27.09.2025
Credit: Isar Aerospace/ Simon Fischer / Wingmen Media
Isar Aerospace has signed a launch contract with R-Space to carry the company’s first two GreenBox satellites into orbit aboard the German rocket builder’s two-stage Spectrum rocket.
R-Space was founded in 2021 to provide an all-in-one solution for in-orbit demonstration and validation. Its GreenBox service lets customers integrate their technology into a standardised, box-shaped payload unit. R-Space then handles integration, launch, and mission operations, delivering the data the customer needs to validate technology readiness for space operations.
On 24 September, Isar Aerospace announced that it had been selected by R-Space to carry the first two GreenBox satellites to orbit aboard a Spectrum launch in the second quarter of 2026. The agreement also includes provisions for additional flights in 2026 and 2027.
According to the Isar Aerospace announcement, the cooperation between the two companies was enabled by the European Space Agency’s Marketplace initiative under the ScaleUp programme.
“The ESA Marketplace fuels commercial growth by connecting industry leaders through strategic partnerships,” said Gianluigi Baldesi, head of ESA’s Ventures and Financing team. “Helping two European companies in the face of Isar Aerospace and R-Space scale their business in a joint effort is a testament to the impact we aim to create.”
ESA introduced the ScaleUp programme following the 2022 Ministerial Council meeting to support the development of New Space companies, allowing them to “take more risks, hit the markets faster, attract investors, and introduce game-changing innovation.”
The programme is split into two elements: Innovate, which supports early-stage companies through initiatives such as ESA Business Incubation Centres, and Invest, which helps more mature companies grow with tools such as the Marketplace. The agency’s Member States have committed €122 million to the programme, with €98.46 million allocated for the Innovate element and €23.92 million for the Invest element.
The Marketplace supports companies with mature, market-ready technologies by providing them with visibility, helping them find customers and partners, accelerating their time to market, and facilitating contact with potential investors.
While the 24 September announcement marked the first public release of the pair’s involvement, an ESA Marketplace brochure published in January had already outlined a partnership to provide “an In-Orbit-Demonstration opportunity for two smallsat propulsion customers via R-Space’s Greenbox Platform, which will fly on one of the first Spectrum flights, Isar Aerospace’s launch vehicle.” The new launch service contract appears to formalise that earlier partnership.
Quelle: European Spaceflight LTD