ReOrbit, a prominent Helsinki-based supplier of software-first satellites, and the European Space Agency (ESA) have successfully finished the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) stage of the UKKO Mission project, which is a component of the InCubed program.
ReOrbit will conduct an in-orbit demonstration (IOD) as an independent standalone flight opportunity for the InCubed activity UKKO – Development and Demonstration of Technologies for Future Earth Observation (EO) Satellites. This will highlight the capabilities developed in the avionics architecture and the software stack in space, specifically an end-to-end EO value chain between EO payloads and the end users, as well as satellite-to-satellite and satellite-to-ground communication.
This will be accomplished by ReOrbit by fully operating an optical payload with a commercial EO customer that is onboarded. The commissioning and validation of the entire process, including imaging, onboard data processing, and data transfer to the customer’s location, will be handled by ReOrbit. Equipping the IOD bus with the optical terminal and the autonomy, storage, and data transport capabilities required to guarantee safe, error-free data transfer between satellites or between satellites and the ground is another crucial component of this mission.
“UKKO has achieved a significant milestone with the successful PDR,” ReOrbit’s CEO and founder, Sethu Saveda Suvanam, stated. “This detailed review ensures our satellite design meets key mission requirements, paving the way for intelligent, interconnected space platforms defined by software, enabling seamless network integration from space to ground.”
