Proba-3: A New Chapter in European Space Innovation
This week: two big launches ahead, new funding round and the best space jobs you can’t miss!
Welcome to Aerospace Insider 🚀
In this week’s issue, we’re diving into the latest and greatest from Europe’s booming space sector. Big things are happening!
Today’s summary:
🚀 Aerospace News: Two big European missions launch this week, new contracts awarded to newspace startups.
💼 Top Space Jobs: Top space jobs you don’t want to miss.
🔍 Deep Dive: Proba-3, a mission to study the solar corona like never before.
Aerospace Weekly Roundup
Catch the latest European space industry highlights you can't afford to miss!
🚀 Vega-C to launch Sentinel-1C on December 4
The Vega-C rocket is making a comeback after its last flight in 2022, now using a redesigned nozzle on its Zefiro-40 motor. On December 4, Vega-C will launch the Sentinel-1C satellite into orbit. This spacecraft, which is part of the Copernicus program, will join Sentinel-1A in orbit (remember Sentinel-1B was passivated) and enhance Earth observation capabilities, with a focus on environmental monitoring and disaster response.
💰 SatVu secures £10M to expand thermal imaging services
SatVu, a London-based thermal imaging company, has raised £10M to advance its satellite technology. The funds will support the development and launch of HotSat-2 and HotSat-3 by 2025, aiming to create a nine-satellite constellation. These satellites will provide near-real-time thermal data, helping industries monitor heat distribution, industrial activity, and climatological events with precision.
🤝 PLD Space receives €11M loan for MIURA 5’s launch site
Spanish aerospace firm PLD Space has obtained an €11M loan to develop its MIURA 5 rocket’s launch complex in Kourou, French Guiana. This investment strengthens PLD Space’s position in the European launcher race. And it follows the announcement of the MIURA NEXT reusable rocket family and the plan to fly manned missions via the LINCE capsule by 2030.
🌍 Open Cosmos awarded €34.6M to develop NanoMagSat mission
Open Cosmos has secured €34.6M to develop the NanoMagSat mission, featuring three 16U cubesats designed to study Earth’s magnetic field and ionospheric plasmas. Equipped with magnetometers and Langmuir probes, the satellites will operate at 545 km in complementary orbits. The first launch is planned for late 2027, with the remaining two to follow in 2028.
🛰️ Proba-3 is ready for lift off!
But you’ll have to check the deep dive for that 😉
Space Jobs Spotlight 🔍
Curated roles to accelerate your career in Europe’s thriving space sector.
🚀 Internships & Graduates
Spectrum Intern — Intelsat (London 🇬🇧)
Upper stage Design Engineer Intern — Arianespace (Bremen 🇩🇪)
Project Management Placement — Airbus (Stevenage 🇬🇧)
💼 Space Jobs (ranked by experience)
Junior Space Operations Engineer — GMV (Madrid 🇪🇸)
Data Engineer — Ecosmic (Remote 🌐)
Software Analyst — PLD Space (Elche 🇪🇸)
Electronics Engineer — SPHERICAL (Rotterdam 🇳🇱)
Satellite Operations Engineer — Sateliot (Barcelona 🇪🇸)
AIT Engineer — Open Cosmos (Coimbra 🇵🇹)
Optical Engineer — E-Space (Toulouse 🇫🇷)
Ground Segment System Engineer — Constellr (Toulouse 🇫🇷)
Lecturer in Propulsion Systems — University of Manchester (Manchester 🇬🇧)
Propulsion Integration Engineer — PLD Space (Elche 🇪🇸)
Senior Systems Engineer — Orbex (Forres 🇬🇧)
Program Manager — Latitude (Reims 🇫🇷)
Senior Satellite Systems Engineer — ReOrbit (Helsinki 🇫🇮)
🎓 PhD Opportunities
Aero-Engine Aerodynamics PhD — Cranfield University 🇬🇧
🔥 Special Opportunities
Interested in Electric Propulsion? Then join the 2nd edition of the European Summer School on Electric Propulsion for Spacecraft. Sign up here (limited spots available!).
Do you want to receive a sponsorship to attend the 8th Annual PocketQube Conference? Then check this out.
Like these jobs or think something is missing? Hit ‘reply’ and let me know!
