ATLAS

ATLAS is a key instrument within ESA’s Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) programme designed to help European industry bring new satellite communications products and technologies to market by providing the critical “first‐flight” demonstration.

In highly competitive satellite communications markets, obtaining real flight heritage is often the major barrier for innovative hardware to be adopted by operators – ATLAS addresses this.

By enabling the final, and often most challenging, step of in‐orbit demonstration for new hardware, ATLAS helps European industry transition innovative products into commercial reality. It boosts competitiveness, accelerates innovation, and strengthens Europe’s sovereignty in satellite technology.

The need for flight heritage

In the commercial satellite communications industry, operators are inherently risk‐averse: buying new equipment, such as payloads, sub‐systems, antennas, processors, that have never flown poses a high risk. Flight heritage, which is evidence that a piece of hardware has successfully operated in space, is a powerful enabler of market uptake.

Many European companies often develop innovative technologies under R&D programmes, but lack the final step of demonstration in orbit, which prevented full commercialisation. ATLAS was created by ESA to bridge that gap.EURIALO VisionEURIALO supports Europe’s broader vision of modernising Air Traffic Management (ATM) in alignment with the European ATM Master Plan and the evolution of the CNS infrastructure.

The ATLAS programme remains highly relevant as satellite communications evolve

With increasing interest in high-throughput satellites, digital and software-defined payloads, beam-hopping, multi-orbit systems, there is heightened demand for novel hardware and subsystems, and a need for flight heritage instruments.

ATLAS supports not just geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) telecommunications, but any orbit size and spacecraft type, meaning it is applicable to emerging low Earth orbit/medium Earth orbit (LEO/MEO) constellations and novel applications.

As Europe pushes toward multi-orbit connectivity, 5G/6G integration, and flexible satellite architectures, ATLAS provides the industrial mechanism to validate new hardware in real orbit environments.

Our “ATLAS badge” becomes a mark of maturity in subsystems, helping companies accelerate market entry and building confidence among operators.

How can I work with ATLAS?

ATLAS is implemented as an extension to ESA’s ARTES Core Competitiveness programme. Its specific remit is to support the demonstration phase in space for telecommunications flight hardware.

ATLAS supports

Flight items (platform or payload) from any size of spacecraft (GEO, MEO, LEO) or any spacecraft bus.

Multiple mission accommodation modes: embedded within a commercial satellite as part of the main mission; hosted item in a commercial mission; or independent hosted/standalone small satellite.

Co-funding by ESA for the flight hardware design, manufacturing, test, accommodation and in‐orbit demonstration, but not typically for full launch cost when embedded.

In essence, ATLAS offers European industry a mechanism: build the innovative product (subsystem/payload), secure a flight opportunity via a commercial satellite or small‐sat ride, demonstrate it in space, then leverage that heritage for commercial opportunities.

Funding and eligibility

Under ATLAS, ESA can fund up to 50% of the cost of the flight‐hardware demonstration for large firms, and up to 80% for SMEs. Companies must be in one of ESA’s Member States: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.

Proposals must include a space segment element (flight hardware) and show potential for commercial exploitation. The application process is governed under ARTES Competitiveness and Growth rules, within the Core Competitiveness programme.