The UK was in the spotlight last week as the UK Space Conference took place in Manchester. Always an important date in the space calendar, this year was no exception with astronauts, enthusiasts, space tech experts, engineers, researchers and many more converging on the city for the biennial event. The two-day conference was part of a busy week in the UK for ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher, who also celebrated the tenth birthday of ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) on Tuesday.
ESA’s ECSAT site is one of ESA’s best kept secrets. Named after Roy Gibson BEM, the first Director General of ESA, and based at Harwell in Oxfordshire, it is small but perfectly formed and is expanding rapidly. It sits at the gateway of the Oxford-Cambridge Arc, a world-leading centre of excellence for innovation and technology, and with the UK driving commercialisation in the space sector, it is no coincidence that it is the home of ESA’s largest commercial programme, Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS).
Returning to Manchester, ESA had a large presence at the heart of the conference and colleagues from BASS, Earth observation and telecommunications had many fruitful conversations about how the application of space-based technologies is playing an increasingly vital role in solving some of Earth’s most pressing issues, especially around sustainability and the green transition. ESA BASS’ presence extended beyond the ESA pavilion, with ESA ambassadors and project companies exhibiting and visiting individually and as part of the growing space clusters in the UK regions.
In his keynote speech at the conference, Josef Aschbacher reiterated the significance of the UK in the space sector and outlined the potential for space to supercharge the UK’s economy.
“ESA will work with Member States, the European Commission, and international partners to harness space for the betterment of life on Earth” said Mr Aschbacher. “The decisions made at the ESA Council Meeting in November will ensure a more secure and prosperous future for all Europeans, and the UK and its industry will play a significant role in this endeavour. The relationship between ESA and the UK is productive, mutually beneficial, and strategically important.”
With private investment in space continuing to soar, last year European space ventures raised over 1.5 billion euro, marking a 56% increase compared to 2023. In 2024, global private investment in space grew by 20%—to 7 billion euros—compared to 2023. Over the past five years, Europe's share of global private investment in space has grown significantly, from 3% in 2019 to 22% in 2024. However, public investment in space is falling behind. In 2024, Europe captured just 10% of the global public space budget, a decrease of 5% since 2019.
Speaking from Manchester at the UK Space Conference, Nick Appleyard, Head of ESA BASS, said “The UK’s commitment to supporting businesses is never better illustrated than at these events, as we see how they are accessing space technologies to develop innovative products that protect our planet. It has been wonderful to see so many of the companies BASS have supported here this week and to hear their plans for expansion and scale.”
The UK was in the spotlight last week as the UK Space Conference took place in Manchester. Always an important date in the space calendar, this year was no exception with astronauts, enthusiasts, space tech experts, engineers, researchers and many more converging on the city for the biennial event. The two-day conference was part of a busy week in the UK for ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher, who also celebrated the tenth birthday of ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) on Tuesday.
UK tech company Secure Innovation has launched its Remote Planet platform, a new service which uses space technology to provide remote management and monitoring of high value assets and infrastructure. The service, developed under ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme, offers customisable round-the-clock protection solutions for cash, logistics, critical assets and valuable assets in even the most remote locations, and is capable of safeguarding people in high-risk locations.
Managing high value assets securely and efficiently is increasingly challenging for businesses, especially those operating in hard-to-reach areas. Remote Planet offers a single, easy-to-use platform with custom reporting tools for businesses. As part of the project with ESA, the system was tested across three continents and successfully demonstrated a dual-directional command and monitoring capability able to offer exceptional uptime for customers using the service.
The geo-location settings are a key feature of the new service. Global Navigation Satellite Services (GNSS) provide a location fix down to just 5 metres for accurate visibility. By harnessing a range of space technology and, crucially, the judicious use of data via a global Lower Earth Orbit (LEO) communication network to ensure seamless coverage when GNSS services are unreliable, Remote Planet is able to offer worldwide connectivity. The platform switches seamlessly to and from 4G when connectivity is threatened, resulting in ultra-high uptime levels.
As well as providing geo-location settings, the real time service means that protection settings can be changed according to time, location or status. It allows businesses to react quickly to changing landscapes, and the system also has the capacity to interpret sensor readings and send messages automatically, anticipating unforeseen events which might cause harm.
By developing the software for the new system alongside its proprietary hardware, Secure Innovation Group has been able to develop a smart system that can be quickly and efficiently adapted and refined according to user requirements, without waiting for third party development rollouts and whilst still remaining compatible with mainstream systems. After sales support is a crucial element of the Remote Planet offering, with connectivity and IoT technology sitting alongside the hardware.
