The Trench MCP Server

MCP Server for controlling satellite ground station operations in the Trench simulation.

Available Tools

🛰️ Simulation State Tools

• get_simulation_state() - Get comprehensive simulation state including satellite position, contact status, and timing

• get_current_time() - Get current simulation time and real-world UTC time

• restart_simulation() - Restart simulation from beginning, resetting all state to epoch time

📡 Pass Management Tools

• get_all_passes() - Get complete schedule of all satellite passes over ground station

• get_next_pass() - Get information about next upcoming satellite pass

• get_current_pass() - Get information about currently active satellite pass (if any)

⏰ Timing and Waiting Tools

• wait_until_time(target_sim_time) - Wait until simulation reaches specific time (seconds since epoch)

• wait_for_next_pass() - Wait until next satellite pass begins (AOS)

📥 Downlink Control Tools

• start_downlink(kb_requested, max_minutes=10) - Start data downlink session during active pass

• stop_downlink() - Stop current data downlink session

🎯 Ground Station Control Tools

• get_ground_station_state(gs_id="DEMO-GS") - Get current antenna position and mode

• point_antenna(azimuth, elevation, gs_id="DEMO-GS") - Point antenna to specific angles

• track_satellite(sat_id="LEO-001", gs_id="DEMO-GS") - Start automatic satellite tracking

• stop_tracking(gs_id="DEMO-GS") - Stop satellite tracking, return to idle

• park_antenna(gs_id="DEMO-GS") - Park antenna in safe position

🏥 Health and Monitoring Tools

• get_satellite_health(sat_id="LEO-001") - Get satellite health and telemetry information

All tools use authenticated API calls with Bearer token authorization to interact with the Trench simulation API.

Related MCP server: SpaceTraders MCP Server

Usage with Claude Desktop

To use this server with the Claude Desktop app, add the following configuration to the "mcpServers" section of your claude_desktop_config.json:

Option 1: Direct installation from GitHub (Recommended)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "trench-mcp-server": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "--from",
        "git+https://github.com/jasonmeverett/the-trench-mcp@main",
        "run-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "TRENCH_API_URL": "https://the-trench.ml-2cba638a-03a.eng-ml-i.svbr-nqvp.int.cldr.work/",
        "TRENCH_API_KEY": "<apiv2 key>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Transport

The MCP server's transport protocol is configurable via the MCP_TRANSPORT environment variable. Supported values:

• stdio (default) — communicate over standard input/output. Useful for local tools, command-line scripts, and integrations with clients like Claude Desktop.

• http - expose an HTTP server. Useful for web-based deployments, microservices, exposing MCP over a network.

• sse — use Server-Sent Events (SSE) transport. Useful for existing web-based deployments that rely on SSE.