Creotech Instruments has successfully progressed through key stages of its landmark space project – the construction of the Polish EagleEye observation microsatellite. The recently concluded environmental testing was designed to evaluate the satellite’s resilience against the harsh conditions of space and the rigors of a launch to orbit. The EagleEye microsatellite successfully passed all testing stages, thereby affirming its reliability and enhancing the safety of the satellite mission slated for 2024. The tests were carried out at the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences and in Berlin, with participation from Exolaunch, who will manage the mission and integration of the satellite with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The EagleEye project will mark the culmination of the proprietary HyperSat satellite platform project, which has been under development for several years and is slated for extensive commercialization in the future. As part of this effort, Creotech will transform approximately 2,000 m² of space in the Piaseczno building, leased since the beginning of the year, into a facility for specialist electronics production and satellite assembly. The underlying contract is valued at a net PLN 3.7 million. The production facilities are set to be fully operational by December 2023.

“Launching our inaugural in-house satellite as part of the EagleEye mission will mark a turning point for the company. We’re making strong progress through the stages of this project, drawing us ever closer to the launch. We have recently concluded environmental testing, which included vacuum, temperature fluctuation, solar radiation, as well as vibration testing. Space is an extraordinarily challenging environment for any hardware, so it is crucial to replicate these extreme conditions on Earth and test the satellite’s durability and functionality. Our device successfully passed these tests, meeting the next set of prerequisites necessary for advancing this pivotal project for Creotech. By the beginning of 2024 we anticipate the EagleEye satellite to be ready for environmental testing and subsequently for integration with SpaceX’s Falcon 9, which will launch the Polish Earth observation microsatellite into orbit in 2024. This will mark the culmination of our long-term project of developing the proprietary HyperSat satellite platform, which, as previously announced, we intend to commercialize extensively. I believe this will drive the company’s growth in the coming years,” comments Grzegorz Brona, PhD, President of the Management Board (CEO) of Creotech Instruments S.A.

The EagleEye satellite also underwent radiation testing at the National Center for Nuclear Research, which was conducted to verify the avionic systems’ resistance to cosmic radiation.

The advancement of the EagleEye project has brought Creotech Instruments considerably nearer to the commercialization of its proprietary HyperSat platform. To meet the future demand for its offerings, the company secured a lease on a new 2,800 m² building in Piaseczno at the start of the year. On 17 July 2023, the company signed a contract to retrofit approximately 2,000 m² of this area for specialized electronics production and satellite assembly. The facilities will include two clean rooms totaling 250 m². The lease will extend over seven years, ending on 31 December 2029, with the cost for the retrofitting of the roughly 2,000 m² production space amounting to a net PLN 3.7 million. The specialized space is expected to be operational by December 2023.

“The space sector is accelerating. Entities that not long ago questioned the need for their own satellite reconnaissance are now actively seeking out potential providers. We are seeing growing interest from both private companies and national authorities, including Poland, which plans to substantially increase its contribution to the European Space Agency. To meet this burgeoning demand and leverage the market situation, early this year we leased a building of 2,800 m² in Piaseczno for a period of seven years. Today, we’ve signed a contract to convert a significant portion of this space, around 2,000 m², into a specialized electronics and satellite assembly area, which includes 250 m² for two clean rooms where satellites will be assembled. We anticipate launching this production facility in December 2023,” adds Grzegorz Brona.

Weighing approximately 60 kg, the design of the EagleEye observation satellite is based on the proprietary HyperSat platform. This versatile platform is engineered to facilitate a broad range of missions, from technological and scientific, to observation and telecommunication and even deep space expeditions. Its modular design enables scalability of satellites within the 25-100 kg range, and potentially even beyond 200 kg in the future. The EagleEye satellite will be outfitted with an optical telescope designed by Scanway S.A., capable of capturing high-resolution images of Earth at an approximate resolution of 1 m. Additionally, it will feature an instrument computer developed by the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

On 30 May 2023, Creotech Instruments signed an agreement with Berlin-based Exolaunch to oversee the launch campaign for the EagleEye satellite. Under the contract, the satellite will be launched on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 via Exolaunch, who will provide mission management, integration services and its proprietary CarboNIX microsatellite separation system.

Creotech Instruments is Poland’s only company to achieve the capability to build microsatellites. In addition to the EagleEye project, the company is also part of the PIAST project, through which it plans to launch a constellation of three observation satellites in 2025, using the proprietary HyperSat platform.

In late May, the company secured a contract with the state-owned Armament Agency to carry out the “Industrial Feasibility Study of the Earth Optoelectronic Microsatellite Constellation” project, covering phases 0 and A of the constellation preparation in accordance with the ECSS (European Cooperation for Space Standardization) methodology. The project is being executed by a consortium led by Creotech and including Airbus Defence and Space, a France-based company.

In addition to its strong growth in the space segment, Creotech Instruments is also consistently selected for international-scale projects in the quantum sector.

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