Use case: across industries
Connecting remote sensors via satellite IoT
Sensors in remote places can send their readings via satellite where no mobile network reaches them. The sensor, or a gateway on site, transmits short messages to a satellite, which relays them to a ground station and on to your platform. This suits small, regular readings such as soil moisture, temperature or pressure.
- Reference
- UC-29
- Technologies
- Industry
- Challenge
- Connectivity, positioning and timing
- Updated
- Published by
- LETO SPACE
01Technology
How it works
Satellite IoT carries small amounts of data from places that mobile networks do not reach, such as remote fields, forests and infrastructure.
ESA describes how satellite networks extend IoT connectivity into remote areas for asset monitoring, data aggregation and network backhaul, with machine-to-machine and SCADA links as examples. It names energy, power distribution, water management, infrastructure, environment and agriculture among the industries that can benefit Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 26 May 2016European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsSatcoms for the Internet of Things26 May 2016Open source (opens resilience.esa.int). On farms, satellite communication combined with IoT sensors supports real-time monitoring of operations and irrigation that is controlled by soil moisture data and weather forecasts Source: European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 6 October 2026European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space SolutionsESA Space Solutions: Space for the bioeconomyaccessed 6 October 2026Open source (opens business.esa.int).
There are three common set-ups:
A gateway with a satellite link
Low-power wireless sensors on a site connect to a local gateway, and the satellite link carries their data onward as network backhaul Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 26 May 2016European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsSatcoms for the Internet of Things26 May 2016Open source (opens resilience.esa.int).
Direct to satellite
Each sensor sends its short messages straight to a satellite Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 24 November 2025European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsESA-supported Lacuna Space satellites launched to validate fifth generation gateways for direct-to-device (D2D) Internet of Things network24 November 2025Open source (opens resilience.esa.int). In this set-up, satellites in low Earth orbit act as gateways in orbit, so no ground infrastructure is needed on site. Such networks can be built on radio standards such as LoRa and NB-IoT Source: IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems, 24 June 2022IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic SystemsSparse Satellite Constellation Design for Global and Regional Direct-to-Satellite IoT Services (Capez, Henn, Fraire and Garello)24 June 2022Open source (opens doi.org).
Cellular IoT over satellite
Since Release 17, the 3GPP standards include NB-IoT and LTE-M (eMTC) devices that communicate via a satellite, assuming a GNSS receiver in the device Source: 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), accessed 6 October 20263rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN)accessed 6 October 2026Open source (opens 3gpp.org).
Satellite positioning adds a common time. EUSPA notes that industrial IoT data often lacks synchronisation to the same time source, and that GNSS can solve this for low-power IoT devices Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2024EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EUSPA EO and GNSS Market Report, Issue 2, 20242024Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
02Data
Which data and satellites
| Set-up | How the data travels | Suited to |
|---|---|---|
| Gateway with satellite backhaul | Sensor to local gateway, gateway to satellite | Many sensors on one site |
| Direct to satellite | Sensor to a satellite in low Earth orbit, satellite to ground station | Scattered sensors with short messages |
| Cellular IoT over satellite | NB-IoT or LTE-M device to satellite | Devices built on 3GPP standards |
The technology behind these links is explained on our page about satellite communication.
03Deliverables
What you get
- Readings from sites without mobile coverage, such as temperature, pressure, humidity or soil moisture Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 24 November 2025European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsESA-supported Lacuna Space satellites launched to validate fifth generation gateways for direct-to-device (D2D) Internet of Things network24 November 2025Open source (opens resilience.esa.int) Source: European Space Agency (ESA), 15 January 2020European Space Agency (ESA)Plant-powered sensor sends signal to space15 January 2020Open source (opens esa.int).
- Remote monitoring of assets in rugged and remote locations Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 26 May 2016European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsSatcoms for the Internet of Things26 May 2016Open source (opens resilience.esa.int).
- Automated actions based on the readings, for example irrigation triggered by soil moisture and weather data Source: European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 6 October 2026European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space SolutionsESA Space Solutions: Space for the bioeconomyaccessed 6 October 2026Open source (opens business.esa.int).
- Readings on a common clock, synchronised by GNSS Source: EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2024EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)EUSPA EO and GNSS Market Report, Issue 2, 20242024Open source (opens euspa.europa.eu).
