A satellite network that routes data through space, not around Earth.

FAROS is my research into autonomous satellite clusters that rearrange themselves in orbit. Ground-bound routing forces data along the surface. A backbone spread across several orbital shells lets a packet climb to a higher orbit and take a shorter path instead. I modelled the network in Python, implemented Dijkstra's algorithm to find the shortest route across inter-satellite links, and built an interactive 3D Earth to test how the constellation behaves as you change altitude, orbit count, and satellites per orbit.

The simulations found that a space-based backbone lowers latency, holds up more consistently, and is far less exposed to weather and ground infrastructure failure than surface routing.

Read the FAROS research Paper (PDF, 23 pages)
Interactive 3D model of Earth showing satellites in LEO and MEO, inter-satellite links, ground cities, and a routed path from Tokyo to Sydney
The FAROS simulation routing traffic from Tokyo to Sydney across inter-satellite links. Orbit count, altitude, and constellation size are all adjustable.

What I work on

Research first, then the hardware, then the software.

Diagram of a photon backbone in space with backbone data points, LEO access points, and Earth client devices
The architecture: a hyper-fast photon backbone, backbone data points, LEO access points, and Earth client devices.

FAROS — an autonomous multistrom cluster of satellites with dynamic rearrangement

  • ProblemSurface routing is slow, fragile, and exposed to weather and geopolitics
  • ProposalA backbone distributed across all-altitude orbits, with satellites that rearrange dynamically
  • MethodPython simulation of multistrom cluster of satellites; Dijkstra shortest-path over the inter-satellite link graph
  • BuiltInteractive 3D Earth model with configurable orbits, altitude, and satellite count for fastest data route observation
  • FindingLower latency and higher stability than ground-based routing, but also safety from physical and of-interest disasters
Full FAROS page Paper Watch the simulation Mentor's statement
A raised floor foot I designed for the Kirineos data centre. This is the production geometry.

Mechanical design for the Kirineos data centre

I am the 3D designer for the Kirineos data centre at MTEL. I model parts in SolidWorks, produce the manufacturing drawings, and send the CAD to factories, where the parts are made and installed.

  • Raised floor feetAdjustable pedestals carrying the data hall floor: a 360 mm tube and a 240 mm M24 rod, locked to height by a nut and a Nyloc
  • Antivibration mountsSS304, Ø60 × 6 mm plate with an M14 rod welded into a 3 mm counterbore
  • FormworkThe 4822 × 4222 × 570 mm timber mould for the service room slab, 54 pieces from 6 part types
  • PipingA welded DN32/DN25 steel distribution loop, 5.9 × 4.5 m, 58 components to EN 10253
See the parts and drawings

Software

My capstone for the MITxPRO Professional Certificate in Full Stack Development with MERN — 32 weeks, a deliverable every week — is a Next.js and Postgres dashboard with authentication, server-side validation and a settings module I built beyond the course material.

Before that: a robot guitar in Python at ten, an interactive mapping tool, a health-tracking dashboard, and a vocabulary trainer. These are where I learned to write code well enough to do the research.

See the software

Space In Class

Coming Soon

Nasia Nikolova

My synoptic story

I am Nasia, and I am a 16-years-old researcher. I live in Greece. From the age of 10, I started coding, and now I can confidently apply this skil on my research.

Reading articles to practice my english for the SAT, I found out that I am keenly interested in Astrophysics related topics. Attending Cassini Space Camp on June 2025, confirmed and reinforced my interest for Space.

Now, I am in the phase of aquiring knowledge, but in the not-so-far-future I plan to start up my space company, and start manufacturing satellites, applying research, working with photons, and protecting data and Space. P.S. data in Space.

For two hours per day, I am also 3D designer in MTEL. I create 3D models using SolidWorks, and I send the CAD files in factories for implementation.

Get in touch

I'm looking for people to build the next stage of FAROS with — researchers, engineers, and experts in space communication and on space infrastructure.

Contact me Who I am