Xona Space Systems Inc., a startup working to build a more reliable alternative to GPS, today announced that it has raised $170 million in funding.

The Series C round was led by Mohari Ventures Natural Capital. Samsung Next, ICONIQ and a number of other institutional backers contributed as well.

GPS trackers rely on signals from satellites to identify an object’s position. Those signals can’t pass through walls, which means that there is limited GPS coverage indoors. Xona is building a satellite constellation called Pulsar that it says will be capable of addressing GPS technology’s shortcomings.

The satellites use a so-called isoflux antenna to generate what the company describes as the “highest-power navigation signal ever known.” That signal can pass through walls, tree covers and other obstacles, which will enable Pulsar to work in environments where GPS is inaccessible. Furthermore, Xona says that its satellites are better at fending off interference attempts.

The isoflux antenna that Pulsar uses to generate location signals is powered by a 3,400-watt solar panel array. The array also supplies electricity to a population system that enables Xona’s satellites to move in orbit. According to the company, its satellites can adjust their position and distance from one another to resolve coverage issues.

Xona has also equipped Pulsar with a so-called distributed clock architecture. It removes the need for atomic clocks, complex modules that GPS satellites rely on to collect positioning data.

A GPS constellation determines the location of users through a multistep process. It starts by measuring the distance between a user’s GPS receiver and a GPS satellite. That step is then repeated with several additional satellites. From there, the constellation analyzes the collected distance measurements through a process called trilateration to deduce the user’s coordinates.

The distances used in trilateration are not measured directly. Instead, GPS constellations deduce them by measuring the amount of time it takes signals to travel from GPS satellites to the user’s device. Satellites carry out that calculation using onboard atomic clocks. An atomic clock is highly precise, expensive time-measuring device that is accurate to more than 15 decimal places.

According to Xona, its distributed clock architecture replaces atomic clocks with a mechanism that regularly compares time measurements taken by Pulsar satellites. The company claims that its technology is accurate to within 10 nanoseconds.

“Pulsar signals work with the devices people already use today,” Xona co-founder and Chief Executive Brian Manning wrote in a blog post. “In many cases, Pulsar can be enabled through a simple software update. More than a dozen commercial receiver partners are already tracking Pulsar signals within their devices.”

The company will use its newly raised funding to upgrade its satellite plant in Burlingame, California. Xona plans to deploy a constellation of 258 satellites within a few years. The first systems are scheduled to launch by the end of 2026.

Photo: Xona