Ibaraki Station KDDI Satellite Communication Centre History

History and founding

Ibaraki Station (KDDI茨城衛星通信センター) began as Japan’s first dedicated satellite communications ground station. Planning at KDD (the predecessor of KDDI) started in 1961, and after site selection work in 1962 the facility opened in 1963 in what was then Juo Town, Taga District, Ibaraki Prefecture. The installation was conceived as an experimental ground relay for international satellite communications and held its opening ceremony on 20 November 1963 as the “Ibaraki Space Communications Experimental Station.”

Early equipment and first experiments (1963)

The centre’s initial tracking equipment included a parabola with a 6 m reflector housed under an 11 m radome; that tracking unit was completed on 19 June 1963, and received its test licence on 22 June. A key early success came on 7 July 1963 when the station tracked Telstar 2 and received a signal that originated from the Andover, Maine ground station some 10,500 km away.

By late 1963 a larger communications antenna — a Cassegrain-type main reflector 20 m in diameter under a 30 m radome — had completed system testing. On 15 November 1963 the experimental station received licences as both a space communications experimental station and a relay experimental station, and it immediately began relay experiments using NASA’s Relay 1 satellite.

The November 1963 transpacific television relays

On 23 November 1963 the station received a pair of planned public television-relay experiments that became historically significant. In the first experiment (5:27–5:48 Japan time) a television signal transmitted from a ground station in Mojave, California was relayed via NASA’s Relay 1 satellite to the Ibaraki ground station. From there NHK relay vans sent the signal to the summit of Mount Tsukuba and, via NTT microwave lines, to Tokyo’s TRC in Akasaka for distribution to broadcasters across Japan. The programme had originally been intended to carry a prerecorded message from U.S. President John F. Kennedy; two hours before the experiment began the assassination of President Kennedy occurred, and the experiment was used to transmit news of the event instead. A second experiment (8:58–9:15) relayed scenes from New York, and further relays on 26 November transmitted coverage of President Kennedy’s funeral. These broadcasts are the reason the site is commonly referred to as the birthplace of satellite communications in Japan.

Expansion into commercial service and later facilities (1964–1992)

After initial experiments the station moved toward commercial operations. The communications antenna lost its radome after storm damage in January 1964 and the radome was not reinstalled. In March 1965 the station used Relay 2 to transmit television from Japan to the United States, and in April 1965 Telstar 2 supported a transmission to France where live and recorded coverage reached multiple European countries. A colour-loop transmission experiment took place on 27 May 1965.

Renamed the Ibaraki Satellite Communications Station on 5 November 1965, the site became an independent communications office at the end of 1966 and received official authorisation to handle international television transmissions on 28 December 1966. Commercial television and telephone services began on 27 January 1967, and around mid-1967 the station moved to 24-hour operation.

A second facility with a 27.5 m antenna was installed in early 1968; terminal equipment for international television relays was shifted to that second facility in March 1968. During the October 1968 Mexico City Olympics the first facility served as a standby facility and was used 32 times for relay operations. Subsequent expansions included a 29.6 m antenna (third facility) brought into service on 10 December 1971, and later 32 m-class antennas: a 32 m unit placed into service in January 1984 and another 32 m earth station registered on 31 October 1992.

Role alongside Yamaguchi station and closure (1969–2007)

In May 1969 the Yamaguchi Satellite Communications Station opened; with geostationary access over the Indian Ocean it enabled direct satellite communications toward Europe, Africa and West Asia, and together with Ibaraki the two stations formed key nodes in Japan’s international satellite communications network. Over subsequent decades the rise of high-capacity submarine fiber-optic cables changed traffic patterns: satellite links increasingly served as complements to submarine cables, and Ibaraki’s reception footprint was principally over the Pacific. KDDI consolidated satellite-station functions at Yamaguchi, and the Ibaraki facility ended its communications operations on 16 March 2007.

Redevelopment of the site and public park

The site of the former station straddles Takahagi City and Hitachi City. After closure the land was transferred without charge to both cities; Takahagi City developed part of the grounds as the Takahagi Satellite Communications Memorial Park. By public contest the park’s affectionate name became Sakura Space Park. The station grounds had long included 300 Somei-Yoshino cherry trees, and in spring those trees bloom and draw hanami visitors. Prior to closure, the premises also included a small exhibition facility called the Satellite Communications Pavilion, which was available for daytime visits.

Antennas converted to radio telescopes

Two 32 m antennas that were operational when the station closed were later converted for astronomical use. Conversion work began in 2008. In January 2009 the two 32 m antennas were formally transferred to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) and development work started in April 2009. In recognition of the 1963 transpacific relay, the event “First Transpacific Reception of a Television (TV) Signal via Satellite, 1963” was designated an IEEE Milestone on 23 November 2009.

Following conversion, the former fourth antenna (the Hitachi 32 m) recorded first light on 24 November 2009, and the former fifth antenna (the Takahagi 32 m) recorded first light on 1 July 2010. As of 2025 those two antennas operate as radio telescopes of NAOJ’s Mizusawa VLBI observatory Ibaraki observing station (the Takahagi and Hitachi stations) and are used for astronomical observation, with Ibaraki University playing a central role in their scientific use.

Big Dish Project (amateur radio)

Around the time of closure the Japan Amateur Radio League arranged temporary use of the decommissioned fourth antenna for moonbounce (Earth–Moon–Earth) amateur radio experiments under the “Project BIG-DISH” name. On 23 February 2007 the antenna, modified and licensed as an amateur radio station, passed testing and that day made contacts with 13 stations worldwide. A public experiment for schoolchildren and amateur operators was held on 3 March 2007. The Big Dish’s operations concluded at 14:06 on 25 March 2007, with some mobile operation permitted until 31 March.

Legacy

Ibaraki Station’s combination of early tracking successes, its role in the November 1963 transpacific television relays, and its long operational life as an international satellite ground station make it a documented milestone in Japan’s telecommunications history. Though the facility’s communications role ended in 2007, its equipment and grounds found new life: the transformed antennas contribute to radio astronomy, and the grounds serve as a public park with an established cherry-tree planting that marks the site’s continuity with the community.

FAQ

When did Ibaraki Station begin operations?

The station opened as an experimental facility and held its opening ceremony on 20 November 1963.

Why is the site historically significant?

On 23 November 1963 the station received and relayed the first United States–Japan transpacific television experiments via NASA's Relay 1 satellite, events often cited as the origin of satellite television in Japan.

What happened to the antennas after closure?

Two 32 m antennas were transferred to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan in January 2009 and converted to radio telescopes for the NAOJ Mizusawa VLBI observatory's Ibaraki observing station.

How was the site reused locally?

The grounds were transferred without charge to Takahagi City and Hitachi City; Takahagi City developed part as the Takahagi Satellite Communications Memorial Park with the nickname Sakura Space Park, and the site contains 300 cherry trees that bloom in spring.