The European Commission gave the green light on 31 October 2024 to IRIS² (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security via Satellite), a new one satellite constellation which aims to be there European response to the satellite system Starlink of the tycoon Elon Musk. The IRIS² project, to which a budget of 2.4 billion euros has been allocated, will be carried out by SpaceRise consortium which will develop, implement and manage the European Union’s secure connectivity satellite system. The satellite constellation will consist of 290 satellites divided between low earth orbit (below 2000 km altitude from the earth’s surface) ed medium earth orbit (between 2000 km and 35,000 km).
The network is designed to provide services secure connectivity to the member states of the European Union e broadband connection for both government bodies, private businesses and European citizens, especially in areas that are currently not covered by ground broadband. Full operation is expected between 2027 and 2030, with the first launches possibly in 2025. One of the three control centers of the constellation will be located in Italy.
What is the EU IRIS2 project
IRIS² is a European Union project that aims to build a satellite constellation to provide a Internet connection via satellite safe for public and private entities. IRIS² is the acronym for Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security via Satellite and it is the third largest European space project, after Copernicus and Galileo. THE’full operation was initially scheduled for 2027, but was postponed to 2030 after the transition from the Thales Alenia Space consortium to the SpaceRise consortium.
The IRIS² constellation, once completed, will consist of a total of 290 satellites distributed amonglow earth orbiti.e. up to 2000 km above sea level, andmedium earth orbitwhich reaches up to around 35,000 km in height, where the satellites are located geostationarythat is, they orbit at the same angular velocity as the Earth, appearing from the Earth’s surface always at the same point in the sky.
What are the objectives of IRIS2
IRIS² aims to integrate with terrestrial 5G networks to deliver to deliver broadband internet access through two types of services, a more secure one intended for communications by government bodies, and one intended for private individuals, which is proposed as direct alternative to broadband satellite internet connections provided by satellites Starlink by Elon Munsk. Satellite networks are especially useful for those remote areas where you don’t have wired broadband connections.
The European Union has approved the IRIS² project. This requires a quantitative and qualitative improvement of the European Union’s government satellite capabilities, moving towards higher security solutionslow latency and higher bandwidth. Among them government applications of IRIS² there will be border and maritime surveillance, crisis management, connection and protection of key infrastructure, security and defense, for example by providing encrypted connections for soldiers engaged in war scenarios.
There will also be no shortage of applications in the private sector which, in addition to offering satellite internet connection for European citizens cheaply, they will enable the intelligent management of energy networks, banking, overseas industrial activities, remote healthcare and rural connectivity. Internet coverage via satellite, rather than wired, will allow the further development of high-speed broadband both in the European Union itself, eliminating dead zones of internet coverage, what about geographical areas of strategic interest outside the Union, in particular the Arctic and Africa, bypassing any limitations in terrestrial connections.
Who will build the European IRIS2 satellites
Initially IRIS² was supposed to be built by a consortium formed by Thales Alenia Space and Airbus, who had put on the table an initial offer of 6 billion euros, which later became 10 billion, considered too expensive according to the European Commission. The ball is then passed to the SpaceRise consortiumwhose offer, although not made public, was accepted by the European Commission, with one slip of the planned launch however from 2027 to 2030. The SpaceRise consortium consists of three well-known European satellite operators, Ses Sa, Eutelsat Sa and Hispasat Sa.
The concession contract has a duration of 12 years and consists of a public and private partnership. The public part will be financed by the European Union and the European Space Agency, while the private part will be financed by the SpaceRise consortium. Since this is a long-term project that covers multiple EU budgets, currently the funds allocated cover the costs until 2027. Further amounts may be granted after this date, but they will have to pass through the scrutiny of the European Parliament which will have to evaluate the state of the work and whether the cost prospects fall within the initial budget envisaged by the project.