Marco Sartori, ESA Technical Officer on the Remote Planet project said “This has been a really interesting project, focusing on developing not only the software but also evolving the proprietary hardware, enabling a full service agile platform with the capacity and flexibility to react quickly to customer requirements.”
The Remote Planet optimised service helps save businesses time by reducing the need for unnecessary site visits which have an impact on the environment, and its enhanced security features mean that it is also cost effective. Now operating in 15 countries across five continents, the platform already protects and monitors thousands of assets daily, valued at over £100 billion. Secure Innovation, based in Cornwall (in the far southwest of the UK) has, through the collaboration with ESA, reinforced its position as a major employer in the area, and is now equipped to expand further.
“As a leading technology business, already securing cash and valuable assets in over 40 countries, Remote Planet has enabled Secure Innovation Group to bring flexible space-based IOT connectivity directly to assets over a wide range of industries across the globe” said Anthony McAndrew, Director of Connectivity at Secure Innovation. “The collaboration with ESA has been a fantastic experience, and it has enabled us to grow our business reach to existing customers in the secure logistics market, as well as adjacent markets. It’s exciting to consider the sheer range of solutions we can now provide to a myriad of customers anywhere on the planet through the Remote Planet platform.”
UK tech company Secure Innovation Group has launched its Remote Planet platform, a new service which uses space technology to provide remote management and monitoring of high value assets and infrastructure.
The Belfast Harbour is hosting a one-day workshop on behalf of The European Space Agency (ESA) and the United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA). The event will examine needs and priorities of the port sector around the themes of decarbonisation and sustainability and explore possible roles for current and emerging space data and services in supporting the green transition of port ecosystems.
Workshop Overview
The workshop will examine industry requirements for decarbonisation in known priority areas including onshore power, green shipping corridors and uptake of renewable energy solutions.
Efficiency gains achievable through digitalisation of port operations will be examined including monitoring the impact of decarbonisation on port air quality, greenhouse gas emissions and water quality.
Emerging solutions enabled by space data and services will be presented and their potential for commercial exploitation by the port industry will be explored.
Event Programme
08.30 – 09.45 Registration and Refreshments
09.45 – 10.15 Welcome and Introductions
Belfast Harbour - Kyle Flanigan, Infrastructure & Capacity Planning Lead
Belfast City Council - Debbie Caldwell, Climate Commissioner
UK Space Agency - Chris White-Horne, Deputy CEO for Programme Delivery
European Space Agency - Géraldine Naja, Director of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness
10.15 – 11.45 Port Ecosystems, Current Status and Future Directions
Session Chair - Kyle Flanigan, Belfast Harbour
Port Industry Challenges - Mark Simmonds, Director of Policy & External Affairs, British Ports Association Download the presentation
Green Shipping Corridors - Mark Wray, Ecosystem Director of Maritime and Ports, Connected Places Catapult Download the presentation
Remote monitoring and control of semi-autonomous vessels – Ghazaleh Kia, Seafar NV Download the presentation
16.00 - 16.15 Summary and Wrap Up Session
European Space Agency, UK Space Agency, Redshift Associates
Who should attend?
This exciting event will interest port operators, users, and stakeholders with ambitions towards decarbonisation and Net Zero port operations; service providers offering relevant transferable technologies from the space and other sectors, and representatives from the SME sector looking for markets for their early stage (TRL 4-6 use cases) capabilities.
Optimisation and energy efficiency technologies applied to the port sector.
Vessel efficiency focused on data, software or autonomy.
Autonomous vessels and port vehicles including subsystems such as control systems and sensors.
New measures driving port decarbonisation including sensors and robotic systems.
Port operations optimisation and digitisation.
Digital tools such as for port emissions monitoring.
Opportunities to introduce new technologies into the maritime sector
Image credit : Distribution Airbus DS, Project: LUCI
UK satellite operator and Earth observation experts Airbus Defence and Space has conducted a pilot project for Network Rail delivering land use and land use change data around the UK rail network. Project LUCI (Land Use Change Identification) was developed under ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme. It delivers a baseline land use report tailored to Network Rail’s specifications which is updated every six months to provide accurate and timely information at a scale and resolution previously unavailable to Network Rail.
The initial project delivers baseline land use information for 25% of the UK rail network, at a resolution of 50cm. Derived from Airbus Pleiades VHR optical imagery and using supporting datasets including ESA’s Sentinels 1 and 2, the service is updated every six months with fresh imagery. A layer is produced highlighting areas that have undergone change, therefore identifying the changing risk profile of the area.
