Greece has launched two high-resolution radar satellites to strengthen disaster management, environmental monitoring and national security, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Friday.
The satellites, developed by Finnish company ICEYE and financed through the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility, were sent into orbit on 28 November aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-15 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The launch also carried two ESA HydroGNSS Scout satellites and the latest batch of Italy’s IRIDE satellites.
The radar spacecraft are the first operational Earth-observation satellites under Greece’s National Small Satellite Programme, which plans a constellation of 13 satellites equipped with different types of sensors. Each ICEYE satellite weighs about 120 kg and operates in X-band to capture day-and-night imagery with resolutions of up to 25 cm.
ESA is providing technical support for the programme, which is run by the Hellenic Space Center and Greece’s Ministry of Digital Governance. The agency aims to ensure the project integrates with Europe’s wider Earth-observation data networks.
The satellites will improve Greece’s ability to monitor floods, wildfires and landslides, enabling faster response during emergencies. Under an agreement with ICEYE, the satellites will be operated in orbit by the company, while Greece gains access to ICEYE’s wider radar constellation – the largest of its kind worldwide.
“The selection of ICEYE to develop these satellites highlights ESA’s commitment to supporting national space programmes,” said Simonetta Cheli, ESA’s Director of Earth Observation Programmes.
Greece’s Digital Governance and AI Minister Dimitrios Papastergiou said the launch would strengthen the country’s capacity to monitor land and maritime areas “in all weather and lighting conditions” while supporting growth in the domestic space sector.
Greece plans to add 11 more satellites to the constellation next year, including four thermal-infrared satellites developed by OroraTech and seven high-resolution optical satellites from Open Cosmos. The additions aim to advance environmental monitoring, agricultural planning and wildfire detection.