Hellas Sat and Thales Alenia Space have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on the development of an optical communication payload for the upcoming new mission to be embarked on the future Hellas Sat 5 telecommunications satellite, operating in geostationary orbit at 39 degrees East.
The MoU signing ceremony took place at Hellas Sat’s headquarters in Athens, Greece, attracting notable representatives from various entities, including the Prime Minister’s Office, the French embassy in Greece, ESA, CNES, Thales Alenia Space France, Italy and Switzerland, the National Athens Observatory, and several Greek ministries and local authorities.
The strategic partnership between Hellas Sat and Thales Alenia Space aims to deliver cutting-edge communication services with exceptionally high data rates from geostationary orbit. The proposed optical communication payload seeks to establish connectivity with the Optical Ground Station of the National Athens Observatory in Greece, Optical Ground Stations in France, the Optical Ground Stations of ESA, and Thales Alenia Space’s LEO HydRON telecommunication satellite.
Building on the success of the Vertigo H2020 program, Thales Alenia Space is actively advancing the development of very high data rate capacities, reaching up to 1 terabit/second. This initiative addresses the challenges of long-distance communication from ground to geostationary orbit, overcoming cross-atmospheric turbulence. Support from France Relance (CO-OP), CNES (DYSCO), and ESA (HydRON) underscores the commitment to pushing the boundaries of optical communication technology.
Commenting on the deal, Christodoulos Protopapas, CEO of Hellas Sat stated: “We are honoured to work once again with Thales Alenia Space in the realm of optical communication technology, introducing the optical connectivity communication services to the European and International market thus effectively achieving the implementation of new technologies and sealing a new era.”
Marc-Henri Serre, Executive Vice President of Telecommunications at Thales Alenia Space, added: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Hellas Sat and all our partners to develop optical communications payload, a crucial step towards establishing a secure and very high data rate optical network. This marks the beginning of a new era in telecommunication services with a sustainable approach.”
Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Vassilis Kikilias stated: “Undoubtedly, this is a big step towards technological progress, which in fact strengthens the cooperation between Greece and France. The Hellas Sat 5 satellite which is to be constructed will provide us with new possibilities in fields such as early forecasting and the collection of scientific data.”
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