles, Data storage, large display systems for real-time data visualization and RF subsystem test beds.