Pushing the limits: Europe’s Proba-3 Formation Flying Mission
On December 3, the Proba-3 mission will launch onboard the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-XL (PSLV-XL) rocket.
Unlike any other satellite mission, Proba-3 consists of not one but two small spacecraft (200 kg and 350 kg, respectively) designed to operate as one coordinated system.
This is Europe’s first attempt at precision formation flying, a groundbreaking capability that could unlock a great number of future space applications.
A new way to study the Sun
Proba-3’s primary scientific goal is to study the solar corona, the Sun’s outer atmosphere. The corona is typically hidden or obscured by the intense brightness of the Sun’s surface and only becomes visible during a total solar eclipse.
Proba-3 overcomes this challenge by creating an artificial eclipse using two satellites. The Occulter spacecraft will block the Sun and cast a shade to the Coronagraph spacecraft, which will then use it’s coronagraph to image the solar corona.
This configuration is similar to that of a large solar observatory, but with a special twist: the two spacecraft will be flying 150 metres apart in a highly elliptical orbit, maintaining their positions with sub-millimetre precision in an autonomous manner.
To put it into perspective, this is the same as shooting an arrow from 150 metres and hitting a target that’s 1 millimetre in diameter. Good luck trying.
This isn’t just a smart engineering: it’s a technological breakthrough that could (and most likely will) enable completely new types of space missions.
Why formation flying matters
Formation flying is the flight of multiple objects in coordination. Controlling the relative motion between two spacecraft is common practice in the industry. The easiest example is a capsule docking with the ISS. This however, only requires centimetre-level accuracy. Proba-3 takes this to the next order of magnitude.
In each 19.6-hour orbit, the two satellites will acquire and maintain their formation during the six-hour apogee phase, where scientific observations are performed. The rest of the orbit is spent in passive safe drifting to save fuel. This cycle includes a series of complex manoeuvres: acquisition, rendezvous, proximity operations, formation maintenance, and spacecraft formation breakup.
To achieve this level of precision, the mission uses advanced metrology systems as well as robust algorithms for relative navigation and collision avoidance.
Relative GPS for position updates
Optical and laser metrology for millimetre-accurate measurements
Advanced navigation software for autonomous collision avoidance
These are essential building blocks for future missions involving virtual telescopes, multi-satellite Earth observation systems, and even in-orbit satellite servicing.
A small testbed for innovative technology
Proba-3 is part of ESA’s General Support Technology Programme, a strategic initiative to help develop early-stage technologies to be used in future space missions. This makes it more than just a scientific mission. It’s a demonstrator for all the new technologies required to validate millimetre-accurate formation flying.
Each technological challenge overcome by Proba-3 represents a step towards more flexible space missions. For the curious, it has a budget of €200M.
Why is it a big deal?
Proba-3 is leading the way for future missions that require virtual structures in space. For instance, instead of building bigger space telescopes (remember James Webb’s unfolding origami?), formation flying technology could allow smaller and cheaper spacecraft to work together to achieve significantly greater focal lengths (and therefore, image resolution) than single-body spacecraft.
And this is only the beginning. The application of high precision formation flying goes beyond space telescopes: think of navigation, communications, debris removal (expect to see this soon as well) and more.
What’s next?
First, we have the launch on December 3. The commissioning period is expected to last approximately 4 months. And after that we will get the first results: images from the solar corona as never seen before (as seen from a 150-metre virtual occulter telescope in space…). I can’t wait to see these images. The mission is expected to last 2 years. After this the spacecraft will slowly decay and re-entre Earth’s atmosphere.
But this is just the beginning. If successful, the mission will prove that highly precise formation flying isn’t just a theoretical concept but a practical technology. The implications of this mission go beyond solar science or formation flying technology. It is also a sign of Europe’s commitment to continue pushing the boundaries of space technology.
As I heard someone say: “this mission isn’t just about looking at the stars—it’s about looking ahead”. And the view couldn’t be more exciting.
In other news
The new EU space commissioner outlines priorities. Read more.
BepiColombo performed a Mercury fly-by on December 1. Watch the images.
Astroscale approaches design review for first de-orbit mission. Read more.
Airbus selected to support UK’s Skynet satellite constellation. Read more.
China debuts new rocket. And it launched 2 sats to the Moon.
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To your success,
Jaime