Visualising and analysing the land adjacent to railway infrastructure is a key factor in developing and maintaining efficient networks. Both large and small-scale land use changes can have serious and potentially dangerous implications for railway networks; geospatial data can identify and anticipate these risks, enabling operators to understand the effects and develop sustainable solutions. For example, if land adjacent to a railway has been recently developed and now contains more impervious surfaces, the area may be at increased risk of flooding. This flood risk could have an impact on the railway lines, putting lives in danger on and off the track.
“Airbus continues its partnership with Network Rail to deliver detailed land use data and change information,” said Thomas Harling at Airbus. “Our partnership, supported by ESA, highlights how Airbus imagery partnered with our AI and land use expertise can drive innovation in the geospatial industry. LUCI demonstrates that actionable intelligence from space can make a difference to businesses and ultimately to public safety”
Airbus has shown that accurate land use information can be produced and updated at much faster frequencies than that provided by aerial survey. Airbus has also shown that the level of detail available is much higher than from traditional land use data sources.
The results from project LUCI have been analysed and demonstrate that the data can provide valuable actionable intelligence . This data enables Network Rail to have an up-to-date picture of the landscape around the railway boundaries and means that they can optimise the use of resources and focus them on the areas most at risk. This is far more cost effective than systematic inspections and can lead to quicker response times.
“Space technologies are an enabler for the digitalisation of railways. In particular, the use of satellite Earth observation data allows for efficient management of rail infrastructure, with a reduction of operational costs” says Enrico Spinelli, ESA Technical Officer of the LUCI demonstration project.
By leveraging geospatial data, Network Rail have the operational tools to stay on top of these changes in land use and develop plans to ensure the safety and sustainability of their networks, their employees, and the passengers they serve.
“Network Rail is proud to invest our R&D resources into this important initiative across multiple off-track disciplines,” said Stephen Brooks from Network Rail. “Maintaining safe and sustainable railway networks to best serve our clients is our top priority, and the data-driven insights delivered by Airbus will better enable us to provide transportation to the people of Great Britain. The LUCI project will enable us to better understand land use change beyond our boundary fence that may impact the operational railway.”
The processing technology behind project LUCI will allow the project to be scaled across the whole of the UK network and to other rail networks as needed.
UK satellite operator and Earth observation experts Airbus Defence and Space has conducted a pilot project for Network Rail delivering land use and land use change data around the UK rail network.
With the aviation sector accounting for around 2.5% of global CO2 emissions, developing smarter and greener practices for airlines and associated industries is both a major challenge and a global imperative. As part of the European Space Agency’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme and supported by the UK Space Agency (UKSA), UK green aerospace company SATAVIA has successfully completed a Demonstration Project involving contrail management trials with multiple airlines. The atmospheric modelling platform developed in the project has the potential to significantly reduce the impact of air travel on the environment.
In 2021, the United Nations IPCC Climate Impact Report stated that aviation’s non-CO2 climate impacts constituted a highly significant component of the sector’s overall climate footprint, largely due to the creation of aircraft condensation trials (contrails). Contrails form at high altitudes when water vapour from aircraft engine exhaust freezes into ice crystals. Contrails mostly dissipate quickly, but in some conditions they can persist for many hours. These contrails can trap heat from the Earth, especially at night when sunlight is absent, thus contributing to atmospheric global warming. Using a conservative metric (GWP100), aircraft contrails account for more than half the climate impact of aviation’s CO2 footprint.
The SATAVIA DECISIONX:NETZERO project saw an evolution of the company’s core DECISIONX technology, developed under an earlier project with ESA BASS, which used airborne contaminant, satellite and aircraft datasets to optimise jet engine maintenance cycles (leading to potential for 9% increase in time-on-wing and saving up to $55K per aircraft per year). Building on this core technology, SATAVIA coupled numerical weather prediction modelling with per-flight contrail climate impact modelling. This approach enables the identification of individual flights which are likely to form persistent warming contrails, in turn enabling navigational avoidance and climate benefit calculations. Leveraging this technological capability, the project set out to demonstrate that contrail management is operationally possible and offers credible non-CO2 climate impact savings.
SATAVIA approach to contrail management
SATAVIA engaged twelve airlines including Condor, Icelandair, and SunExpress for the next stage of the project, deploying its sophisticated atmospheric modelling technology to optimise 65 flights for contrail management. The technology was able to identify airspace where warming persistent contrails are most likely to form and, as a consequence, optimise flight plans in real time to prevent this taking place. These trials saw an average reduction in non-CO2 climate impact of >40 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (T/CO2e) per optimised flight, with a total prevented climate impact of more than 2,200 T/CO2e in total. Interestingly, this flight optimisation saw minimal impact upon flight times and fuel consumption, especially during long haul flights.
