Catalonia will launch in autumn a satellite tv for pc to place into orbit the primary European laboratory 6g | Economy | EUROtoday
The Catalan spatial footprint nonetheless has a margin to unfold past the one which already left Enxaneta, the Nanosatellite launched in 2021 with the goal of giving protection to the Internet of issues via 5G expertise. The Generalitat, along with the I2CAT Research Center and the Catalan firm Open Cosmos, will launch in mid -October on 6Gstarlab, the primary European Research Laboratory 6G in low orbit. The improvement of this future expertise will complement terrestrial networks and its mission is to cut back the digital hole in distant or remoted areas of Catalan geography. It will enable the premise of latest technological purposes in areas comparable to telemedicine, distance training, mobility or prevention and mitigation of pure fires and disasters. The Californian army and house base of Vandenberg, in Santa Barbara County, has been the placement chosen to host this historic occasion.
After 9 months of building – a report time for a challenge of those traits – the satellite tv for pc is already prepared on the Open Cosmos services, in Barcelona. To materialize the challenge, I2CAT has awarded a public contract to the Catalan firm for a worth of 1.65 million euros. The funding covers the design, manufacture, integration, launch and implementation of the satellite tv for pc, deliberate initially of 2026. “Now it is about building much more. We want to produce more satellites with an industrializing mentality that allows us to attract the main telecommunications projects in Europe to Catalonia,” Celebrate Rafael Jordà, CEO of Open Cosmos.
The machine is lowered, of not more than 50 centimeters in size, however doesn’t attain the class of Nanosatelite. The small bucket will give attention to the analysis and improvement of non -land networks (NTN) and can enable experimentally to validate new communication applied sciences in an actual setting in house. The 6Gstarlab goals to discover the interconnections between terrestrial and non -terrestrial networks. That is, it will likely be a sort of protection extension for cell operators, as was already the tiny enxake. “Non -land networks use nodes such as high altitude satellites or platforms to transmit information. They are crucial because they complement land. This integration allows to create hybrid networks that improve the performance of communications and offer a transparent user experience,” explains Sergi Figuerola, normal director of I2Cat.

The mission can have a phase of land positioned in Móra La Nova (Tarragona), from the place satellite tv for pc experiments will probably be managed. This earth’s base will embody a broadband monitoring station (KA-BAND), a key expertise for future non-terrestrial networks. The gear can have a terrestrial optical station that to ascertain bidirectional laser communications Earth-space and facilitate the transmission of excessive velocity information.
Given the rising world threats when it comes to cybersecurity, the pioneer initiative goals to consolidate a brand new technology of secure communications to guard authorities, monetary, enterprise and private techniques. In this manner, the challenge follows the highway map of the European Space Agency (that), which is none apart from making this expertise obtainable to the scientific neighborhood for the event of progressive options in numerous sectors.
Thus, the Government needs to postulate Catalonia as a world reference within the export of house expertise, connectivity and telecommunications. “We must recover the economic leadership. Europe is at a complex moment in which you need to recover technological sovereignty against the United States and China,” says the Minister of the Presidency and president of the Board of Trustees of the I2Cat Center, Albert Dalmau, who additionally claims the capability that Catalonia has to retain and entice expertise.
https://elpais.com/economia/2025-07-26/cataluna-lanzara-en-otono-un-satelite-para-poner-en-orbita-el-primer-laboratorio-europeo-6g.html