04Limits
Limits
Limit 01
Delay
Where a sensor reaches a satellite only when one passes, messages wait on board until the next ground station. Measured delays on a commercial system ranged from several tens of seconds to nearly five hours Source: IET Conference Proceedings, 19 March 2024IET Conference ProceedingsEnd-to-end latency evaluation of LEO satellite IoT systems (Heine, Hofmann and Knopp)19 March 2024Open source (opens doi.org). Fewer satellites mean longer gaps between passes Source: IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems, 24 June 2022IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic SystemsSparse Satellite Constellation Design for Global and Regional Direct-to-Satellite IoT Services (Capez, Henn, Fraire and Garello)24 June 2022Open source (opens doi.org). Such a link suits regular readings, not control in real time.
Limit 02
Short messages
Direct-to-device IoT networks are built to receive short messages from simple sensors Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 24 November 2025European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsESA-supported Lacuna Space satellites launched to validate fifth generation gateways for direct-to-device (D2D) Internet of Things network24 November 2025Open source (opens resilience.esa.int). Images, video or large files need a different kind of satellite link with more capacity.
Limit 03
Coverage and standards vary
Networks differ in the regions, radio standards and devices they support. Check this, and the delay each provider guarantees, before you choose sensors.
05Next steps
How we help
The choice of set-up follows from the requirements: how many sensors, where, how often they report, how large each message is, how quickly it must arrive and how long a battery must last. In a strategy engagement we work these out with you, and we then turn them into requirements that providers can answer.
More on requirements and procurement
To see who offers such services, use Spacegraph, our discovery platform. Its marketplace has use-case categories for satellite IoT and machine-to-machine links and for connectivity provision.
06Use cases
Related use cases
- Tracking fleets beyond mobile coverageThe same links for vehicles and vessels on the move.
- Rapid damage mapping and emergency communicationSatellite links when ground networks fail.
- Crop monitoring and precision farmingField sensors combined with satellite images.
Frequently asked questions
Q1Which sensors can send data via satellite?
Mainly simple, low-power sensors that send short messages. One direct-to-device network supported by ESA, for example, receives short messages from commercially available sensors such as temperature and pressure gauges in areas without ground-based telecom or power infrastructure Source: European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure Communications, 24 November 2025European Space Agency (ESA), Connectivity and Secure CommunicationsESA-supported Lacuna Space satellites launched to validate fifth generation gateways for direct-to-device (D2D) Internet of Things network24 November 2025Open source (opens resilience.esa.int). ESA supported a demonstration in which a sensor powered by electricity from plants sent air humidity, soil moisture and temperature readings via satellites in low Earth orbit Source: European Space Agency (ESA), 15 January 2020European Space Agency (ESA)Plant-powered sensor sends signal to space15 January 2020Open source (opens esa.int).
Q2How quickly does a message arrive?
That depends on the network. Where the sensor reaches a satellite only when one passes overhead, the satellite stores the message until it can pass it to a ground station. Measurements on a commercial system of this kind showed end-to-end delays from several tens of seconds to nearly five hours when satellite availability was unknown Source: IET Conference Proceedings, 19 March 2024IET Conference ProceedingsEnd-to-end latency evaluation of LEO satellite IoT systems (Heine, Hofmann and Knopp)19 March 2024Open source (opens doi.org). Ask each provider for the delay it guarantees in your region.
Q3How do we start a pilot for satellite IoT?
Choose one remote site and the readings you need from it, and write down how often they must arrive and how quickly. Then test a small number of sensors in real conditions before you plan a roll-out.
Sources (8)
- Satcoms for the Internet of Things (opens resilience.esa.int)
- ESA-supported Lacuna Space satellites launched to validate fifth generation gateways for direct-to-device (D2D) Internet of Things network (opens resilience.esa.int)
- Plant-powered sensor sends signal to space (opens esa.int)
- Sparse Satellite Constellation Design for Global and Regional Direct-to-Satellite IoT Services (Capez, Henn, Fraire and Garello) (opens doi.org)
- End-to-end latency evaluation of LEO satellite IoT systems (Heine, Hofmann and Knopp) (opens doi.org)
- Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) (opens 3gpp.org)
- ESA Space Solutions: Space for the bioeconomy (opens business.esa.int)
- EUSPA EO and GNSS Market Report, Issue 2, 2024 (opens euspa.europa.eu)
Contact
Where do your sensors sit outside mobile coverage, and how often must they report?
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