GMV plays a key role in ESA’s Poseidon project for safer and more resilient maritime operations

The European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) in Madrid, Spain, hosted on September 17 the official kick-off and contract-signing ceremony for the projects selected under ESA’s IRIS² Low-LEO Pre-operational and De-risking Activities. Poseidon was among them, focusing on innovative satellite services for maritime surveillance, safety and resilience within the future European IRIS² programme.

Led by OHB Italia, Poseidon combines vessel tracking and communications through the VHF Data Exchange System (VDES), visible and thermal observation, and radio-frequency awareness. The project is designed to use secure IRIS² connectivity as a Space Data Relay Service, reducing data delivery times and enabling satellites to receive new tasking instructions more rapidly.

GMV plays a key role in defining the mission concept and demonstration activities. The company is responsible for the ground segment of the initial minimum viable infrastructure, as well as the final system design and verification strategy. GMV will also provide the MICE mechanical interface for the flight segment and the PSA-Kit for in-orbit optical and radio-frequency situational awareness.

In addition, GMV will ensure compatibility with the future EU IRIS² system, including its security requirements, and define the roadmap towards operational IRIS² services.

The GMV company, Alén Space, will also contribute key on-board technologies and systems‑engineering expertise.

Poseidon is intended to provide near-real-time maritime situational awareness across the Euro-Mediterranean region and adjacent waters. Its potential applications include the detection of unidentified vessels, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, maritime border surveillance, search and rescue, environmental monitoring and the protection of critical offshore infrastructure.

The event marked a key milestone for the European space industry, bringing together leading companies to launch activities aimed at advancing LEO technologies and supporting IRIS². It also served to define project roadmaps, technical goals and agreements involving 15 European consortia. Among the projects signed during the ceremony was also ARGUS, led by GMV to advance European spectrum monitoring and space-domain awareness through a distributed constellation of small satellites.