Greece

DUTHSat-2, the first of the Greek In Orbit Demonstration (IOD) CubeSat missions, has successfully launched from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, US, on 23 June on a SpaceX Falcon 9. The 6U CubeSat was one of many payloads aboard the Transporter-14 rideshare mission, which also carried 70 other payloads, including MicroSats, CubeSats and re-entry capsules. Early operations, commissioning and calibration activities of the spacecraft have begun.

The European Space Agency (ESA), in collaboration with Hellenic Aerospace Industry S.A. (HAI) as prime contractor and BCT Group as main subcontractor, has officially kicked off the contract for the implementation of a cleanroom and supporting infrastructure at the Hellenic Assembly, Integration & Testing Facility (HAITF).

The first of the Greek In-Orbit Demonstration (IOD) CubeSat missions, DUTHSat-2, which is led by the Democritus University of Thrace, has been delivered to the launch provider ExoLaunch, and is ready for launch on the SpaceX Transporter-14 rideshare mission, scheduled for June 2025. Having successfully completed functional and environmental testing in February 2025, the 6U CubeSat mission will capture images in the visible and near infrared spectrum, over both sea and land.

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.