Open Cosmos, a UK-based startup that uses satellites to combat climate change, has won a 60 million euro contract to build seven satellites for Greece.
The project, dubbed the “Optical Constellation,” will be the country’s first flagship satellite project.
The Greek constellation will collect data in low orbit to improve public services: use cases range from providing new information for land registries to making agriculture more efficient and preventing marine pollution.
The spacecraft will be equipped with a suite of instruments for daily data collection, including high-resolution optical multispectral and hyperspectral cameras, Internet of Things (IoT) and Automatic Identification System (AIS) receivers, as well as an on-board AI system to optimize efficiency.
The project will be carried out in coordination with complementary efforts such as the European Space Agency (ESA) and the EU’s Earth observation programme Copernicus.
“Greece is making great strides in space,” said Dimitris Papasteguiou, the country’s minister for digital governance, adding that developments in satellite technology could boost long-term economic resilience.
The agreement marks an important milestone for OpenCosmos, bringing it one step closer to its vision of an open constellation of shared satellites that will be the largest infrastructure of its kind in space. Following the signing of the agreement, Greece will also join the international partnership.
Founded in 2015, Open Cosmos has become a key player in the European space sector, with its missions including the Portuguese constellation and the development of the UK lead satellite for the Atlantic constellation.