“The trials conducted during the project were very positive. All the airlines involved took this project very seriously throughout and the funding from ESA made it possible for SATAVIA to engage a larger number of airlines, resulting in a wider data range,” said Arnaud Runge, Technical Officer at the European Space Agency, who also holds an airline pilot license. “The trials were vital in highlighting how space technologies can support the environmental efforts being made in aviation, at a challenging time for the sector.”
SATAVIA contrail management carbon methodology
Dr Craig Brown, Director of Investment at the UK Space Agency, said: “We know that aviation is a key contributor to carbon emissions, so it’s vital to explore how technologies such as greener fuels can address this. The results from the DECISIONX trials – which used ESA’s Earth observation data for atmospheric modelling – demonstrate how fundamental the use of space is to this global ambition. SATAVIA’s technology could make a significant impact on the voluntary carbon market, boosting opportunities for aviation sector investment in the UK, while supporting major industry initiatives against climate change.”
For the first time in the sector, 2025 will see the introduction of mandatory monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of aviation’s non-CO2 impacts (including contrails) under the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS), as the commercial aviation sector looks to mitigate the damaging effects of contrails, soot, nitrous oxides, and other non-CO2 effects. By the end of 2027, the European Commission will also submit a report that may lead to mandatory contrail avoidance within relevant territories. Alongside these policy developments, SATAVIA has patented a new methodology to generate future voluntary carbon credits from contrail management and provide financing for contrail management in advance of regulation. The method is currently undergoing design certification with Gold Standard, following concept approval in August 2023, and – once approved – will help to scale contrail management across commercial aviation.
Dr Adam Durant, who founded SATAVIA in 2013, said “This new voluntary carbon market will be worth billions of dollars globally, creating a bottom-line rationale for operators to cut their non-CO2 climate footprint in the absence of regulation. As a low-cost, easy-to-implement software solution, contrail management can help move aviation towards climate-neutral operation on near-term timescales. UKSA and ESA support for action on contrails is driving progress in this hard-to-abate industry.”
Looking to the future, SATAVIA aims to build on the success of this ESA BASS project with further R&D activity, including via collaborations with air navigation service providers (ANSPs) to identify challenges and opportunities for scaling contrail management within routine commercial aviation.
As part of the European Space Agency’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme and supported by the UK Space Agency (UKSA), UK green aerospace company SATAVIA has successfully completed a Demonstration Project involving contrail management trials with multiple airlines.
UK satellite and Earth observation specialist Earth-i has successfully delivered an operational system which provides up-to-date information on global supply chains for metals and minerals. The Global Activity Indices from Space (GAINS) project, developed under ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme, focuses on two key areas - global steel smelting operations and movements of iron ore for steel production - and has already gained its first customers, underscoring the sector’s appetite for such a system.
Earth-i’s GAINS service monitors and tracks activity at numerous globally distributed industrial sites to provide high-frequency indicators of activity in complex supply chains, with a focus on sites producing tradeable goods and high-value commodities. Two products were developed as part of the project: a steel smelter activity monitoring service that covers over 95% of known global steel production, and an iron ore stockpiles product focusing on Chinese ports.
Recognising that ground sources can be unreliable and patchy, GAINS uses a mix of very-high, high, medium and low resolution Earth observation data to deliver data-agnostic geospatial insights in a format that is easy for non-technologists to understand and use. The two initial products use different automated methods to process the data, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, spectroscopic analysis and volumetric calculations.
The steel smelter product offers daily monitoring and a continuous dataset dating back to 2016, enabling users to aggregate data by company, country or region, or have custom filters, with options to compare production between different countries or regions. Globally, there are over 1200 sites related to steel production, of which around 800 are operational.
Francesco Feliciani, Head of the Company Led Projects Division at ESA, said “We are pleased to have supported Earth-i in the development of this service which has been well-received by industry, having already been adopted by targeted customers.”
Target markets for GAINS include traders, asset owners, market research companies and regulators. GAINS can provide data down to individual asset performance level or aggregated up to a macro-economic level, depending on the requirements of each trader. Meanwhile, market regulators can use the data to better understand market movements and validate information being reported by industrial operators.
Earth-i launched the live operational GAINS service in May 2023 on a subscription basis. It currently uses optical satellite data of different resolutions from multiple operators, but will later expand to include radar and thermal imaging data, with the programme designed to accommodate other satellite and remote-sensing sources as well as new open source datasets.
