The invention discloses a satellite-borne terahertz ice cloud nadir detector system, which comprises an antenna and scanning subsystem, a multi-frequency-band terahertz receiving channel, a calibration subsystem, a data collecting and processing platform, a control power distribution system and control and signal processing equipment, wherein the antenna and scanning subsystem, the multi-frequency-band terahertz receiving channel, the calibration subsystem, the data collecting and processing platform and the control power distribution system are installed on a detection head part; the controland signal processing equipment is installed on a satellite platform; and the detection head part carries out conical scanning, and observation for a target, observation for a thermal calibration source body and observation for cold air are successively finished in a scanning process so as to realize the scanning imaging of ice cloud and the in-orbit two-point calibration of a detector. A receiving front end design scheme of an offset paraboloid reflector and a quasi-optics feed network is adopted, and conical scanning is carried out through a rotary antenna feeder system to realize the nadirobservation of ice water particles in cloud.