Are you ready to Unleash your Inner Explorer?
Then you might like to build a Tiny Ground Station and Help secure our space future!
TinyGS:
Project Summary
TinyGS (“Tiny Ground Station”) is an open, community-driven project that democratizes access to space by building a global network of low-cost ground stations for receiving data from satellites and other airborne objects. In essence, it lets hobbyists, students, makers — anyone with modest electronics skills — participate in satellite tracking, telemetry reception, and science, from their very own backyard.
Skip to the What do I need to do to get started section (see below).
What it does & how it works
Global network of ground stations
TinyGS is composed of many ground stations distributed worldwide. These stations listen for signals sent by small satellites (especially those using LoRa modulation), weather balloons, and other flying objects. The collective network aggregates data in real-time.
Low-cost, accessible hardware
Stations are built using inexpensive, off-the-shelf parts: ESP32 microcontrollers paired with LoRa modules (SX126x or SX127x) and modest antennas. Some stations are enhanced with LNAs (low noise amplifiers) and filters to boost performance.
Open-source firmware & tools
The firmware is freely available. There are tools for flashing the ground station, configuring it (including automatic tuning to upcoming satellite passes), and receiving Over-The-Air (OTA) updates.
Data flow & community integration
When a satellite passes overhead, stations can pick up the signals, which are then pushed to the TinyGS backend (often via MQTT). Data packets are decoded, stored, and made visible through the TinyGS website, a personal dashboard, as well as community channels (Telegram, etc.). Users can see the status of stations, supported satellites, and packets received.
Automatic configuration & participation
Stations can automatically adapt to upcoming satellite passes (auto-tuning), choosing the correct radio configuration, etc. Users also have the option to disable or customise this if they want to focus on specific satellites.
History
The project began around 2019 under the name “ESP32 Fossa Groundstation,” developed for FossaSAT-1, a LoRa satellite. It later evolved and was renamed “TinyGS.” Over time, it has broadened to support more satellites, more modulation types, other flying objects, and more contributors.
Why it’s exciting & what makes it special
Accessibility & learning: TinyGS lowers the barrier to participating in space science and satellite communication. You don’t need large space agency resources — just a few cheap modules, some soldering or DIY antenna building maybe, and you’re in.
Community & open collaboration: Because of its open-source nature and communal infrastructure, TinyGS allows enthusiasts to share data, help each other, experiment with new hardware or software, and collectively expand coverage.
Real science & tangible outputs: The network actually captures telemetry from operational satellites, tracks passes, and recovers real data. It isn’t only a maker project, but a functioning system.
Scalability & automatic operation: With features like OTA updates, auto-tuning, and remote configuration, the system can scale well. Stations work largely unattended, and the network handles how they are used most efficiently.
Challenges & opportunities
Signal weakness & hardware limits: Satellite signals are very faint—good antenna design, amplifiers, and noise filtering matter a lot. Budget gear may miss some packets.
Modulation & satellite support: While LoRa is a big focus, not all satellites use it. Also, decoders and support for certain satellite protocols or frequencies may lag behind.
Legal/regulatory constraints: Transmitting (as opposed to just receiving) may need licensing depending on frequency band and location. Also, frequency restrictions vary by region.
Documentation & ecosystem growth: As with many open-source projects, better docs, tooling, and expanded support help more people get going more quickly. Also, supporting more modulation schemes, more satellite types, more robust antennas etc., is an ongoing opportunity.
Vision & impact
TinyGS represents a powerful vision: a mesh of ground stations around the globe, run by hobbyists and citizen scientists, that together provide continuous, low-cost observation of objects in space. This has many possible impacts:
Enabling student projects or university cubesats to reliably get telemetry, even if they can’t build or purchase expensive ground infrastructure.
Empowering people in remote or underserved regions to participate in space data collection.
Stimulating innovation in low-cost radio, antenna design, firmware, and signal processing.
Contributing to scientific or environmental monitoring when satellites carry sensors relevant to Earth observation, weather, etc.
Building community, knowledge, and inspiring people into STEM through hands-on access to space.
What do I need to do to get started?
1. Check out the GitHub Page, and select an ESP32 Board to base your project on. We recommend on starting with a 433MHz Board such as the LILGO T3 V1.6.1 Board. – GitHub – G4lile0/tinyGS: 📡 Open Ground Station Network 🛰
2. Check out the Home – TinyGS website, and if you have not already done so, join Telegram
3. When the Board Arrives, unpack it and before you do anything else, connect the antenna.
4. Get ready to flash your board for the first time (this is the process of uploading the software to your ESP32-based board and we recommend using the web-based installer.
5. Connect your device and find out which COM port it is connected to
6. Go to the following URL and install the software on your device: https://installer.tinygs.com
7. We recommend using the Automatic setup
All data received by TinyGS Ground Stations is shown on the TinyGS website
https://tinygs.com/
On this website, you can see:
Ground Stations list
Supported satellites
All data packets received by the community in real time
In your personal area, you can edit some parameters of your Ground Stations remotely.
Connecting to the local IP address assigned by your router gives you access to the local Dashboard