Charles Davis, CEO at Earth-i commented “The GAINS service demonstrates the power and scalability of fusing Earth Observation (EO) data and AI to be able to monitor, process and analyse over 1,000 sites dispersed around the globe on a daily basis to a high level of accuracy, and at a low cost. At a time that supply chains are becoming more opaque and more complex, GAINS provides the near-real time transparency our customers require to gain a competitive advantage by being able to validate data 30-90 days ahead of their competition. Earth-i is grateful to ESA and the UK Space Agency for their support to the GAINS project.”
The scalable architecture developed and demonstrated under the BASS project will enable Earth-i to add more product lines in future, such as lead, zinc and other commodities, and extend coverage along entire production chains in specific industries. With scrap steel smelting set to become a major focus in the steel industry, the company is also looking at a scrap steel stockpile monitoring product; the European Union has set a target of 40% of capacity to adopt this approach by 2032. With a transition to electric smelters predicted to result in 80-95% reduction in emissions, Earth-i also has plans to monitor and forecast the pollution caused by steel smelting, to support regulators and authorities to improve the environmental impact of the industry.
UK satellite and Earth observation specialist Earth-i has successfully delivered an operational system which provides up-to-date information on global supply chains for metals and minerals.
It’s not every day astronauts visit Belfast, but last week ESA astronaut reserve member John McFall joined thousands of delegates at the UK Space Conference, held for the first time in the city. An opportunity to showcase the role of the UK in the European space sector, representatives from ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) and Earth Observation (EOP) programmes were on hand at the ESA Connect Zone to demonstrate their work and discuss future opportunities with businesses and researchers.
The Zone was highly popular with visitors who, using the Earth observation interactive table, discovered the impact of climate change around the world. This information was made possible by Earth observation satellites which provide extraordinary insights into our climate and environment with the data they produce used across multiple applications. Visitors also enjoyed meeting Europe's first 'Lamb-baaaassador' Shaun the Sheep, who returned from the Artemis I mission to the moon in December 2022, and John McFall who inspired young delegates with career and learning opportunities in the space industry.
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Shaun the Sheep with ESA astronaut reserve member John McFall
Speaking on the final day of the conference, Nick Appleyard, Head of Applications and Solutions at ESA, explained how space technology is already improving life on earth, helping protect critical infrastructure, aiding emergency responses to crises and playing a vital role in the global fight to combat climate change.
With space defined as part of the UK’s Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), developing resilient space technologies is key. “CNI relies on a wide range of resilient space technologies including position, navigation and timing (PNT) services and we are committed to making these services more resilient for both CNI users and our wider economy,” explained Nick. “Space capabilities are already central to many basic and safety-critical civil functions and this dependency on space will only increase.”
Looking at the role of satellite applications in the green transition, the figures speak for themselves. With more than 183M Euro invested in 300 green ESA BASS activities across a wide range of sectors since 2010, the work of BASS is impacting lives not only in Europe but around the world. The vast majority of the investment is in four key areas: sustainable transport, protecting ecosystems, sustainable agriculture and the green energy transition. ESA is working closely with key players in these areas. Tasks forces are already established in the automotive, energy and smart cities domains, with more planned.
“The green transition now drives 48% of all new ESA Space Solutions and is expected to rise,” said Nick. “Researchers and innovators will use space in new and exciting ways, improving the way we live and work and the UK is poised to be in the vanguard of this next phase of space innovation.”
The UK is the largest contributor to the BASS programme, with 50million GBP available to UK companies proposing sustainable Space Solutions in the BASS programme in 2024-25. It is also home to ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT).
Representatives from ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) and Earth Observation (EOP) programmes were on hand at the UK Space Conference to demonstrate their work and discuss future opportunities.
The UK was in the spotlight last week as the UK Space Conference took place in Manchester. Always an important date in the space calendar, this year was no exception with astronauts, enthusiasts, space tech experts, engineers, researchers and many more converging on the city for the biennial event. The two-day conference was part of a busy week in the UK for ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher, who also celebrated the tenth birthday of ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) on Tuesday. 
ESA’s ECSAT site is one of ESA’s best kept secrets. Named after Roy Gibson BEM, the first Director General of ESA, and based at Harwell in Oxfordshire, it is small but perfectly formed and is expanding rapidly. It sits at the gateway of the Oxford-Cambridge Arc, a world-leading centre of excellence for innovation and technology, and with the UK driving commercialisation in the space sector, it is no coincidence that it is the home of ESA’s largest commercial programme, Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS). 
