For most, Cosmos refers perhaps mostly to science fiction films like Star Wars or, more recently, Salvation. And with the Hellenic Space Agency, founded only in 2017 (replaced in 2019 by the Hellenic Space Center), accompanied by obscene language almost at its birth, few would believe that Greece is investing in space. However, the first organized attempt by the Greek state to become a force to be reckoned with in space technology is a fact. The first step has already been taken. The European Space Agency (ESA) recently selected three (OHB Hellas, Thales Hellas, SITAEL Hellas) out of 12 companies to participate in the Ministry of Digital Governance’s competition for a national small satellite program. , which has a budget of €200.3 million and is included in the Recovery Fund.

In other words, Greece will build a significant number of washing machine-sized satellites. The purpose of the first stage is to provide secure communication services for government agencies. In a second phase, the network of small satellites could be expanded to support the provision of commercial services by the private sector, such as satellite Internet offered by Elon Musk’s Space X. “During the Cold War, space was the business of the state. Now this is a field of activity, ”says“ K ”the president of the Union of Hellenic Space Technology and Application Enterprises (EVIDITE), Dr. Athanasios Potsis. According to an earlier report by Citigroup, the value of the space industry is estimated at 1 trillion euros by 2040, exceeding 430 billion euros this year.

The benefit for Greece is even greater because the microsatellites will be manufactured in Greece. A decisive role in their construction will be played by the ecosystem of Greek companies, which has been slowly growing in recent years, since 2004, when space technologies took their first steps in Greece. Today, more than 50 companies make up the space industry in Greece.

Today, more than 50 companies make up the space industry in Greece.

ELFON, based in Pallini, was founded in 1975 with the aim of producing innovative electronic products, creating the first Greek automatic telephone. In 1979, it began producing wiring for HAWK anti-aircraft systems, establishing itself as a leader in this important field. “Every system, from a car to a submarine, a frigate or a spacecraft, must be powered by the appropriate wiring that plays the role of the nervous system,” explains Nikos Yiannoulakis, director of development for the company. “We would say that this system requires surgical precision to ensure successful signal reception. And, of course, it must be properly designed to withstand vibrations, cosmic rays, humidity and other factors,” adds Mr. Yannoulakis. The company, which specializes in the creation of wiring for spacecraft and all kinds of equipment required by the space industry, is currently engaged in the installation of wiring on the Platon space telescope. “We are creating the necessary equipment with wiring that will be integrated into Platon. The space telescope, which will be installed in space rather than in orbit around the Earth, will investigate the existence of exoplanets and extraterrestrial life. Such a large Greek-made object has never traveled in space before,” he explains.

“It is possible to assemble a satellite at our facilities. It is important that Greece has experience in space technology. Otherwise, it will take at least three years to acquire it,” he notes.

Adamant Composites, founded in 2012 by a group of researchers from the University of Patras, has been active in the Greek space industry for ten years. It has grown through participation in more than five space missions, ten ESA industrial development projects and 20 European and national research projects. “We are investing in the design and manufacture of our own equipment to maximize footprint and add value,” says Dr. Antonios Vavouliotis, managing director and co-founder of Adamant Composites. At its 1,100-square-meter R&D center in Patras, Adamant Composites has developed proprietary technology for advanced satellite and rocket designs. Using composite materials and nanomaterials, the company reduces the weight of satellites and is also leading a consortium with EKEFE members Dimokritos, the University of Patras and Sitael Hellas that is developing foldable microsatellite antennas used in telecommunications and space exploration. “The specific project covers all stages of space structure development, i.e. from design to assembly and final construction and certification of flight readiness in 2023,” explains Mr. Vavoliotis. This year, the company is also due to complete full-scale testing in Greece and the Netherlands of high-precision foldable structures for space telescopes used in astronomy and earth observation.

A radar viewer is also in development.

A particularly important project, which will be carried out in parallel with the Greek microsatellites, is codenamed “Earth Observation Satellite Mission Planning Service”. The use of Earth observation satellite data is especially important for both cadastral needs and for disaster management.

This information can be “golden” if the satellite data is of particularly high resolution, is the most recent, and if the user – almost exclusively government agencies – has the ability to program the satellites. This is what the Earth observation satellite mission planning service is aiming for, for which the Recovery Fund has allocated resources of around 3.3 million euros.

As explained to “K” by those who follow a specific project, this is a system related to the Air Force oval-shaped radars. This will provide better surveillance of Greek airspace, as well as real-time data needed in the event of natural disasters or illegal activities. In other words, this ultra-sophisticated panoptis radar will be able to detect any activity over the territory of Greece and provide surveillance data from various sensors. It will be able to make better use of the European Copernicus satellite system, whose usefulness in Greece has been particularly noted in cases of widespread floods and fires. It is expected that its implementation will begin no later than the winter of 2023 with a time horizon for completion in 2025. The users of a particular system that will provide data at a particularly high resolution are a large number of government agencies. This is understandable when you consider that hyperradar includes many applications for civil protection, the environment, national defense, and rural development.

Satellite mission planning is especially popular overseas, having been popularized by… spy movies in which law enforcement use satellite data to track down suspects. Users, as experts explain, request through a special geographic information system (the creation of which is included in the planned project) the programming of satellites in the area of ​​interest (for example, Evia) and indicate the main parameters, such as the recording method and the type of spectral band, which plays a decisive role in the quality of the analysis. Processing of space images is carried out by appropriate software, in order to place them in space on the basis of actual geographical coordinates (geo-referencing), possible correction of errors associated with the terrain (orthoreduction) and their homogeneous composition (photomosaic).

Next steps

“Space is a very important strategic area for digital transformation,” said Minister for Digital Governance Kyriakos Pierrakakis during his recent visit to European Space Agency facilities. The added value of the Greek microsatellite program is related to the maximum participation of Greece, which will be 60% for terrestrial applications and at least 35% for equipment in space, according to the terminology. It is expected that by the end of March the Greek affiliates of the German OHB, the French Thales and the Italian SITAEL, selected by ESA, will submit joint applications with Greek companies for microsatellites. This will be preceded by the construction of 14 nanosatellites (cubesats) in a €15 million project that is the unofficial precursor to the microsatellite test tube. The road to space is not without obstacles. The Greek-made microsatellites should be built by the end of 2026 – early 2027 at the latest. In the meantime, companies are called upon to win the bet to attract talent.