ESA is cooperating with the European Commission to develop the EU's flagship multi-orbit secure telecommunications programme, Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite, or IRIS². The programme will provide the EU with secure and enhanced communication and connectivity capabilities for EU governments, businesses, and citizens.
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Moonlight programme aims to lead Europe in enabling connectivity from the lunar surface and to the Earth, serving the needs of future missions by creating a constellation of satellites for satellite communications around the Moon. The Moonlight programme works with European and Canadian industry to create a shared service in telecommunications and navigation, which is predicted to contribute to the activation of a €100 billion lunar economy.
Europe is facing increasingly significant challenges including humanitarian crises, natural disasters as a result of extreme weather events, cybercrime and geopolitical instability. We need to act swiftly to protect European citizens and ensure prosperity. The Civil Security from Space Programme will support industry active across Telecommunications, Earth Observation and Navigation disciplines, with the objective of developing the necessary integrated tools to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of response efforts.
ARTES 4.0 (Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems) is ESA's main programme for technology development in the field of satellite communication. Through its various programme lines ARTES 4.0 enables European and Canadian industry to explore innovative concepts that stimulate the wider economy, creating new business and jobs across every industry, through cutting-edge research and development (R&D).
8 May 2025
The European Space Agency (ESA) and the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) of Japan met at the NICT Innovation Center in Tokyo on 31 March. The meeting discussed the key results of trials resulting from the ESA-NICT collaboration on 5G/6G and satellite, the lessons learned, and technical areas of interest for an extension of the collaboration, funded under ESA’s Space for 5G/6G and Sustainable Connectivity.
9 May 2025
Seven Greek In-Orbit Demonstration (IOD) CubeSat teams came together with experts from the European Space Agency (ESA) in an Operations Workshop at the Agency’s European Space Security and Education Centre (ESEC) in Redu, Belgium. Taking place between 14-16 April, the workshop provided a deep dive into key aspects of CubeSat operations.
